Truck accidents can cause more than just damage to your vehicle. They can cause mental and physical trauma that lingers and even loss of a loved one. At Steinger, Greene & Feiner, our Port St. Lucie truck accident lawyers have helped thousands of victims of truck accidents receive the compensation they deserve for their pain and suffering.
Every case that comes through our door gets personalized attention and care from our attorneys. We have the resources, experience, and results to make sure you are not pushed aside by the insurance company.
We provide a free personalised case review 24/7.
Why Are Truck Accidents So Severe in Port St. Lucie
While truck accidents are less common in Port St. Lucie, their consequences are often far more severe compared to other types of collisions. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), trucks accounted for 9% of fatal crashes nationwide in 2022, despite representing only 4% of registered vehicles. In Florida, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) reported over 32,000 commercial vehicle accidents in 2023, with truck-related fatalities increasing by 13% from 2022 to 2024.
- Mass + momentum: large trucks weigh 20–30× more than cars—more force, worse injuries.
- Survivors frequently suffer severe injuries, making legal claims more complex and resulting in higher compensation.
- Cargo hazards: Unsecured or hazardous loads raise impact severity and cleanup complexity.
- Road reality here: I-95, Florida’s Turnpike, Crosstown Pkwy, and US-1 see heavy commercial traffic and tight merges.
- Multiple at-fault parties: Driver, carrier, broker, shipper, maintenance vendor—liability is rarely one-to-one.
- Regulated evidence: Black-box data, telematics, and driver logs are time-sensitive and can be overwritten fast.
- Insurers deploy early: Motor carriers and their insurers move immediately to limit exposure.
Why You Need a Truck Accident Lawyer
Trucking companies deploy adjusters and defense counsel immediately—your lawyer levels the field.
- Even the odds: Trucking companies have rapid-response teams and seasoned defense lawyers. Your attorney counters them from day one.
- Lockdown proof fast: Send spoliation letters; capture ECM/telematics, driver logs, and video within 24–72 hours.
- Find every policy: Identify all responsible parties and insurance layers (primary, excess/umbrella; MCS-90 when applicable).
- Build full case value: Coordinate treatment, document pain and suffering, and project future medical needs and lost earning capacity.
- Navigate Florida rules: Handle PIP/no-fault, modified comparative negligence, medical liens, and the two-year negligence deadline.
- Bring the right experts: Accident reconstruction, trucking safety, and life-care planning to prove fault and damages.
- Negotiate from strength: Carrier-grade investigation and trial-ready pressure to pursue the maximum recovery. No fee unless we win.
What to Do After a Truck Accident
In the first hours, the right steps protect both your health and your case.
- Ensure Your Safety: Your health comes first. Get medical attention immediately, even if you feel fine. If you’re injured in a truck accident, health problems from these types of accidents can show up later, and medical records will support your case.
- Document the Scene: Take photos of the accident, including vehicle damage, road conditions, and any visible injuries. This visual evidence is crucial for proving what happened.
- Gather Information: Collect contact details from the truck driver, witnesses, and anyone else involved. Get the truck driver’s license and insurance information as well.
- Call the Police: File an official police report. This will serve as critical evidence in your truck accident claim and help establish the facts of the accident.
- Avoid Admitting Fault: Be careful in your conversations. Don’t say anything that could be interpreted as admitting fault, even casually.
- Don’t Speak to Insurance Without an Attorney: The truck company’s insurance may try to settle quickly. Let your attorney handle all communication to protect your rights.
- Consult a Truck Accident Attorney: An experienced truck crash attorney can help to gather evidence, including driver logs and black box data, and ensure all liable parties are held accountable. They’ll help you navigate the legal process and secure the compensation you deserve.
These steps create the paper trail your claim needs, and preserve evidences that give an insights on the causes of the wreck.
Common Causes of Truck Accidents
Truck accidents often result from a combination of factors, many of which involve violations of both state and federal regulations. In Florida, trucking companies and drivers must comply with laws set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the state, covering areas such as driving hours, vehicle maintenance, and safe operation practices.
- Truck Driver Fatigue: Federal law limits the number of hours a truck driver can be on the road without rest. Drivers must log their hours, and truckers are required to take regular breaks to prevent fatigue. Failure to adhere to these regulations is a leading cause of accidents. We can investigate logbooks and electronic driving records to determine if the driver violated these rules.
- Texting or Using a Cell Phone: Florida law bans texting while driving for all drivers, and truckers face stricter penalties if caught. Distracted driving is one of the top causes of truck crashes, and it’s crucial to determine whether the driver was using their phone at the time of the crash.
- Driving Under the Influence (DUI): Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is illegal for all drivers, but commercial drivers face harsher penalties with a lower legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit of 0.04%. We examine police reports and toxicology results to confirm any DUI involvement.
