New Orleans
Truck Accident Attorney

Large trucks are involved in roughly 150,000 accidents per year. Of these, around 5,000 are fatal crashes. In the same time period, there are typically several thousand Louisiana truck crashes, with around 100 being fatal. Large trucks are more likely to be involved in fatal multiple-vehicle crashes, as opposed to a fatal single-vehicle crash, than passenger vehicles. 81% of fatal crashes involving large trucks are multiple-vehicle crashes, compared with 58% for crashes involving passenger vehicles. You can find more data on the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission site.

These statistics show that collisions with larger trucks are no joke. These types of accidents have serious emotional, physical, and financial harms that affect the victims of such accidents. That is why it is necessary to have an experienced lawyer in your corner fighting for fair compensation and one who is not afraid to go to trial with these large companies for the recovery you are entitled to. Phone Cardone at 866-692-3261 for a free in-person consultation. He is direct, insightful, proactive, and passionate about his clients’ cases.

While every accident is unique, there are several factors that most commonly lead to truck accidents. They include:

• Speeding: Motorists are often warned that speed kills, and it is especially deadly in a vehicle that can weigh up to 80,000 pounds or more. Reckless driving is a key cause of car and truck accidents.
• Fatigue: In an industry that rewards drivers who drive more, many violate proven safety guidelines in order to earn more. This results in exhausted drivers who are suffering from sleep deprivation. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that more than 240,000 motor vehicle accidents are caused each year due to driver fatigue alone.
• Distractions: Consumed by boredom on cross-country trips, many drivers come up with ways to distract themselves, such as watching television, talking on CB radios, and using cell phones excessively. All of this means that the driver’s attention is somewhere besides the road.
• DUI (Driving Under the Influence): This can include using not only alcohol and illegal substances, but also prescription drugs and legal stimulants that help drivers stay awake. Driving under the influence is regarded as one of the leading causes of fatal truck accidents today.
• Inadequate Training: Operating such massive vehicles requires expertise. Drivers who are not properly trained in areas such as defensive driving pose a great risk to others on the road. Inexperienced drivers also cause unnecessary accidents when they do not pay attention to road conditions or overload their trucks with more freight than they are designed to handle.
• Equipment Failure: The weight of such an enormous vehicle applies tons of pressure on the truck. Parts wear and tear more easily than regular vehicles. If the truck driver does not pay attention and regularly check such equipment, then this can be another cause of an accident.
• Wheel Blowout: When the tread on the truck tires becomes worn out or is old, this can lead to devastating accidents. The worn tire tread can cause a sudden blowout, leading to a loss of control of the truck. A blowout can lead to an immediate stop and a deadly pileup behind it.
• Jackknifing: This is a type of accident in which the trailer attached to the tractor truck swings out and comes to rest at a 90-degree angle from the truck. The swinging trailer can hit other vehicles or people before coming to a complete stop. Jackknifing can occur from a variety of situations: speeding, downshifting, accelerating on a surface that is low on friction, engine retardants, or entering a curve too quickly.
• Under-ride Accident: This is a very common type of tractor-trailer accident. The front bumper of small vehicles is about 30-35 inches above ground level, whereas the trailer of a truck sits about 45 inches above ground level. In many cases, due to the size of the smaller car, it will go underneath the rear of the truck and cause an accident. The US Department of Transportation has passed new guidelines requiring all tractor-trailers to have rear bumpers that are no higher than 22 inches above ground level. However, even after these guidelines, this type of accident occurs very frequently.
• Blind Spots: A blind spot is the area around a vehicle in which the driver cannot observe other vehicles on the road. Many accidents occur when a truck driver cannot see a vehicle next to them and hits the other vehicle as they try to merge lanes or take a turn. There are 4 different blind spots: the area in front of the bumper of the truck, the area behind the truck, a large area next to the passenger's side of the cabin, and a small area next to the driver's side of the cabin.

In addition to these reasons, accidents can also be caused by a failure to follow state and federal regulations. Due to the inherent risks posed by 18-wheelers, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has imposed regulations that are designed to ensure that they can be operated safely. Specifically, the regulations limit the number of hours that a driver is permitted to operate an 18-wheeler per day and per week, and they impose restrictions regarding truck weights. The regulations also impose duties regarding training, certifications, and pre-trip and post-trip inspections.

If a driver fails to comply with any of these obligations, it may lead to an accident. For example, if a driver exceeds the number of hours permitted, he or she may be tired and fail to pay proper attention to the road. Similarly, if a driver overloads a trailer, it can cause a rollover accident. Accidents can also be caused by driving too fast for conditions or a driver's failure to account for vehicles in the truck's blind spots. An 18-wheeler accident attorney in New Orleans can investigate the specific factors that caused your accident.

Hiring a regular personal injury attorney, even one with an extensive background in vehicular accident cases, is simply not enough. Only a semi truck accident lawyer in Louisiana is familiar with the hundreds of government regulations imposed on the trucking industry. Knowledge of these regulations is necessary to pursue fair compensation.

