Florida Truck Accident Lawyer

By Kaiser Romanello, P.A. | Florida personal injury attorneys since 2002 | Last updated: June 2026

Why Florida Truck Cases Are Different From Car Cases

A semi-truck weighs 20-30 times more than a passenger car. The physics of a truck crash mean catastrophic injuries are common — traumatic brain injury, spinal damage, amputation, severe burns, and wrongful death. But the bigger difference is the legal complexity.

Where a typical car accident involves two drivers and two insurance companies, a truck accident often involves:

• The truck driver (their personal CDL liability)
• The trucking company (their commercial fleet policy)
• The cargo loader or shipper (if improperly loaded cargo caused the crash)
• The maintenance provider (if brake failure, tire blowout, or other defect contributed)
• The truck manufacturer (if a product defect played a role)
• A leasing or broker company (the company that arranged the load)
• Insurance carriers for each of the above

This complexity is intentional — trucking companies use it to shift blame and protect their assets. Without an attorney who knows how to unwind the corporate structure, victims often recover from only one defendant when three or four should pay.

Federal Trucking Regulations Apply (FMCSA)

Commercial trucks crossing state lines are governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). These rules often determine fault in a Florida truck accident case:

Hours of Service (HOS)

Drivers can drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, and cannot drive beyond the 14th hour after coming on duty. Drivers must take a 30-minute break after 8 cumulative hours. Violations show up in electronic logging device (ELD) records — which are subpoenable evidence.

Weight Limits

Federal limit is 80,000 pounds gross vehicle weight. Overloaded trucks have longer stopping distances, blow tires more often, and damage roadways. Weigh-station bypass records and shipping manifests prove overloading.

Drug & Alcohol Testing

Post-accident drug and alcohol tests are required by federal law after fatal accidents and serious injury crashes. A driver who fails or refuses the test is presumed impaired.

Vehicle Inspection Records

Daily inspection reports (DVIRs), maintenance logs, and DOT inspection histories often reveal the trucking company knew about brake, tire, or steering problems before the crash.

Common Causes of Florida Truck Accidents

Who Pays for Your Florida Truck Accident

Commercial trucking is heavily insured because the damage potential is so high. Federal law requires:

• $750,000 minimum liability for general freight trucks
• $1,000,000 minimum for hazardous materials carriers
• $5,000,000 minimum for trucks carrying hazardous waste or explosives

Many large carriers (Walmart, FedEx, UPS, Amazon, Coca-Cola) carry far higher coverage — $5-25 million per accident is common. The challenge isn't whether insurance exists — it's whether your attorney can identify every applicable policy and force each defendant to contribute.

Florida Truck Accident Lawyers — Cities We Serve

Florida's 2-Year Deadline for Truck Accident Claims

Florida shortened the statute of limitations from 4 years to 2 years from the date of injury when HB 837 took effect in March 2023. This deadline applies to all truck accident claims arising on or after that date.

Compensation You Can Recover

Florida truck accident victims can recover:

• Medical bills — ER, hospital stay, surgery, rehab, future care
• Lost wages and lost earning capacity — current income plus career-long impact
• Pain and suffering — physical pain, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life
• Property damage — vehicle replacement, personal items
• Wrongful death damages — if you lost a family member, including loss of support, companionship, and funeral costs
• Punitive damages — when the trucking company's conduct was egregious (knowingly used unsafe equipment, falsified HOS logs, ignored maintenance issues)

What to Do After a Florida Truck Accident

1. Call 911 immediately. Get police on scene and medical attention for everyone involved.
2. Accept medical evaluation even if you feel okay. Adrenaline masks symptoms; truck-crash injuries often surface 24-72 hours later.
3. Photograph everything — both vehicles from multiple angles, license plates, the truck's USDOT number on the cab door, the trucking company name on the trailer, road conditions, debris, your injuries.
4. Get witness contact information — names and phone numbers of anyone who saw the crash.
5. Do NOT give a recorded statement to the trucking company's insurance adjuster — they will call within hours. Politely decline.
6. Call a Florida truck accident lawyer within 7-14 days to preserve electronic logging device data, dashcam footage, and inspection records before they are destroyed or "lost."

Why Choose Kaiser Romanello

Kaiser Romanello, P.A. has represented Florida injury victims since 2002 and has recovered over $30 million for clients across car, truck, rideshare, motorcycle, and cruise ship cases. Our truck accident practice is built around three principles:

• Move fast. We send preservation letters to trucking companies within 24-48 hours of being retained, locking down ELD data, dashcam footage, maintenance records, and driver logs before they are destroyed under the routine "data retention" excuse.
• Identify every defendant. Many firms sue only the driver. We trace the corporate chain to the trucking company, broker, shipper, maintenance provider, and manufacturer — multiplying the available insurance coverage by 5-10x.
• Prepare every case for trial. Trucking companies settle for fair value only when they believe the case will reach a jury. Volume firms that signal they will accept any offer get lowballed. We don't.

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Frequently Asked Questions