California Truck Accident Attorney
The Right Choice For Your California Truck Accident Attorney, Sebastian Gibson, Named a Top Lawyer 13 Years in a Row and With Over 45 Years of Experience.
Two words describe California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson. Ridiculously Good. His talent comes from a determination to do good for his clients, clients like you.
When you’ve been injured in a big rig, tractor trailer or semi trailer truck accident anywhere in California, finding the right California truck accident attorney is essential to protect your rights and to make sure you obtain the compensation you deserve for your injuries and all you’ve been through.
California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson offers over 45 years of experience representing traffic accident victims and clients who deserve the best in legal representation and is ready to provide immediate assistance to you and yours after an accident.
When you work with California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson, you’re working with with an attorney who has been named a Top Lawyer in Palm Springs Life Magazine year after year after year, and an attorney you can count on who has the determination to obtain a result you can be proud of. Tired of trying to reach an attorney who will actually answer your calls? Call us and see the difference when you’ve chosen the right California truck driving accident lawyer for your case.
Choosing the Right California Truck Accident Attorney
California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson’s practice areas in the field of truck accident law is today focused on the representation of individual victims who have been seriously injured and families who have lost a loved one when their vehicle has been involved in an accident with a big rig truck, tractor-trailer truck, semi-trailer truck, 18 wheeler, Fed Ex, UPS or other delivery truck, landscaping truck, garbage disposal truck, dump truck, cement mixer, flatbed truck, refrigerated truck, tank truck, heavy hauler, mobile crane, military truck, box truck, construction truck, car transport truck trailer, a fire truck or a heavy duty pickup truck.
Causes of Truck Accidents in Palm Springs, Palm Desert and Throughout California
Strict deadlines put on truck drivers by their carriers and brokers can lead to dangerous driving, speeding and carelessness while operating vehicles that weigh as much as 10 or 20 times the weight of a car.
A truck driver and a commercial trucking company are required to make an inspection of their truck before setting out on the road. Such truck inspections can be superficial when facing a deadline to get goods delivered by a specific time. Truck brakes that seem mushy, balding tires, transmission or steering problems, truck lighting and other maintenance that need looking at are unfortunately put off until another time.
Commercial truck drivers operating on too little sleep and falsified rest periods, popping drugs to stay awake that only last so long, or relying on coffee to keep alert for merging or slow traffic can lead to disastrous consequences.
Trucking companies delivering commercial goods to businesses in California without sufficient assets, aging trucks or already facing fines or judgements for previous accidents can find themselves in financial trouble and only able to only hire truck drivers without the sufficient experience to drive safely on the roads you travel.
Commercial truck drivers from Palm Springs and Palm Desert to Indio and Thermal, in the Coachella Valley and California have been known to take unjustifiable risks when pulling out into traffic. Driving a big rig, tractor trailer or 18-wheeler truck at sunset or at night that is unable to accelerate quickly enough to avoid traffic coming in the opposite lane or around a bend is a recipe for disaster.
California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson has seen the consequences of these and other factors that cause catastrophic truck accidents in California and have the ability to obtain the compensation you deserve when you’ve suffered severe injuries in a California commercial truck accident.
As a skilled California Truck Accident Attorney, Sebastian Gibson will act immediately to preserve evidence and hire experts to reconstruct the causes of your truck accident in Palm Springs or Palm Desert or anywhere in California and to determine the responsible parties for causing your injuries.
These Are A Few Of the Biggest Trucking Companies Whose Trucks You’ll See On the Freeway
The number of trucks on the road is simply staggering. Today there are about 40 million trucks registered and used for business purposes (excluding government and farm).
There are nearly 1.2 million for-hire trucking companies on file with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, in addition to private carriers totaling over 800,000, and a further 80,000 plus interstate motor carriers.
The size and weight of these trucks is equally staggering. Big rigs can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. There are by some estimates, as many as 15.5 million trucks operating in the U.S. Of this, 2 million tractor trailers are being operated, and over 5.5 million semi-trailers are on the roads and highways.
Not surprisingly, with this number of trucks on the road, it is estimated that over 500,000 truck accidents occur each year.
The top biggest trucking companies include the following:
Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. provides truckload transportation as well as logistic services. Knight operates a fleet of 4,000 tractors and 8,800 trailers and also provides brokerage and other freight management services.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services operates more than 12,000 trucks. Over 100,000 trailers and containers are in its fleet. It was one of the first large US truck companies to utilize a system of trucking containers straight from trains and ships.