The key to building a successful case begins with the accident investigation, in which important evidence is gathered. During this time, a truck accident lawyer will:

• Take steps to preserve evidence letters: Any potential defendants must be immediately notified to keep all records required by the body that governs trucking safety, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. These records are used to verify a driver’s logbook, which contains information about the driver’s activities. Legally, these records expire after six months, so obtaining them as soon as possible is a must.
• Investigate the accident scene: The police will make a record of the crash, but any omissions could hurt your case. A truck accident lawyer will often enlist the help of a truck accident expert who will thoroughly document the scene and take note of small, telling details that may not make it onto a police report and may even do things like acquire aerial photographs. A lawyer can also help to maximize the usefulness of witness testimony. They know just what questions to ask a witness.
• Inspect the truck: A full inspection of the truck in the accident is vital. This includes not only the load but also things inside the cab and even appropriate stickers and notices. It also means obtaining repair and maintenance records of the vehicle and onboard communications equipment. A good attorney will act ahead of the defense, which may attempt to remove or alter key evidence.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the government body in charge of regulating commercial motor vehicles (CMV), which include tractor-trailers. Among the thousands of regulations that apply to CMV are hours-of-service regulations (HOS), which place limits on when and how long drivers of CMV are allowed to drive. The FMCSA bases these regulations on scientific data that determines the amount of rest a truck driver should have to safely operate their vehicle. They work in conjunction with the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies and the National Institute for Occupational Safety. The goal of HOS regulations is to protect drivers and motorists from truck accidents that result from fatigue.

To ensure compliance with the HOS regulations, many commercial vehicles and 18-wheelers are required to have Electronic Logging Devices installed to assist investigating officers in determining the hours of operation of any given vehicle. These devices are triggered when the engine is running. They can log how far it has traveled, when it’s in motion, how far it has been driven consecutively, and how long the truck was in operation mode. The stored information can be retrieved and used to learn if the driver has complied with the HOS regulations.

There are weight and size restrictions as well as regulations for CMV carrying hazardous material. The facts of a particular accident will govern which of these regulations apply to the given situation. An experienced attorney will be able to navigate through these provisions to uncover which, if any, are applicable.

After an accident in which an injury is reported or the commercial driver got a ticket, he or she must submit to alcohol and drug testing to determine if they were under the influence of any substance that may have been a factor in causing the accident. The alcohol test must be given by the employer or his designate within 8 hours of the incident. A drug test must be administered within 32 hours of the incident.

If you were injured in an accident with an 18-wheeler, you should consult an experienced attorney to discuss the circumstances surrounding your harm and the compensation that you may be able to recover. Cliff Cardone at the Cardone Law Firm is a trusted personal injury attorney who can craft persuasive arguments on your behalf to provide you with a strong chance of obtaining a successful result. Mr. Cardone assists victims throughout Louisiana. Phone Cardone. You can reach us at 866-692-3261 or through our online form to schedule a free and confidential consultation with an 18-wheeler accident lawyer in New Orleans.

Many tractor-trailer accidents are quite routine and are handled by our Firm daily. However, some are not as run-of-the-mill as a mere illegal lane change or rear-end collision. For example, the I-55 massive pileup near Manchac, Louisiana in October 2023 due to a so-called “super-fog” caused by a mix of smoke and fog. This series of collisions involved over 170 vehicles, resulting in 8 deaths and counting. Because of the atmospheric conditions and very poor visibility, many of the drivers involved were driving at excessive rates of speed, following too closely to the vehicle in front of them, and failing to remain vigilant.

Many of the tractor-trailers involved were carrying hazardous materials, which undoubtedly was a contributing factor to the severity of this catastrophic event. It will take years to determine who the blameworthy individuals are in causing this series of wrecks. Litigation will obviously become necessary to sort out the facts. Some of the CMV drivers may not have complied with the HOS regulations, contributing to the cause of these incidents; others may not have had the proper licensing to carry the loads they were carrying, and still others may have been carrying weights that far exceeded the capacity restrictions. All these factors may take litigation to uncover what truly happened that fateful day.

We, at the Cardone Law Firm, have handled massive pileup litigation in our years of experience managing fog-related cases in southern Louisiana. Sadly, fog is a common occurrence in our part of the State. We have years of litigating such cases.

If a family member died in a semi-truck accident in Louisiana, then the beneficiaries deserve compensation as well. If a family member has died, then the survivors of the decedent may be able to bring a wrongful death/survival action claim. This is a complicated process in which an experienced attorney is needed to guide the family members through the legal process. 

However, trucking companies have their own attorneys and insurance companies who provide vigorous defense in accident cases, making a full recovery of losses difficult. For this reason, you need to seek the counsel of a semi truck accident attorney in Louisiana with proven experience and success in handling such cases. Cliff Cardone is the experienced attorney to lead you through the legal process and help your recovery after such a dramatic event. Mr. Cardone has over 50 years of experience practicing law and dealing mostly with personal injury matters. Do not go through this process alone in the dark. Get help from the Cardone Law Firm.

Many companies use 18-wheelers to transport goods across the country, and numerous 18-wheelers travel the roads in Louisiana each day. While the immense size of 18-wheelers makes them useful for moving cargo, it also makes them more dangerous. 

When an 18-wheeler is involved in an accident, the consequences are often catastrophic. In most cases, however, the accident could have been avoided if the driver of the 18-wheeler had exercised due care. The driver who caused the accident should be held responsible for any harm that ensues. If you were injured in an 18-wheeler accident, you should consult New Orleans 18-wheeler accident lawyer Cliff Cardone. He offers the skills and experience needed to help you seek a favorable outcome.

With an office located in New Orleans, the Cardone Law Firm can help any client throughout the State of Louisiana. This includes, but is not limited to: Ascension Parish, Donaldsonville, Assumption Parish, Napoleonville, Baton Rouge, Jefferson Parish, Estelle, Gretna, Harvey, Kenner, Marrero, Metairie, New Orleans, Terrytown, Westwego, Lafayette Parish, Lafourche Parish, Thibodaux, Livingston Parish, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, Belle Chasse, and St. Charles Parish. If you suffered injuries in an accident in any of these areas, reach out for your free initial consultation.