Tow Truck Accident Lawyers: Get Paid What You're Owed

 

 

 

Common Causes of Tow Truck Accidents and Who's Liable

Tow truck crashes happen when operators back up without warning, fail to secure loads properly, drive fatigued after excessive shifts, make wide turns cutting off traffic, or use defective equipment that breaks under load.

Most victims never see it coming until impact.

These accidents are typically preventable.

Distracted Driving During Hookup Operations

Tow truck operators work in dangerous conditions hooking chains on busy highways while managing hydraulic controls and dispatch calls.

That divided attention causes rear-end collisions, pedestrian strikes, and multi-vehicle crashes when drivers focus on securing vehicles instead of watching traffic.

Blind Spot Crashes and Backing Accidents

Towing trucks have massive blind spots made worse by the towed vehicle blocking rear visibility.

Drivers can't see cars, motorcycles, or pedestrians directly behind or alongside the truck.

Backing accidents are common in:

• Parking lots - Tow trucks backing out of spaces without spotters
• Highway shoulders - Reversing into traffic lanes to position for hookup
• Residential streets - Backing up to repossess vehicles at night
• Accident scenes - Poor visibility combined with emergency vehicle lights and chaos

Improper Load Securing and Equipment Failures

Chains break, straps snap, and hydraulic lifts fail when towing companies skip maintenance and ignore state regulations for securing towed vehicles.

The result? A vehicle separates from the tow truck at highway speeds and becomes a deadly obstacle crushing smaller cars.

Fatigued Drivers and Excessive Work Hours

Tow truck drivers work brutal 24/7 schedules and many pull double shifts to maximize income, potentially violating Federal Hours of Service regulations through DOT rules that limit commercial driver time behined the wheel to limit fatigue.

Driver fatigue impairs judgment as severely as alcohol intoxication and is a frequent causal factor for crashes we handle.

Who Pays When You're Injured?

Liability can involve multiple parties in a towing vehicle involved crash. Your attorney will work to uncover every negligent party, insurance policy, and legal angle to pursue maximum recovery.

Multiple insurance policy layers typically means additional paths for increasing potential compensation.

Tow Truck Driver Liability: Operators are personally liable for negligent driving including speeding, distracted driving, failures to yield, improper lane changes, DUI, and violating traffic laws. Driver negligence can play a role in a rear-end collision to a head-on wreck depending on the nature of what happened.

Towing Company Liability: Companies face vicarious liability exposure for employee actions plus potential direct liability for negligent hiring, inadequate training, failure to maintain vehicles, unsafe work policies, and ignoring safety regulations.

Vehicle Owner Liability: The person who called for the tow can be liable in some cases if they created hazardous conditions by illegally parking, blocking traffic lanes, or failing to place warning devices.

Property Owner Liability: Business owners and landlords may share fault for unsafe towing zones, inadequate lighting, poor traffic flow design, or contracting with unqualified towing services.

Equipment Manufacturer Liability: Defective winches, hydraulic systems, brake components, or safety equipment create product liability claims against manufacturers and distributors.

Maintenance Contractor Liability: Third-party mechanics who performed inadequate inspections or repairs can be held liable for equipment failures that cause crashes.

If you feel you may have a case, contact our firm for compassionate legal advice. Clients are encouraged to call whenever they need answers or reassurance. There are multiple reasons why you want to begin your case against a truck driver or towing company as soon as possible.

Holding Tow Truck Companies Accountable for Negligence

Tow truck companies are responsible for injuries caused by their drivers' reckless operation, inadequate training programs, defective equipment maintenance, and systematic violations of federal and state safety regulations.

When their negligence injures you, they should pay.

Towing companies owe a duty of care to everyone sharing the road.

That means properly training drivers. Maintaining equipment. Following Hours of Service regulations.

Conducting background checks. Supervising operations.

Many don't.

They hire drivers with poor records because those drivers accept lower wages.

They skip routine brake inspections to save money.

They pressure operators to complete more calls per shift regardless of safety concerns.

Compensation for Tow Truck Crash Victims

In the aftermath of a truck crash, we understand how important securing financial compensation is for you and your family.

You can recover economic damages for medical bills and lost income, non-economic damages for pain and suffering, and punitive damages when towing companies act with gross negligence.

Every case is different, but don't accept the insurance company's first lowball offer.

Here's what you may be entitled to recover:

• Medical Expenses (Past and Future): Emergency room treatment, ambulance transport, hospital stays, surgeries, prescription medications, physical therapy, occupational therapy, medical equipment, in-home nursing care, and future treatment costs for permanent injuries.
• Lost Wages and Earning Capacity: Income you missed while recovering, sick days used, vacation time burned, future wages if you can't return to your career, reduced earning potential from permanent disability, and loss of benefits like health insurance and retirement contributions.
• Pain and Suffering: Physical pain from injuries, emotional distress from trauma, loss of enjoyment of life, inability to participate in hobbies and activities, damage to family relationships, and psychological counseling costs.
• Property Damage: Vehicle repair or replacement costs, damaged personal property in the car, rental car expenses while your vehicle is being fixed, and diminished value of your repaired vehicle.
• Punitive Damages: In cases involving gross negligence, reckless conduct, or willful safety violations, courts may award punitive damages designed to punish the towing company and deter future misconduct.

While truck crash settlements are typically bigger due to the injury profiles of victims and other legal factors, each case is unique. When our legal team has reviewed the unique facts and evidence in your case we'll be able to help determine what your case may be worth.