XPO Logistics is a freight brokerage provider worldwide, with approximately 38,000 independent carriers operating over one million trucks
Old Dominion Freight Line provides truckload shipping and also offers truckload brokerage, supply chain consulting, and warehousing. It operates approximately 41,000 tractor and trailers.
Schneider National operates 10,120 company trucks and 33,830 trailers on the road and provides brokerage, supply chain management, and port logistic services, among other services.
Werner Enterprises is a transportation and logistics company that operates with more than 8,000 trucks and 24,000 trailers.
Landstar System has a network of independent agents consisting of more than 16,000 trailers, 10,000 owner operated trucks and nearly 60,000 other capacity vehicles.
US Xpress Enterprises today has more than 15,500 trailers and 7,000 tractors providing logistic services.
Daeske is one of the biggest flatbed trucking companies with a fleet of more than 13,000 specialized trailers and 6,000 tractors.
CRST International has a current fleet of about 4,500 trucks.
An Estimate of the Number Of Trucks Operated in Private Fleets by Companies
However, there are more than 200,000 companies, excluding farmers, who operate private fleets of trucks in the United States as well.
Among those private fleets, some of the largest include the following:
Walmart – 6,500 tractors and 55,000 trailers
Amazon – 40,000 semi-trucks and 30,000 vans
Waste Management Inc. – 26,000 collection and transfer vehicles
PepsiCo – 36,000 trucks and over 14,000 tractors
Coca- Cola – 5,487 tractors, 1,354 trucks, and 7,500 trailers
Sysco – 7,800 trailers and 9,400 total vehicles
US Foods – More than 5,400 tractors, nearly 350 straight trucks and more than 8,400 trailers
UPS – Nearly 100,000 delivery trucks, over 27,000 truck tractors, and nearly 100,000 trailers.
FedEx – More than 100,000 trucks in its Express division and more than 170,000 vehicles in its ground transportation fleet.
This Is How Many Trucks Are Manufactured and Sold Each Year
Over 235,000 heavy trucks were produced in the United States in 2020. More than 4.3 million heavy trucks were produced worldwide. The most popular semi-trucks in America include these trucks:
Freightliner, which has about 40% of the commercial truck market share and which sells about 190,000-200,000 trucks per year.
Kenworth, which sells over 150,000 trucks per year and which has about a 14% market share.
Peterbilt which manufactures medium and heavy-duty trucks has about a 13% market share. Peterbilt is a subsidiary of Paccar which also owns heavy-duty truck manufacturer Kenworth. Peterbilt makes over 150 trucks each day.
International has about an 11% market share.
Volvo Trucks make up about a 10% market share. A Swedish commercial vehicle manufacturer, it also owns Mack Trucks.
It’s no wonder when you see so many large trucks on the freeways, roads and highways these days why truck accidents are so frequent.
California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson, Your First Choice
It’s a problem that continues to grow as additional drowsy truck driving accidents in California are caused by negligent, careless, reckless and often just tired truck drivers each year. The vast majority of such accidents in California are caused by inattentive drivers who simply lose concentration or whose attention fades after far too many hours on the road. Others are caused when truck drivers actually fall asleep at the wheel. If you’ve been the victim of such an accident caused by a negligent, careless or reckless drowsy truck driver, you need a truck accident lawyer experienced in the handling of such cases.
California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson has been named one of the Top Lawyers of 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012 and 2011 by Palm Springs Life Magazine. He’s been called “Brilliant” and “A Legend.” If you want a top personal injury lawyer on your side, call Sebastian Gibson. Call us today at (760) 776-1810.
The California Vehicle Code statutes are meant to prevent tired truck drivers from falling asleep at the wheel, texting or performing other activities when they should be attentive to driving conditions, but truck drivers become distracted when they fill out forms while driving, use their cell phones to call their destinations or loved ones, talk to passengers, bend down to pick up something that’s fallen off a seat, or eat while they drive so they don’t lose time. When they perform these or any number of other tasks while driving, they become inattentive to the road, and commercial large and small truck, van and panel truck accidents occur.
Truck accidents also occur when truck drivers fail to heed weather reports or continue to drive during windy conditions or other types of dangerous weather when they should be pulling off the road rather than risking their own lives and that of other drivers on the road. With coffee shops like Starbucks nearly every few miles, truck stops and other places to pull over to rest, there is little excuse for falling asleep at the wheel of a big rig truck.
One of the worst consequences of drowsy or tired truck accidents in California, is that when a big rig or semi truck hits anything smaller like a compact car or even a pickup truck that gets in the way, more often than not, the smaller and more lightweight car or truck is going to be crushed or burn in a catastrophic accident involving sometimes horrendous injuries and or the death of any passengers, their children and their pets. If the 18-wheeler or tractor trailer truck does not jackknife, it may rollover and crush any other vehicles in its path.