- Driver Inattention: Inattention on the part of the driver, whether due to distractions, fatigue, or negligence, can lead to devastating accidents. Florida law holds truck drivers responsible for maintaining focus and adhering to safe driving practices.
- Inadequate Driver Training: Commercial truck drivers are required to undergo extensive training before hitting the road. If a driver has not been properly trained or certified, the trucking company could be held liable. Our team will investigate the training records of the driver involved in your accident.
- Disobeying State or Federal Laws: Violations of safety laws, whether state-specific or federal, such as speeding or running red lights, can lead to accidents.
- Improperly Loaded Cargo: Carelessly loaded or unbalanced cargo can cause trucks to lose control or spill materials onto the road, leading to accidents. Florida law requires that cargo is safely secured to prevent such incidents, and we review cargo records and inspection reports to assess liability.
- Inadequate Safety Inspections: Trucks must undergo regular safety inspections, and drivers are responsible for daily vehicle checks. Failure to conduct these inspections can result in mechanical failures that cause accidents.
- Poorly Maintained Trucks: Regular maintenance of a truck’s brakes, tires, and other critical components is mandatory under FMCSA regulations. We review maintenance logs to ensure the truck involved in your accident was properly maintained.
- Defective Trucks or Parts: Sometimes, accidents occur due to manufacturing defects in the truck or its components. In such cases, not only the driver and company but also the manufacturer can be held liable.
- Violation of Trucking Regulations: Both state and federal regulations, such as the FMCSA Hours of Service rules, are designed to keep roads safe. When truckers or companies disregard these rules, they put everyone at risk.
When these regulations are ignored, accidents occur, leading to severe injuries.
Most Common Type of Truck Accident Injuries
Here are several of the most common injuries our clients suffer in truck accidents.
- Spinal cord injuries are among the most serious injuries one can sustain. These injuries cause damage or severing the spinal cord, resulting in partial paralysis, full paralysis, or death.
- Broken Bones can be painful and debilitating. It can cost you in lost wages, medical care, and possible future lingering issues.
- Back and neck injuries can happen in the form of bruising, lacerations, or muscle strains. These types of injuries can take significant time to heal.
- Head injuries can include concussions, lacerations, or damage to the eyes, nose, or mouth. They can affect brain function, reasoning, and complicate day-to-day activities.
- Wrongful death is potentially the most traumatic injury on the list. Permanently losing a loved one results in loss of enjoyment of life, mental anguish, loss of wages and permanent income, and more.
- Psychological and emotional trauma is known as an invisible injury. People can’t see this injury, though it’s just as real as any other on the list. Anxiety, triggering episodes, and even panic attacks can be a type of psychological and emotional trauma from a truck accident.
Liability in Truck Accident Cases
Truck crashes often involve multiple responsible parties, which makes liability more complex than a typical car wreck.
- Potentially at-fault parties: truck driver, motor carrier (employer), broker/shipper, maintenance contractor, parts/vehicle manufacturers.
- Driver liability: speeding, fatigue, distraction, DUI, or violating safety rules.
- Company liability (vicarious & direct): negligent hiring/training/supervision, poor maintenance, unsafe dispatching, or pushing hours beyond limits.
- Other contributors: improper loading/securement, defective brakes/tires, or negligent third-party maintenance.
How Commercial Trucking Companies May Be Responsible for Your Accident
It’s not just the driver. The trucking company can share, or carry, fault when its choices create unsafe conditions.
- Negligent hiring/training: putting unqualified or poorly trained drivers on the road.
- Unsafe policies and pressure: dispatching beyond Hours-of-Service, trip times that encourage speeding, or pay plans that reward risk.
- Maintenance failures: skipped inspections, deferred repairs, defective components in service.
- Vicarious liability: companies are responsible for employees acting within the scope of their job.
What your lawyer can do is to subpoena company records, interview supervisors, analyze safety scores, and compare practices to FMCSA standards to prove corporate fault. Also, Florida PI and federal trucking laws are another part of the picture.
Laws and Regulations in Truck Accidents in Florida
In truck accident regulations, two systems apply: Florida tort law and federal trucking regulations (FMCSA). Violations in either can help prove negligence and open additional insurance coverage.
Key FMCSA Rules: The Federal Layer
- Hours of Service (HOS): Limits drive time to prevent fatigue (daily/weekly caps, on-duty windows, required off-duty breaks).
- Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs): Most carriers must track duty status electronically; ELD and backup data are time-limited and can be overwritten.
- Driver Qualifications: CDL, medical certification, background checks, and ongoing qualification files.
- Drug & Alcohol Testing: Pre-employment, random, post-accident, and return-to-duty testing requirements for safety-sensitive positions.
- Vehicle Condition & Maintenance: Regular inspections, repairs, and documented maintenance; trucks must be taken out of service if unsafe.
- Cargo Securement & Weight: Strict rules for tie-downs, load distribution, hazardous materials handling, and weight limits.
