New Braunfels Truck Accident Lawyer
Accomplished representation for victims of commercial truck and small truck accidents in Texas
Texas is a major location for oil exploration, manufacturing, construction, agriculture, and other businesses. These industries use trucks every day to deliver equipment, machines, consumer goods, and everything the United States and New Braunfels use. Every day, tractor-trailers, flatbeds, and delivery trucks travel through Texas. At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney, our legal team has 70 years of experience holding truck drivers and trucking accountable when these trucks cause injuries and deaths. We demand compensation for all your financial and personal damages.
Our record of success in truck accident cases includes the following recoveries:
- $6 million for severe injuries.
- $3.1 million for a truck accident victim’s back and neck surgery and other damages.
- $2.75 million for our client, who was acting as a Good Samaritan, was run over by an 18-wheel truck.
- $1.425 million in a wrongful death case involving the collision of a truck with an 18-wheeler tank truck causing an explosion, fire, and the death of our client.
- $1.3 million for a truck accident victim who required back surgery.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How dangerous are truck accidents?
- How does your New Braunfels truck accident lawyer fight for injury victims and families?
- What types of truck accidents do you handle in New Braunfels?
- What types of injuries do truck accidents cause in New Braunfels?
- Why do truck accidents happen in New Braunfels?
- Who is liable when truck accidents occur?
- How much is my truck accident case worth in Texas?
- Do you have a New Braunfels truck accident lawyer near me?
How dangerous are truck accidents?
Truck accidents often cause catastrophic injuries and fatalities. They are dangerous for many reasons including:
- Their size and weight mean that when trucks collide with cars, the cars will take the brunt of the force. Cars, motorcycles, bicycle riders, and pedestrians are simply no match for trucks.
- Trucks need more time and distance to stop than smaller vehicles.
- The cargo from trucks can fly off the truck causing havoc for everyone on the road.
- Trucks have blind spots that make it very difficult for drivers to see around the truck.
- Trucks are much more difficult to control than smaller vehicles.
- The height and width of trucks makes it hard for other drivers to see around trucks.
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), in 2021, more than 5,900 truck and bus accidents were fatal. More than 530,000 trucks or buses were involved in nonfatal crashes in 2021 nationwide.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, in 2023, there were 1,543 fatal accidents involving pickup trucks and 443 fatal accidents involving tractor-trailers and semis.
How does your New Braunfels truck accident lawyer fight for injury victims and families?
Truck drivers and trucking companies have expensive defense lawyers to defend them. You need respected lawyers on your side who have the experience, resources, tenacity, and reputation to fight these lawyers and negotiate with the insurance carriers.
Most truck accidents cause very severe injuries. Accident victims often require long-term care. Many victims never fully recover. Some victims require a lifetime of medical help. The cost of your medical care is expensive. Many workers cannot work while they are seeking medical help. The pain can be excruciating.
At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney, we have been fighting for personal injury victims for 70 years. Clients trust us. Insurance companies and defense lawyers respect us. When you work with our New Braunfels truck accident attorney, you will know you are working with a lawyer who is dedicated to obtaining all the compensation you deserve.
Our legal team:
- Gives each client our personal attention.
- Works with numerous professionals including the police and officials who investigate your accident, our own investigators, traffic reconstruction experts, trucking industry professionals, product safety experts, and other liability professionals. We also work with your doctors and our network of medical professionals when necessary.
- Questions everyone who has knowledge about the accident, the shipping arrangements, and any other relevant information.
- Examines black boxes, electronic logging devices, the police report, truck maintenance and repair records, insurance policies, employment records, and any other relevant items (such as smartphones to see if a driver was distracted).
- Identifies and files claims against everyone responsible for your truck accident.
- Assesses all of your damages.
- Negotiates with the insurance companies to obtain a just and fair settlement
- Argues your case before a local judge and jury.
Pat Maloney, Jr. is board-certified in Personal Injury Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. This means you will have a certified specialist on your side.
What types of truck accidents do you handle in New Braunfels?