What Is The Statute Of Limitations For Filing A Lawsuit For Damages For Injuries From A California Truck Driving Accident?
The statute of limitations, which is the date by which you must file a lawsuit in the appropriate court for your injuries resulting from an accident in California, a dog bite or for a wrongful death is two years. If the injured party was a minor at the time of the accident, you have a longer period of time to file suit.
There are other exceptions to the statute of limitations and there are different statutes of limitations for each area of law, such as breach of contract actions, etc. One of the most important exceptions is that for claims against any type of public entity such as a school, city or city bus line, a claim must be filed with the city within 6 months of the accident.
For an analysis of the statute of limitations for any type of legal matter, it is essential to have California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson analyze your case to determine whether the statute of limitations has already passed or if you may still file a lawsuit.
Let our offices obtain the traffic accident collision report from your accident and advise you after we’ve analyzed the report. In most cases, we can quickly determine the party at fault, and with a visit to the scene of the accident, we can obtain valuable information.
Compensation You’re Entitled To Following A California Truck Accident That’s Not Your Fault
Once a determination has been made as to the responsible parties and their insurance carriers, California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson will seek to obtain compensation for your past and future medical bills and treatment, property damages for your car, motorcycle or truck, loss of wages and earning capacity, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life including loss of consortium and in instances when a truck driver has been drinking and is convicted of driving while intoxicated, punitive damages.
Commercial truck drivers operating big rig and tractor trailer trucks with the destructive capability of a tank have the highest standard to avoid a disastrous and tragic accident that can cause loss of life in an instant.
Driver fatigue caused by lack of sleep, substance abuse whether by alcohol or drugs, speeding to make deadlines or economic gain, insufficient inspections and truck maintenance, unsafe loading of trucks, and failure by a truck company to sufficiently train their truck drivers in safe driving techniques all contribute to the growing number of commercial truck accidents on California roads, highways and freeways in daytime traffic or late at night.
If you’ve been injured in a California commercial truck accident, call California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson without delay. Our office works on a contingency fee and we utilize experts in all phases of your case. We can refer you to medical specialists that work on a lien basis to ensure you obtain the medical treatment you need for your injuries. Our office also advances the court costs and our time and unless we’re successful in your case, you pay us nothing to reimburse us for costs we’ve advanced or for our legal fees.
California Truck Driving Accidents
After any type of injury accident in California involving cars or other types of vehicles, if the investigating officer called to the scene of the accident feels there are serious injuries, the officer will make notes in order to prepare a report. At the end of their investigation, the officer will hand you a card with the address of the investigating police department, sheriff’s department or highway patrol office with the report number for your car or other vehicular traffic accident.
If the police, sheriff’s department or highway patrol weren’t called to the scene, you should have obtained information from the other party including their name, address, phone number, vehicle information and insurance information.
If you still wish to make a police report, you can go to the appropriate city police department, sheriff’s department or California Highway Patrol office and make what is called a counter report, which is basically a report filled out by you at their counter. Those agencies won’t investigate the accident after you do so, but this will provide some documentation of the incident.
Police, Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol reports can be obtained from the investigative officer’s Police Department Division, County Sheriff’s Office or the California Highway Patrol office of the officer who investigated your accident.
If your accident involves the possibility of truck operator error or a malfunction with the big rig, tractor trailer or semi trailer truck combination, it will likely be important to preserve evidence, obtain photos and information that can be downloaded from systems on the commercial truck.
Don’t delay in calling our office if you’ve been involved in any type of big rig, tractor trailer or semi trailer truck accident anywhere in California.
What Happens After A California Truck Accident
After a commercial truck accident in California, a trucking company will immediately be on the line to their insurance carrier who will call out the troops to obtain, photograph or hide evidence. Truck drivers will clam up, records may become falsified, and maintenance records augmented. When such actions take place, it can be difficult to trace the actions that led to a truck accident disaster.
Fortunately, California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson is familiar with such tactics by truck drivers, their employers and commercial truck company insurance investigators as are most truck accident investigators from the California Highway Patrol and many Sheriff Officers who are called to the scene of truck accidents in Palm Springs, the Coachella Valley, Orange County and throughout California.
Truck Accidents Throughout California
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) tracks the number of large truck accident and bus crashes in the U.S. Of the approximately 415,000 police-reported crashes involving large trucks in 2015, there were 3,598 (1 percent) fatal crashes and 83,000 (20 percent) injury crashes.
