This page was written, edited, reviewed & approved by JR Krebs following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. JR Krebs, the Founding Partner, has years of legal experience as a Personal Injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.
A collision with an 18-wheeler is not simply a bigger car wreck. It is a different kind of claim. The tractor may belong to one company, the trailer to another, and the cargo to a third, each carrying its own insurance and defense team.
Krebs Personal Injury Lawyers represents injured people and grieving families throughout Tuscaloosa in claims against trucking companies and their insurers. If a tractor-trailer, delivery truck, or commercial hauler injured you, a Tuscaloosa truck accident lawyer at our firm can explain what the claim involves and which deadlines apply. Call 205-634-1000 for a free case evaluation to learn what evidence needs to be protected right now.
After a serious Truck Accident Lawyer
Trucking companies do not wait to respond to a serious crash. Many send investigators to the scene within hours, sometimes before the road reopens. Their assignment is to build a record that protects the carrier.
Our firm builds the other side of that record. Based in Tuscaloosa, we handle 18-wheeler and commercial vehicle claims for people injured across Tuscaloosa County, Montgomery, Greene County, and Hale County.
Krebs Personal Injury Lawyers accepts truck accident cases on a contingency fee basis. Attorney fees are paid from a recovery under the signed fee agreement. We explain how fees and case expenses work before you sign anything.
You should not have to manage an investigation from a hospital bed. Our attorneys take that work off your hands so your energy goes toward recovery.
Commercial trucks contribute to thousands of crashes in Alabama every year. The Alabama Department of Transportation counted 10,183 trucks involved in crashes statewide during 2024, along with 2,368 injuries and 131 deaths, in its 2024 Crash Facts report. Those totals measure only involvement, and the report explicitly states that no inference should be drawn about which vehicle caused any particular crash.
Tuscaloosa County sees steady commercial traffic due to the corridors that run through it. Interstate 20/59 carries long-haul freight through the county, and U.S. Highway 82 moves trucks east and west past McFarland Boulevard.
Log trucks, dump trucks, and local delivery vehicles share surface streets with passenger cars throughout the day. Volume alone does not decide a case. What matters is whether a specific driver or carrier failed to meet the standards that apply to commercial vehicles, and whether the evidence still exists to show it.
Two bodies of law usually govern these claims. Federal safety regulations set the standards that interstate motor carriers and their drivers must meet. Alabama law then determines who may recover, how long they have to file, and what a jury may award.
Fatigue rules are among the most closely watched standards in trucking. Under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration hours-of-service regulations, a property-carrying driver may drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty.
That driver also may not drive beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty. A 30-minute break is required once the driver has accumulated eight cumulative hours of driving without an interruption of at least 30 minutes.
Weekly caps apply as well. A driver may not drive after 60 hours on duty across seven consecutive days, or 70 hours across eight consecutive days. That period restarts only after the driver takes 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.
When a duty record places a driver behind the wheel past those limits, the violation becomes evidence a jury can weigh.
Most commercial trucks now record duty status electronically. Motor carriers are required to retain electronic logging device records of duty status and supporting documents for six months under 49 CFR 395.8(k)(1), according to FMCSA guidance on record retention.
Six months passes quickly. Data showing that a driver exceeded hours limits, deviated from a route, or sped through a work zone can be lost before a lawsuit is ever filed. That timing is why our team sends written preservation demands early, rather than waiting for litigation to begin.
Commercial trucking policies dwarf personal auto policies. Under 49 CFR Part 387, a for-hire carrier hauling non-hazardous property in a vehicle rated at 10,001 pounds or more must maintain at least $750,000 in coverage.
Hazardous cargo raises the floor. Carriers hauling certain oils and hazardous materials must carry at least $1,000,000, and those transporting the most dangerous classes must carry at least $5,000,000.
Larger policies invite harder defenses. Insurers assign experienced adjusters and defense counsel to these files, and that work begins within days of the crash.
Alabama applies one of the strictest fault rules in the country. The Alabama Supreme Court has stated that "contributory negligence is an affirmative and complete defense to a claim based on negligence," language quoted in Serio v. Merrell, Inc., 941 So. 2d 960 (Ala. 2006).
In practice, a jury that finds an injured person even slightly at fault may award nothing at all. Defense lawyers understand this, and shifting a share of blame onto the other driver is a routine strategy in Alabama truck cases. Alabama law does recognize limited exceptions, including claims involving wanton conduct, and whether one applies turns on the specific facts.
Because that rule is so unforgiving, early evidence carries more weight here than in most states. Our attorneys work to document what the driver and the carrier did before the blame-shifting starts.
Most injury claims in Alabama carry a two-year filing deadline. Alabama Code Section 6-2-38(l) requires that all actions for injury to the person not arising from contract be brought within two years.
Fatal crashes follow a separate statutory path. Alabama Code Section 6-5-410 allows a personal representative of the estate to commence an action and recover such damages as the jury may assess. That action must be commenced within two years from the date of death.
The difference matters for families. Who is legally permitted to file, and how damages are handled, are governed by that wrongful death statute rather than by ordinary injury rules. Families should get case-specific guidance early rather than assuming the standard injury rules apply.
These claims rarely involve a single defendant. Several businesses may have contributed to the same crash, and each may carry separate coverage.
Parties that may share legal responsibility include:
Sorting this out early changes what a claim can reach. Each additional responsible party may bring another insurance policy into the case, which matters when injuries are severe, and a single policy would not cover the losses.
Serious truck crashes usually trace back to decisions made long before impact. Some belong to the driver, and others belong to the company that dispatched the load.