Our New Braunfels truck accident lawyers handle all types of truck accidents including complex cases with multiple defendants. We handle truck accidents involving tractor-trailers, semitrailers, rigs, 18-wheelers, flatbed trucks, boxcar trucks, delivery vans, pickup trucks, and all other types of trucks.
Some of the many types of truck accident cases we handle include:
- Jackknife accidents. These dangerous accidents occur when a tractor and trailer fail to travel at the same speed or in the same direction. Skidding is a common cause of jackknife accidents. The end result of a jackknife accident is usually that the cab and trailer are at right angles or acute angles to each other. It can take hours to clear the highway. The truck driver and any occupants of vehicles near the truck are likely to suffer severe injuries or fatalities.
- Rollover accidents. Trucks are generally more prone to rollover accidents than cars because of the location of their center of gravity. Rollovers are even more likely when truck drivers speed through curves, when truckloads shift while a truck is in transit, or due to other causes.
- Blind spot accidents. Trucks generally do not have good sightlines (or any sightlines) behind and to the sides of the trucks. Truck drivers need to use extra caution when changing lanes, turning, and merging. Truck companies should use the latest technology to improve a driver’s ability to see around all sides of the truck. Truck drivers also need to be especially careful when backing out into traffic or maneuvering in loading docks.
- Improperly loaded and overloaded cargo. Cargo that is not properly secured can move around while a truck is moving causing the driver to lose control of their truck. Unsecured cargo and cargo overloads, especially in some trucks like dump trucks that are not fully contained, can spill onto the road creating a nightmare for any vehicles nearby.
- Underride accidents. Many small cars, motorcyclists, bicycle riders, and even pedestrians can be crushed by a tall truck. These accidents are often fatal. They’re also preventable if truck drivers use caution and trucking companies pay for and properly install rear guards and safety guards.
- Tire blowouts. Our New Braunfels truck accident lawyer holds trucking manufacturers accountable if any of their tires are defective and the defect causes an accident, or if the truck driver or trucking company fails to regularly check the pressure and quality of the tires on their trucks.
- Wide-turn accidents. The longer a truck is, the more room a truck needs to complete a turn. Many tractor-trailers and other commercial tracks use two lanes of travel to complete their turns. When a truck turns at an intersection, the truck can crush any vehicles in the path or near the turning truck.
At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney, we also handle the following types of truck accidents that are generally common to car accidents:
- Head-on accidents where the front of a truck strikes the front of another vehicle.
- Broadsides/T-bones where the front of a truck strikes the side of another vehicle.
- Rear-end collisions where a truck driver collides with the rear of a vehicle in front of the truck.
- Single-vehicle truck accidents.
- Multiple-vehicle truck accidents.
What types of injuries do truck accidents cause in New Braunfels?
At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney; our legal team regularly handles personal injury victims who suffer any type of serious injury including:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Broken bones/fractures
- Severe burns
- Traumatic amputation/loss of limb
- Crush injuries
- Internal bleeding and organ damage
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Nerve, muscle, tissue, ligament, and/or tendon damage
- Loss of hearing or sight
- Back, neck, and shoulder pain
- Other serious injuries
- Death
We work with the many different types of medical professionals who diagnose and treat these injuries including orthopedists, surgeons, neurologists, cardiologists, family doctors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, and other healthcare providers.
Why do truck accidents happen in New Braunfels?
Our legal team has working relationships with liability professionals and trucking industry professionals to show the cause of your accident. We also thoroughly investigate and question everyone with information about the cause of your accident. Some of the common causes of truck accidents in New Braunfels include the following:
Truck driver negligence includes the following:
- Driver fatigue. Commercial truck drivers must take regular rest breaks depending on how long they are on the road. The FMCSA Hours of Service rules regulate when truck drivers must rest and how long they must rest before they can resume driving.
- Driver distraction. Truck drivers must have their eyes on traffic, hands on the steering wheel, and minds on how to handle emergencies. Our New Braunfels personal injury lawyer holds truck drivers accountable when they text, use their hands to talk on a mobile phone, look at a GPS, eat, drink, or distract themselves from driver safety in any way.