Approximately 60 percent of all fatal crashes involving large 18 wheeler and tractor trailer trucks occurred on rural roads and 25 percent on rural or urban Interstate highways.
Thirty-five percent of all fatal crashes, 21 percent of all injury crashes, and 19 percent of all property damage only crashes involving large trucks occurred at night (6:00 pm to 6:00 am).
In 2015, 4,050 large big rig and tractor trailer trucks were involved in fatal crashes. According to statistics kept involving these large trucks, 53,263 commercial trucks were involved in injury crashes, and 95,337 were involved in tow away crashes.
Singles (truck tractors pulling a single semi-trailer) accounted for 65 percent of the large trucks involved in fatal crashes in 2015; doubles (tractors pulling two trailers) made up 3 percent of the large trucks involved in fatal crashes; and triples (tractors pulling three trailers) accounted for 0.1 percent of all large trucks involved in fatal crashes.
Of the 3,996 drivers of large commercial trucks involved in fatal crashes in 2015, 206 (5 percent) were 25 years of age or younger, and 211 (5 percent) were 66 years of age or older. In comparison, 4 (2 percent) of the 261 drivers of buses in fatal crashes were 25 years of age or younger, and 34 (13 percent) were 66 years of age or older.
With over 35 years of experience as a personal injury attorney, Sebastian Gibson represents victims involved in an 18-wheeler truck accident, big rig truck accident, tractor trailer truck accident, semi truck accident, commercial truck accident, auto accident, motorcycle accident, pedestrian accident, bicycle accident or any other type of car or motor vehicle accident or personal injury claim. Many of these accidents in California have involved wrongful deaths, serious spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries, as well as injuries to children.
Our personal injury lawyers have handled cases in California involving distracted and inattentive drivers, drowsy driving, aggressive driving, road rage intentional driving, negligent or careless driving, drunk driving accidents, reckless driving, hit and run accidents, intersection crashes, failures to stop at red lights and stop signs, accidents caused by speed, accidents caused by distracted drivers and drivers using their cell phones to text or tweet at the time of their accident.
Negligent driving by inattentive drivers isn’t simply committed by drivers of commercial trucks, tractor trailers and semi trucks, and drivers of big rigs, it’s also committed by young and old, people going to work or school, car and car pool drivers, drivers of SUV’s and pickup trucks and by motorcycle riders, and riders of mopeds and scooters.
The victims of careless and inattentive driving include other drivers of cars and trucks, pedestrians, bicycle riders, riders of motorcycles, sport bikes and mountain bikes as well as children playing and these accidents cause broken bones, internal injuries, back and neck injuries, soft tissue injuries, scars and on occasion, catastrophic injuries, paraplegia, quadriplegia and wrongful deaths.
California Truck Accidents, Jackknife Accidents, And Big Rig Truck Rollovers Throughout California
Big Rig, Tractor Trailer, Semi Trailer and 18 Wheeler Commercial Truck Accidents in Salton Sea, Thermal and Coachella on Hwy 86 happen all too frequently. And nearly every day we hear of another big rig or 18 wheeler truck accident on the I-10 freeway or one of our other freeways in California.
Hwy 86 and the 10 freeway in particular are death traps to motorists attempting to get onto the high speed road with large 18 wheeler, big rig and tractor trailer trucks barreling down on them, not to mention other cars traveling at speeds far in excess of the speed limit.
With so many large tractor trailer trucks that are poorly lighted on a high speed roadways that stretch from Brawley, past Salton City, Thermal and Desert Shores to Indio on the 86 Expressway and from Blythe, past Palm Desert, Palm Springs, Cabazon, Orange County, and Los Angeles on the 10 freeway, the 5 freeway, the 55 and all the other congested freeways in California, car accidents occur frequently with devastating results.
In areas of farm land where agriculture is still the lifeblood of California, the trucks that carry the produce, vegetables and palm trees which are grown in the area must operate not only on our busiest and most dangerous freeways, but often on smaller county roads with much smaller vehicles ahead and behind them. Some of the cars and trucks driven in this area are in need of repair and upon entering the highway, find themselves all too quickly faced with much larger trucks barreling down on them.
If you’ve been injured in a big rig, tractor trailer, semi trailer or other commercial 18 wheeler truck on any of our California highways, streets, freeways and roadways, call California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson today for a free consultation in your home or hospital. We take all truck accidents on contingency, which means there is no fee or costs unless we are successful in obtaining a judgment in court, a winning arbitration, mediation or a settlement.
