Description

An 18-wheeler accident attorney in Richardson helps crash victims preserve trucking evidence, deal with commercial insurers, and file a Texas claim on time. This guide answers the questions people ask after a semi-truck wreck in Collin and Dallas County.

18-Wheeler Accident Attorney Richardson: What Victims Need to Know After a Truck Crash

#TLDR
A wreck with an 18-wheeler is not a typical car crash. The trucking company, its insurer, and sometimes a cargo broker all move fast to lock down their story. Texas generally gives you two years to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit, but the electronic data that proves how the truck was driven can disappear much sooner. If you were hurt near US-75, President George Bush Turnpike, or another Richardson corridor, get medical care first, then talk with an 18-wheeler accident attorney before you give a recorded statement.

• Seek medical care even if you feel “fine.”
• Photograph the scene, vehicles, and your injuries.
• Do not agree to a quick settlement from the trucking insurer.
• Ask counsel to send a preservation letter for the truck’s electronic logging device and event data recorder.
• Call Feizy Law Office at (214) 651-8686 for a free consultation.

Questions this article answers

• Why does an 18-wheeler crash need a different kind of lawyer?
• What should you do in the first 24 hours after a Richardson truck wreck?
• Who can be responsible besides the truck driver?
• How long do you have to file a truck accident claim in Texas?
• What evidence matters most in an 18-wheeler case?
• How does Texas fault law affect your recovery?
• When should you call an 18-wheeler accident attorney in Richardson?

Why does an 18-wheeler crash need a different kind of lawyer?

A passenger car weighs a few thousand pounds. A loaded tractor-trailer can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. That difference shows up in the injuries, the insurance layers, and the investigation.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules govern hours of service, electronic logging devices, vehicle inspections, and driver qualifications. Those rules create records that do not exist in a typical two-car wreck. See the FMCSA hours-of-service summary and the ELD program.

Texas roads carry a heavy commercial load. The Texas Tribune reported that TxDOT counted more than 39,000 commercial motor vehicle crashes in 2024, including 546 fatal incidents and more than 1,600 suspected serious injuries. FMCSA figures cited in the same report showed Texas recorded 772 fatal large-truck crashes in 2023, the highest of any state. Read the reporting at The Texas Tribune.

An 18-wheeler accident attorney Richardson victims hire should know how to obtain those records and how trucking insurers try to close a file before the medical picture is clear. Feizy Law Office already handles Dallas and Plano truck cases. Richardson sits on the same US-75 freight corridor.

What should you do in the first 24 hours after a Richardson truck wreck?

1. Get medical care. Adrenaline hides injuries. A later gap in treatment gives the insurer an argument that the crash did not cause your harm.
2. Call the police and make sure a crash report is filed.
3. Photograph vehicles, skid marks, debris, road conditions, license plates, USDOT numbers on the tractor, and your visible injuries.
4. Collect names of witnesses and the trucking company on the trailer doors.
5. Avoid a recorded statement to the trucking insurer. Adjusters sound helpful while they hunt for a statement they can use later.
6. Call counsel so a preservation letter can go out before the company overwrites electronic data.

If the crash happened on US-75 through Richardson, near Bush Turnpike, or on a connecting arterial, traffic cameras and nearby business video can disappear in days. Our earlier guide on how to get traffic camera footage after a Texas crash explains why you should not wait.

Who can be responsible besides the truck driver?

The driver is the obvious defendant. The claim often reaches further.

• The motor carrier that employed or dispatched the driver
• A staffing or leasing company that put an unqualified driver in the cab
• A cargo loader if an unsecured load shifted
• A broker that hired an unsafe carrier
• A maintenance contractor if brakes, tires, or lights failed
• Another motorist who forced the truck into your lane

Trucking companies sometimes hide behind independent-contractor labels. The investigation still looks at who controlled the route, the schedule, and the equipment. A Dallas truck crash lawsuit can name more than one defendant so available coverage matches the harm.

How long do you have to file a truck accident claim in Texas?

Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003 generally requires a person to bring suit for personal injury not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues. Wrongful death has its own two-year clock under the same chapter. Read the statute at the Texas Constitution and Statutes site.

Two years is not a reason to wait. Electronic logging data, driver qualification files, and maintenance records can be overwritten or discarded on much shorter company retention schedules. A preservation letter from an 18-wheeler accident attorney in Richardson is often the difference between a proven hours-of-service violation and a swearing contest.

Claims against a governmental entity, such as a poorly designed work zone on a state highway, can involve much shorter notice deadlines. Those facts need a case-specific review.

What evidence matters most in an 18-wheeler case?

• Event data recorder / “black box” speed, braking, and throttle
• Electronic logging device hours-of-service records
• Driver qualification file, drug and alcohol tests, and prior crashes
• Inspection and maintenance logs
• Bill of lading, cargo weight, and dispatch messages
• Dashcam or inward-facing camera video
• Police report, 911 audio, and witness statements
• Your medical records and work-loss proof

We have written separately about truck accident black box evidence. The short version: the data exists, and it does not stay available forever.

Photographs you take at the scene still matter. They show rest positions, crush, weather, and whether the trailer displayed a company name that later “disappears” from the narrative.

How does Texas fault law affect your recovery?

Texas uses proportionate responsibility. Under Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 33, a claimant may not recover damages if that claimant’s percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent. If you are 50 percent or less at fault, your recovery is reduced by your share. See Sec. 33.001.

Trucking insurers lean on this rule. They argue you changed lanes, braked suddenly, or were in the truck’s blind spot. That is why contemporaneous photos, video, and electronic truck data matter. They pin the story to facts instead of the company’s later reconstruction.

If a loved one died, families should also review wrongful death rights in Texas before speaking with any insurer.

When should you call an 18-wheeler accident attorney in Richardson?

Call as soon as you can safely do so after medical care. Early help is useful when:

• You or a passenger needed an ambulance or overnight hospital stay
• The trucking company already called you
• The driver left the scene or claimed you “cut them off”
• A family member was killed
• You cannot work

Nick Feizy has practiced since 2000. Feizy Law Office represents injured people across Frisco, Richardson, Plano, Dallas, and the rest of the DFW metro. The firm handles car, truck, motorcycle, pedestrian, slip and fall, and wrongful death claims.

Consultations are free. You can reach the office at (214) 651-8686 or through feizylaw.com.

Conclusion

An 18-wheeler crash on a Richardson highway puts you against a commercial insurer with investigators of its own. Texas law gives most injury victims two years to file suit, but the useful evidence can vanish in days. Preserve the scene, get treated, and speak with counsel before you record a statement.

Feizy Law Office offers free consultations for truck wreck victims in Richardson and across North Texas. Call (214) 651-8686.