- Speeding, reckless driving, and other traffic violations. Many truck drivers push themselves to make as many deliveries as possible or make deliveries as quickly as possible. We hold truck drivers accountable if they violate any of Texas’s traffic laws.
- Blind spots. Truck drivers need to know where their truck’s blind spots are and take appropriate precautions such as slowing down and using their mirrors and any available blind-spot technology.
- Driving too fast for traffic or weather conditions. Truck drivers need to understand how much time and distance it takes for their truck to come to a complete stop under all conditions - and drive accordingly.
Trucking company negligence. The companies involved in the shipment can cause truck accidents under the following circumstances:
- They pressure their drivers to meet unrealistic delivery schedules.
- They fail to train their drivers about driver safety.
- They force violations of HOS rules and regulations.
- Employers fail to conduct background checks on their drivers including their driving records.
We review if trucking companies fail to regularly inspect, maintain, and repair their trucks. Most trucks spend long hours on the road hauling heavy materials. Every part of the truck should be inspected before a new trip. Some of the truck parts that should be in good working order include the service brake, parking brake, trailer hitches/coupling devices, turn signals, lights, tires, horns, windshield wipers, and blind spot technology.
Other responsible defendants
Our New Braunfels truck accident lawyer also file claims against manufacturers of defective truck parts such as defective hydraulic systems, brakes, and fuel lines.
We also file claims against licensed sellers of alcohol who serve liquor to a driver who is visibly showing signs of intoxication.
Who is liable when truck accidents occur?
At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney, we file claims against everyone responsible for your trucking accident or the death of a loved one. The defendants may include:
- The truck driver
- The owner of the truck if the truck owner is different than the driver
- An employer of the truck driver
- The company requesting the shipment and/or the company receiving the shipment
- A trucking broker who arranges the shipment
- A truck-loading company
- A maintenance or repair company
- A manufacturer of defective truck parts
- A seller of alcohol
- The Texas Department of Transportation or other state or federal agencies or entities
How much is my truck accident case worth in Texas?
Our personal injury lawyers have extensive experience working with your doctors to verify your injuries, review the full range of medical care you will need, and understand every way that your injuries are affecting every part of your life. We work with life planners if you have catastrophic injuries. Our New Braunfels truck accident lawyer works with your employer to verify your financial losses. We also work with mechanics to show how much it costs to fix or replace your vehicle.
We demand compensation for all your damages to date and the damages you can expect to have for the rest of your life. These damages include all your:
- Medical bills including ER care, hospitalizations, surgeries, and rehabilitative care
- Lost income including lost wages, work benefits, business income, and permanent disability compensation
- Physical pain and emotional suffering including all your aches, pains, worries, and anxieties
- Property damage including the cost to repair or replace your vehicle depending on the amount of the damage
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Loss of bodily function
- Inability to enjoy life’s pleasures
We seek punitive damages if the conduct of a defendant was malicious.
Our legal team also files a wrongful death action if a truck accident in New Braunfels is fatal. Wrongful death damages include:
- The funeral and burial costs
- Any pre-death medical bills
- The loss of financial support your loved one would have provided
- The loss of personal support (such as love, comfort, and guidance) your loved one would have provided
Do you have a New Braunfels truck accident lawyer near me?
Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney is located at 239 E Commerce St. in New Braunfels, TX, in the center of Downtown. Our office is in a historic and beautiful building. You can park nearby. You can consult with us by phone or through an online video conference. If your injuries are too severe to come to our office, we’ll discuss alternate arrangements such as home visits.
We’ll fight to protect your financial and emotional security.
Contact our respected New Braunfels truck accident lawyer today.
We understand how frightening accidents are. You hurt. Your bills are mounting. We’ll guide you calmly and clearly through this difficult time. At Pat Maloney: Accident & Injury Attorney, we’ve helped many accident victims like you obtain strong recoveries. We’re ready to fight for you today. To schedule a free consultation, call us or fill out our contact form. Our New Braunfels truck accident lawyer handles truck accident claims on a contingency fee basis – which means our success depends on your success.