When a semi-truck collides with a smaller vehicle, the outcome is predictably grim. Because these trucks weigh up to 80,000 pounds, they are much more likely to cause fatal injuries than lighter vehicles. Most times, it is the driver of the truck—who might be fatigued, driving aggressively, or impaired—who is responsible for the fatal collision.
If your loved one has passed away because of a fatal truck accident, here’s what happens next: You fight for justice. This page will inform you of how survivors pursue wrongful death claims and how a lawyer from Englander Peebles will lead your fight for justice and accountability.
This article will help, but you likely need real-world representation from a legal team you can trust. Call Englander Peebles today at (954) 500-4878 or contact us online to complete your free, no-pressure consultation about retaining a Fort Lauderdale, FL, truck accident lawyer from our team.
Key Takeaways Involving Fatal Truck Accidents
- Fatal truck accidents often stem from driver negligence, trucking-company failures, or both.
- Wrongful death claims allow surviving family members to seek compensation for financial losses and the emotional devastation caused by a preventable death.
- These cases often involve substantial damages, which is why trucking companies and insurers fight aggressively to minimize payouts.
- A wrongful death lawyer from Englander Peebles will build your case step-by-step, beginning with an investigation and ending in a settlement or trial.
- Hire a lawyer immediately, as fast action will allow your attorney to preserve evidence, protect your rights, and meet strict legal deadlines.
How Do I Know If a Fatal Truck Accident Warrants a Wrongful Death Claim?
A wrongful death occurs when someone dies because another person—or a company—acted with negligence, carelessness, recklessness, or a disregard for safety. If you believe one or more of these conditions led to your loved one losing their life, you may have grounds for a wrongful death claim.
When the negligent, careless, or reckless party is a truck driver or trucking company, the consequences of the unacceptable behavior tend to be magnified by the size, weight, and crushing force of commercial trucks. To be certain whether your loved one’s fatal truck accident is reason to pursue a wrongful death claim, speak with the Englander Peebles team today.
Signs That You Have Grounds for a Wrongful Death Claim After a Deadly Truck Crash
Most people without legal degrees might ask: What does negligence mean? We can answer that question with a few examples of (potentially fatal) negligence in the context of a truck accident:
- A truck driver ignoring federal hours-of-service rules, which are imposed industry-wide by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
- A trucking company pressuring drivers to meet unrealistic delivery schedules
- Neglected truck maintenance
- Overloaded trailers
- Distracted or impaired driving
- Failure to secure cargo properly
- Hiring unqualified or unsafe drivers
These kinds of negligence are not always apparent. They typically come to light during our comprehensive, penetrating investigations of fatal truck accidents. Our investigative resources and determination are reasons alone to let Englander Peebles lead your wrongful death case.
Survivors pursuing a wrongful death claim are asking for two things at once: accountability for what happened, and financial support for what comes next. These will be our goals for your case.
What Acts of Negligence Caused the Fatal Truck Accident?
It does not feel right to call any action that leads to someone’s death a “mistake” or even a “lapse in judgment.” We might use the legal term “negligence” to refer to these fatal errors.
Fatal truck accidents rarely “just happen.” Most are the result of a chain of negligent behavior that posed a foreseeable risk of death. In wrongful death cases, identifying these failures is essential because they establish liability—the heart of your case.
Below are contributing factors that frequently appear in cases handled by our South Florida fatal truck accident attorneys.
Potentially Fatal Forms of Truck Driver Negligence
If anyone should know the life-threatening risk of being careless behind the wheel, it is truck drivers. These operators must undergo rigorous education and training to obtain their commercial driver’s license (CDL), and safety is a central feature of that training.
And yet, truck drivers continue to cost victims their lives by:
Speeding
Truck drivers working tight delivery windows may exceed safe speeds, especially on high-speed roads such as I-95, I-75, and Florida’s Turnpike. When a semi is speeding, it takes much longer to come to a stop. Too often, the truck driver is unable to stop the speeding vehicle before it strikes another vehicle (and any people inside it).
Distracted Driving
Phones, GPS systems, onboard tablets, phone conversations, and even food and beverages can divert a driver’s eyes and attention for just a few seconds—seconds that can end a victim’s life.
Impaired Driving
Alcohol, illegal substances, and even prescription medications can reduce reaction time and impair a truck driver’s decision-making.
Fatigue
Studies consistently show fatigue impacts driving performance as severely as alcohol. Hours-of-service limits are intended to prevent fatigued driving, but those limits alone cannot ensure that truck drivers are alert and fit to operate their multi-ton vehicles.
Dangerous Lane Changes
Commercial trucks have massive “no-zones,” especially along the right side. If a driver fails to check mirrors or signal properly, fatal sideswipe or underride collisions can occur.
Other Types of Unsafe Driving
Tailgating, unsafe lane changes, sudden braking, and failing to adjust speed in heavy South Florida rain all create deadly conditions.
Potentially Fatal Forms of Trucking Company Negligence
Truck drivers are not always the only ones to blame for fatal collisions. Their employer can also be negligent. Even in cases when a truck driver operates their vehicle safely, their employer’s negligence can cause an accident.
Many truck-related wrongful death cases involve systemic failures, such as:
Inadequate Training
Some companies push drivers onto the road without ensuring they understand braking techniques, wide-turn procedures, changing highway conditions in Florida, or current traffic laws.
Poor Maintenance
Faulty brakes, worn tires, broken lights, dilapidated trailers, and other flaws pose catastrophic safety risks.
Improper Hiring
Companies sometimes employ drivers with past DUI convictions, license suspensions, disqualifying health conditions, or multiple safety violations—because it’s cheaper and faster than finding qualified personnel.