Causes our attorneys see in Alabama truck cases include:
These causes overlap more often than not. A fatigued driver on a tight delivery window usually reflects a scheduling practice, not just one poor decision at the wheel.
Not every truck claim involves an 18-wheeler. Truck accident cases cover a wide range of commercial vehicles, and the applicable rules shift with the vehicle and the cargo it carries.
Vehicles behind the claims we handle include:
The vehicle type shapes the investigation. A tanker rollover raises questions about load securement and hazardous cargo rules, while a delivery van collision usually turns on route pressure, driver hours, and the employer's own policies.
Weight is what separates these crashes from other collisions. A loaded tractor-trailer carries far more force into an impact than a passenger vehicle, and that difference shows up in what our clients live with afterward.
Injuries we see in Tuscaloosa truck accident claims include:
Some of these injuries announce themselves at the scene. Others, particularly brain and soft-tissue injuries, surface days later, once adrenaline fades and swelling sets in.
Consistent medical care from the start protects both your health and the record in your claim. Gaps in treatment give an insurer room to argue that the injuries came from something other than the crash.
No attorney can responsibly value a case during a first phone call. Value depends on the severity of the injuries, the treatment required, the income lost, the strength of the liability evidence, and the coverage available to pay a judgment or settlement.
Alabama juries may consider punitive damages in cases where the conduct went well beyond ordinary carelessness. Whether that question ever reaches a jury depends on what the evidence shows about the driver and the carrier. Claims arising from a death are assessed under Alabama's wrongful death statute, which handles damages differently from an injury claim.
Some of the most useful steps happen in the first hours and days. Take these when you are able:
One point deserves emphasis. Insurance adjusters often call within a day or two and sound genuinely helpful, but Alabama's contributory negligence rule shapes the questions they ask.
No two cases move on the same schedule. Most, though, pass through the same stages.
Our work opens with written preservation demands and requests for the crash report, scene photographs, and the carrier's own records. Where the facts warrant it, vehicle inspection and reconstruction happen early, while the tractor and trailer are still available for examination.
A claim cannot be valued until the medical picture is clear. We track treatment, restrictions, and expenses while your physicians determine whether you have reached maximum improvement or require ongoing care.
Once the losses are documented, we present a demand supported by records, bills, and expert opinion where the case calls for it. Insurers frequently respond with an insufficient initial offer, and negotiation proceeds from there.
When negotiation stalls, filing suit opens discovery. Depositions, subpoenaed records, and expert analysis follow, and many cases resolve at mediation once that evidence has been exchanged. Our firm handles truck accident claims through negotiation, arbitration, or trial, depending on the case.
A negligence claim rests on four elements. The trucking company and its driver owed a duty of reasonable care; that duty was breached; the breach caused the crash; and the crash caused real harm. Proving those elements against a commercial carrier takes records that only the company holds.
Evidence our attorneys pursue in truck cases includes:
Under Alabama law, that evidence has to do double duty. It must show what the carrier did wrong and address any argument that our client shared the blame. Accident reconstruction and testimony from trucking safety professionals often become necessary for that second task.
Two years is the general rule for injury claims, measured from the date of the crash. Claims involving a death run two years from the date of death under the wrongful death statute. Certain situations can shorten the practical timeline, particularly when a government entity or a public vehicle is involved, so an early case review protects your options.
Possibly, and that argument should not end the conversation. Alabama's contributory negligence rule makes fault the central battleground, which is exactly why carriers raise it so quickly. Our attorneys examine the physical evidence, the truck's data, and the carrier's own records before accepting anyone else's characterization of what happened.
Our firm handles these cases on a contingency fee basis. Fees are paid from a recovery under the terms of the written fee agreement, and the case evaluation itself is free. You are entitled to a clear explanation of fees and case expenses before you sign anything.
Not before you know the full extent of your injuries. Early offers often arrive while treatment is ongoing, before anyone knows whether surgery, future care, or permanent work restrictions will be part of your life. Once a release is signed, that claim is generally closed for good.
Timelines vary with the severity of the injuries and the insurer's willingness to deal fairly. Claims that settle before suit may resolve in a matter of months, while cases that require litigation often take considerably longer. Pushing a claim to close before treatment is complete usually costs more than the wait.
Out-of-state carriers are regularly held liable for crashes that happen here. Interstate motor carriers answer to the same federal safety regulations wherever they drive, and a claim arising from a Tuscaloosa collision is typically pursued in Alabama. Our team handles the jurisdictional questions so they do not become your problem.
Your Truck Accident case deserves focused attention and aggressive advocacy—start here.
Evidence in a truck accident case has a shelf life, and the trucking company already knows it. Electronic logs, maintenance files, and dispatch records can lawfully disappear on a six-month cycle while an injured person is still in treatment.
Krebs Personal Injury Lawyers handles truck accident claims for injured people and families across Tuscaloosa, from the first preservation demand through negotiation, arbitration, or trial. Attorney J.R. Krebs will review what happened, explain the options available to you, and deal with the carrier and its adjusters from that point forward.
Speak with a Tuscaloosa truck accident lawyer today. Call Krebs Personal Injury Lawyers at 205-634-1000 for a free case evaluation, and let us start protecting the record while it still exists
J.R. is dedicated to providing personalized representation, avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach. He tailors his strategy to the unique challenges and needs of each client and case, ensuring focused and individualized attention.
His practice mainly covers Plaintiff’s Personal Injury, including car and 18-wheeler accidents, slips and falls, dog bites, defective products, and wrongful death. He also handles commercial disputes on contingency, with experience in contracts, construction, and probate. For any dispute headed toward litigation, J.R. develops an aggressive strategy to maximize your recovery through negotiation, arbitration, or trial.
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