Tractor-trailers are designed to safely carry tens of thousands of pounds of cargo on routes stretching hundreds or even thousands of miles. However, just because these vehicles are built to carry a massive amount of weight does not mean they will handle the same way with every load they take on, and it also does not mean it is safe for trucking companies to load them with more cargo than they are physically designed or legally allowed to haul.
Despite this, overloaded/overweight truck accidents in Houston are far from uncommon, and they tend to cause serious injuries even compared to other incidents involving commercial vehicles. Fortunately, if you suffered injury due to this kind of trucking company negligence, you have help available from the seasoned truck accident lawyers at Fleming Law Accident & Injury Attorneys, who can demand the financial restitution you deserve.
Under federal law, no tractor-trailer can travel on interstate highways or on any route crossing state borders with a gross vehicle weight rating—a truck’s total weight across its cargo, cab, and trailer combined—of more than 80,000 pounds. Trucking companies can apply for special permits to carry oversized loads within state borders on pre-approved routes, but in general, the same 80,000-pound weight limit applies to all in-state truck traffic.
Additionally, both federal and state laws set limits on how much weight a single axle or single axle group attached to a semi-truck can carry, assuming the truck’s total weight is distributed evenly across all axles and axle groups. This means that even if a commercial truck involved in a Houston traffic accident weighs under 80,000 pounds in total, it may still be illegally overweight if it is carrying more weight than permitted based on its specific design and axle layout.
Trucking companies that put overweight trucks on the road typically know that what they are doing is illegal, and they will likely fight hard to avoid liability if you try to sue them after one of their trucks ends up in a wreck. Sometimes, their tactics may be fairly standard-issue for truck injury claims—for instance, accusing you of being partly to blame for causing your own injuries through your own negligent behavior so a court might reduce your damage award based on your comparative fault.
In other situations, however, trucking companies at fault for overloaded truck crashes in Houston may continue to break the law by hiding, altering, or even destroying records of their misconduct, such as shipping manifests and driver logs. Skilled legal counsel can help prevent this from happening, if possible, as well as identify when key documents have been modified and work to build a strong claim in spite of this.
It is certainly not impossible to successfully recover compensation after overloaded/overweight truck accidents in Houston. However, filing suit over this particular type of truck wreck often goes very differently from other truck crash claims. These unique aspects of the litigation process can be difficult to navigate without professional legal support.
Our team can provide the custom-tailored guidance you need to proactively enforce your rights and secure fair financial recovery. Call Fleming Law Accident & Injury Attorneys today to learn more.
Fleming Law
N/a
(713) 221-6800 