Unrealistic Delivery Demands
Speed can be money in the trucking industry. Speed, as anyone with common sense also knows, also means danger.
Failure to Follow Safety Protocols
Mandatory cargo securement, weight checks, and regular inspections can be rushed or skipped, with catastrophic consequences for this corner-cutting.
Why Should Survivors of Fatal Truck Crashes Hire an Attorney from Englander Peebles Right Away?
Time is of the essence after a fatal truck accident. The trucking company and its insurer will start defending themselves immediately—often while survivors are still processing a gutwrenching, world-shattering loss.
You will need years to process your loved one’s passing, but your case cannot wait. Key reasons to speak with a Florida wrongful death attorney from Englander Peebles right away include:
- Evidence disappears quickly (especially when trucking companies intentionally dispose of it).
- Black-box data from the truck’s onboard computer may be overwritten (and, in some cases, not by accident).
- Surveillance footage may be erased.
- Witnesses may leave the area or forget critical details.
- The truck may be repaired (and crucial evidence may be lost when those repairs happen).
- Maintenance records may be altered or lost.
- Florida’s wrongful death statute of limitations requires you to file your case within a strict time period, and you don’t want to miss that non-negotiable window.
Englander Peebles is built for urgent response. When you hire us, our legal team sends evidence preservation letters, secures electronic data, investigates the crash scene, and ensures no trucking company or insurance company can undercut your case.
The (Proven) Englander Peebles Approach to Fatal Truck Accident Cases
We don’t compromise when it comes to getting justice for fatal truck accidents. When we represent a survivor, we feel a duty and obligation to get the outcome they deserve, and our process is proven.
As soon as you retain your Florida fatal truck accident lawyer from our team, we will begin:
Step 1: An Immediate Investigation
Your lawyer will obtain any police reports, crash-scene evidence, medical records, surveillance footage, witness testimony, and other assets to your case.
Step 2: Truck and Trailer Inspection
We will work with automotive experts to examine the truck for brake issues, tire wear, safety system defects, improper cargo securement, and other indicators of negligent care or operation.
Step 3: Company Background Investigation
In seeking both immediate and systemic causes of fatal accidents, our lawyers examine safety scores, hiring practices, training procedures, and past violations to uncover patterns of negligence.
Step 4: Accident Reconstruction
We often commission experts to recreate truck crashes using physical evidence, black-box data, witness accounts, and physics modeling.
Step 5: Identifying All Liable Parties
Our investigation will lead us to all liable parties, which can include both the truck driver and their employer.
Step 6: Calculating Damages
We will determine all the harm you have suffered because of the fatal accident, including both economic and non-economic damages.
Step 7: Filing the Wrongful Death Claim
Your attorney will submit a formal demand to the insurance companies and responsible parties. We expect them to fight, and we will be ready.
Step 8: Negotiation
Englander Peebles negotiates directly with corporate defense teams that often try to minimize payouts. You are never outmatched when we are representing you.
Step 9: Litigation (If Needed)
If insurers refuse to settle, your lawyer will file a lawsuit and begin discovery, depositions, and trial preparation.
Step 10: Settlement or Trial Verdict
Most cases settle, but some wrongful death cases proceed to trial when the defense refuses to offer a fair settlement.
What Damages Can Survivors Recover After a Fatal Truck Accident?
It is difficult to quantify everything you lose when a loved one is suddenly gone. We find that survivors suffer from intense emotional pain, financial loss, and a host of other damages that can include:
- Medical bills
- Funeral and burial expenses
- Lost income
- Loss of the decedent’s employment benefits
- The loss of the decedent’s household services
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of parental guidance
- Survivors’ pain and suffering (including grief, of course)
- The deceased’s pain and suffering before their passing
Your attorney will calculate these losses meticulously to ensure your family is protected now and in the future.
Who Can File a Wrongful Death Claim After a Fatal Truck Accident in Florida?
Florida law requires that the personal representative of the estate file the wrongful death claim. That representative brings the claim on behalf of eligible survivors, including:
- Spouse
- Children
- Parents
- Dependent blood relatives
- Dependent adoptive siblings
If you don’t know who the personal representative is—or how to appoint one—Englander Peebles can help with every legal step. We routinely assist families in navigating these responsibilities so they can focus on healing rather than paperwork.
Frequently Asked Questions
We hear a few questions time and again from those in circumstances similar to yours, and those questions include:
1. How long do wrongful death truck accident cases usually take?
We cannot say for sure. We can say, however, that Englander Peebles will mobilize our team behind you, fighting to complete your case as efficiently as possible.
2. Can multiple parties be held responsible for a fatal truck accident?
Yes. Liability often extends beyond the driver to include the trucking company, maintenance providers, cargo loaders, or any other party whose negligence contributed to the crash.
3. What if the insurance company offers me a settlement?
Insurers’ voluntary settlement offers are almost always low. We expect to have to negotiate for the full amount of compensation you deserve, so do not accept any settlement until you speak with us.
Now Is the Time to Call a Florida Truck Accident Attorney
If you miss the filing deadline for your case, your right to compensation will evaporate. We know how difficult grief is, but we also believe you owe it to yourself to pursue justice—and to let our experienced Fort Lauderdale, FL, personal injury attorneys lead that fight for you.
Englander Peebles works on a contingency fee basis, meaning there is no upfront cost to hire our firm. We only receive a fee if we secure compensation for you. Call Englander Peebles today at (954) 500-4878 or contact us online. Let’s complete your free, no-obligation consultation and take the next steps towards justice.