All these regulations matter as HOS, ELD, maintenance, or loading violations can establish negligence per se or strong evidence of fault, and can widen the pool of responsible parties (driver, carrier, shipper/loader, maintenance vendor).
Florida Personal Injury Law That Affects Your Personal Injury Claim
- Statute of limitations (negligence): Two years for most injury claims arising after March 24, 2023. Act quickly—evidence (and some trucking records) won’t last.
- Comparative negligence (51% bar): You can recover even if partly at fault, unless you’re more than 50% responsible—then you’re barred from recovery.
- No-Fault/PIP basics: Florida’s no-fault system (PIP) pays initial medical bills and some lost wages regardless of fault. In serious-injury truck crashes, you typically pursue the at-fault parties beyond PIP for full damages.
- UM/UIM coverage: Your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage may help if the trucking or delivery policy is limited or contested.
- Wrongful death: Most claims must be filed within two years by the estate’s personal representative.
- Evidence preservation: Florida recognizes spoliation consequences; sending early preservation (spoliation) letters helps protect ELD/ECM data, logs, and video before routine deletion cycles.
An injury attorney can spot FMCSA and Florida law violations, send immediate preservation letters, collect driver/carrier records, and pursue every liable party and coverage layer, so your claim reflects the full value of what you’ve lost.
Compensation for Truck Accident Damages
After a truck crash in Florida, regardless of who is liable, you can seek compensation for a variety of damages, including:
- Medical treatment costs, including any necessary future medical expenses
- Lost income if a temporary or permanent absence from work or reduction in earning power results from injuries
- Pain and suffering (physical and emotional distress)
- Emotional distress (psychological trauma, anxiety, etc.)
- Loss of enjoyment of life (impact on your daily activities and quality of life)
- Wrongful death (loss of income and companionship if a loved one passed away).
An experienced attorney will ensure that all these damages are considered, helping you get the full compensation you deserve while you focus on recovering.
Why You Need Us for Your Truck Accident Case
- We even the odds: Trucking carriers deploy defense lawyers and rapid-response teams immediately. Our Port St. Lucie truck accident lawyers match that firepower from day one, so you’re not outgunned.
- We move fast on proof: We lock down black-box/ECM data, driver logs, and video before they’re lost or overwritten, and issue spoliation letters to preserve evidence.
- We build full case value: We coordinate your care, document pain and suffering, and project future costs and lost earning capacity to pursue every dollar you’re owed.
- Local, trial-ready team: We know St. Lucie corridors and courts, and we prepare cases like they’ll go to trial—because leverage matters at the table.
- Clear, human communication: We translate the legal stuff into plain English (or Spanish) so you always know where your case stands.
- No upfront costs: You pay nothing unless we win.
Proven Results in Truck Cases
Steinger, Greene & Feiner has a history of helping accident victims like you obtain substantial trial verdicts or insurance settlements. Some of our past successful case results involving truck accidents include:
- $8.1 MILLION for our client who was rear-ended by a big rig truck, sustaining severe injuries that resulted in him no longer being able to work. The victim also suffered from mental anguish and a loss of enjoyment of life.
- $4.8 MILLION after our client was involved with an accident including an unsafe homemade trailer and a driver who hit our client after initially striking a school bus.
- $1.4 MILLION for a client who was injured severely in a collision involving several tractor trailers. His injuries required surgery and he suffered an inability to enjoy recreational activities with his son.
Every case is unique and results vary, but our approach is the same: move fast, protect your rights, and fight for maximum compensation.
Ready to talk? Call 24/7, start a Free Case Review, or text us. Our team is here now.
Client Testimonials
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My experience with attorney Robert Olson was seamless and efficient. He did all that was necessary to get me the care I needed for my injuries and his attention to detail and his knowledge was impeccable. I would recommend this firm 100% … More -
Helped me with my injuries after my accident, navigating me through insurances and the healthcare system. Made the process of getting my injuries treated painless. 100% would recommend if involved in an accident.Thank you for your help … More David Mitchell.
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Steiger,Iscoe ,and, Greene were the second phone call I made after I was in an accident. They were very kind and patient. I felt as if they truly care about your well-being. They were so very helpful and help me navigate a chaotic situation. … More I'm very grateful to have them as my team.
Contact Us for a Free Consultation
At Steinger, Greene & Feiner, you get more than a lawyer—you get a team. Our 40 attorneys and 140+ case managers, legal assistants, investigators, and support staff move fast, keep you informed, and treat your case like it’s the only one on the docket. We handle the calls, the paperwork, and the pressure so you can focus on getting better.
Contact us today to schedule your free consultation. Give us a call at (772) 200-4696 or visit our location at 507 NW Lake Whitney Pl, Port St. Lucie, FL 34986. Trucking companies are on the hook for improperly trained drivers, which may cause an accident.