The Growing Number of Commercial Trucks On Freeways in California
More and more commercial trucks are on freeways not only in the slow lane, but in the lane next to the slowest lane and even occasionally in all the third lane from the right as big rig trucks are forced to the left by merging traffic or when seeking to pass slower trucks.
Even when traffic signs are posted prohibiting trucks from passing in mountains or hills, it’s not uncommon to see tractor trailer big rig trucks and 18 wheeler trucks passing slower commercial trucks late at night when truck drivers feel confident they won’t be seen by a California Highway Patrol officer.
As truck drivers are as a rule better trained than the average driver of a car, the cause of a truck accident on the freeway can be the result of the failure by the driver of another vehicle failing to yield the right of way to a commercial truck unable to move to another lane while merging into traffic. In such an event, the driver of the car merging without looking will commonly be found to be the primary cause of the truck accident.
When two or more commercial trucks are involved in a truck accident, one of the most common causes of such an accident is fatigue that causes the driver of one 18-wheeler truck to run into the rear of a second big rig commercial truck.
If you’ve been involved in a commercial truck accident, on the freeway, on a rural road or around town, or by a landscaping truck, garbage truck or delivery truck, call the offices of California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson immediately. Our office will go into motion without delay to preserve evidence crucial to your case. Whether your accident is in Palm Desert, Coachella, Orange County or anywhere in California, the right choice for you and your family after a truck collision resulting in injuries or loss of life is California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson.
We Can Help You With Your Truck Accident in California
With law degrees in both the U.S. and the U.K., California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson and over 45 years of experience in California and in London, Sebastian Gibson has spent the last 35 years representing truck accident victims and other personal injury clients in Southern California. During that time he’s been frequently interviewed on radio and TV for his expertise, his wit and humor. The author of thousands of articles on the internet, Sebastian Gibson has also written for the Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal newspapers and is the author of a recently published book in 2012.
With millions of dollars in settlements for his auto accident clients and families who’ve lost a loved one, California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson has been named one of the Top Lawyers for the past 13 years by Palm Springs Life Magazine and called “Brilliant” and “A Legend” for good reason. He’s known for his wit and humor, and a determination to make sure his clients receive the compensation they deserve. He has also been named as a “Superb” Lawyer by Avvo, which rates attorneys throughout the U.S.
Our personal injury lawyers have represented individuals injured in truck driving accidents and we can represent you against an insurance company for a big rig or semi truck accident in California, both inland, and up and down the coast.
You Just Get Better From Your Accident, We’ll Take On The Insurance Company
The most important thing for you to do after being the victim of a tired truck driving accident caused by an negligent or careless driver or one where the other driver was inattentive, reckless or distracted, is to get the best possible treatment you need for your injuries.
Depending on the level of impact to you or your vehicle, which in these accidents is usually extensive, you’re almost certainly in a great deal of pain, may still be off work, and may be worried how you’re going to pay for medical treatment if you have no health insurance.
We can safely guide you through your drowsy truck driving accident, deal with the insurance adjusters and refer you to doctors who will wait to be paid out of any settlement for the treatment they provide to you.
Get Answers From Sebastian Gibson For Your Truck Accident
Now is the time when you need a California truck driving accident lawyer most. We’ll prevent you from falling into traps set by insurance company adjusters who may either be ignoring you or calling you constantly, trying to trip you up by taking a recorded statement to either pin the blame on you or to get you to say you’re fine before you can even identify all your aches and pains.
Despite their warm and friendly image on TV, insurance companies can be difficult at best to deal with and the insurance adjusters in California are particularly bad. An insurance company will often suggest that your claim has little or no value by using any admissions you made in your recorded statement against you or by using pre-existing medical conditions against you.
If an insurance company infers they see some comparative negligence on your behalf for even a made up reason, suddenly even a “nuisance value” settlement offer may sound like a good deal when it’s not, to an accident victim desperate to have their car repaired so they can return to work and put food on the table for their family.
When It Matters Most, Call California Truck Accident Attorney Sebastian Gibson For Your California Truck Driving Accident
The time to act is now, before the insurance company concludes your case can be resolved for pennies on the dollar because you’re unrepresented and categorizes your case as having little more than nuisance value. Call the number at the top of this page to talk to Sebastian Gibson.
Knowing that Sebastian Gibson has now been named a 2023 Top Lawyer by the prestigious Palm Springs Life Magazine for the 13th year in a row, you can feel confident you’ve made the right choice when you retain Sebastian Gibson as your California truck accident lawyer.
