Phoenix Truck Accident Attorney

Phoenix sees heavy commercial truck traffic along major routes such as I-10, I-17, Loop 101, Loop 202, and US 60. According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Phoenix has the highest rate of fatal crashes among the nation’s largest cities, surpassing both Dallas and Los Angeles.

When a passenger vehicle is involved in a collision with a large commercial truck, the difference in size and weight can lead to life-changing consequences. Kermani LLP helps people injured in Phoenix truck accidents determine what went wrong, identify liable parties, and pursue compensation for the losses caused by the crash.

Truck Accident Claims Our Phoenix Legal Team Handles

Truck crashes often involve factors that do not arise in ordinary passenger vehicle accidents, including large blind spots, heavy cargo, longer stopping distances, driver fatigue, and complex trucking regulations. The way a crash occurred can also help determine whether responsibility extends beyond the truck driver to a trucking company, maintenance provider, cargo loader, or another party. Our Phoenix truck accident lawyers handle claims involving:

• Jackknife Accidents: The trailer swings out at an angle to the cab, usually during hard braking or a skid, and can block multiple lanes of traffic at once.
• Underride Accidents: A smaller vehicle slides partially or fully beneath the trailer, often crushing the vehicle's cabin and causing catastrophic injuries.
• Truck Rollover Accidents: The truck tips onto its side, typically when a turn is taken too fast or an unevenly loaded trailer shifts its center of gravity.
• Wide-Turn Accidents: The driver swings wide in the opposite direction to complete a turn, and a vehicle caught in that gap can be struck or forced off the road.
• Rear-End Truck Collisions: A truck's stopping distance is far longer than a passenger vehicle's, so following too closely or braking late often results in a high-force impact from behind.
• Head-On Collisions: Among the most severe truck crashes, these typically happen when a truck crosses the center line due to fatigue, a mechanical failure, or a failed evasive maneuver.
• Blind-Spot Accidents: Commercial trucks have much larger blind spots, often called "No-Zones," along the sides and directly behind the trailer, and a vehicle lingering there can go unnoticed.
• Lost or Unsecured Cargo Accidents: Cargo that wasn't properly loaded or secured can shift, fall, or spill from a moving truck, striking other vehicles or forcing a sudden, dangerous maneuver.
• Brake Failure Accidents: Worn brake pads, an air brake malfunction, or deferred maintenance can leave a truck unable to stop in time, especially with a full load.
• Tire Blowout Accidents: A tire failure at highway speed can send a truck out of control, and it's one of the more common mechanical failures on Phoenix freeways in the summer.
• Driver Fatigue Accidents: A drowsy driver's reaction time slows the same way an impaired driver's does, which is why federal hours-of-service limits exist in the first place.
• Distracted Truck Driving: A driver's attention taken off the road for even a few seconds, at highway speed, covers enough distance to miss a stopped vehicle ahead entirely.
• Speeding-Related Truck Crashes: Extra weight and speed leave a truck with less margin for error, cutting down the time a driver has to react or stop before hitting slower traffic.
• Unsafe Lane Changes: These happen when a driver merges without confirming a mirror or blind spot is clear, or misjudges how much room the trailer needs to clear a vehicle safely.
• Multi-Vehicle Truck Accidents: A single truck crash that blocks multiple freeway lanes can quickly pull in several more vehicles that don't have time to stop.

Truck accident claims often require a close review of evidence beyond the crash scene. Kermani LLP can examine driver logs, electronic logging device data, maintenance records, cargo information, company safety records, and other evidence to determine how the collision happened and who may be responsible.

When a truck accident causes serious injuries, identifying every potentially liable party can make an important difference in the claim. Kermani LLP can evaluate the available evidence and insurance coverage and pursue compensation for the losses caused by the crash.

What Causes Truck Accidents in Phoenix?

Commercial trucks require more time and distance to stop, have large blind spots, and can become difficult to control when they are overloaded, poorly maintained, or operated by a fatigued driver. In Phoenix, heavy freeway traffic, long-haul routes, construction zones, and high temperatures can add to the risks already associated with large trucks.

• Impairment and Fatigue: Driver fatigue or drowsy driving, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, both go to whether the driver should have been behind the wheel at all. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations impose hours-of-service limits under 49 CFR Part 395 specifically to prevent fatigue-related crashes, so a documented violation can support a negligence per se argument on top of ordinary negligence. A DUI finding also opens the door to other damage types in a way most other causes on this list don't.
• Unsafe Driving Conduct: Distracted driving, speeding or driving too fast for conditions, following other vehicles too closely, unsafe lane changes, failure to check blind spots, and improper or wide turns are all breaches of the basic duty of care every driver owes to others on the road. What distinguishes these claims in a trucking case is scale: a mistake that causes a fender-bender in a passenger car can be fatal when the vehicle weighs 80,000 pounds and needs far more distance to stop or maneuver.
• Negligent Hiring, Training, and Supervision: Inadequate driver training or experience and unsafe hiring or supervision practices point past the driver to the carrier itself. These claims argue the company knew, or should have known through the driver qualification process required under 49 CFR Part 391, that this driver wasn't fit for the job and put them on the road anyway. It's a direct claim against the company, separate from its vicarious liability for what the driver did that day.
• Scheduling and Operational Pressure: Pressure to meet delivery schedules is its own theory, distinct from a driver's individual choice to speed or skip a rest break. When a carrier's dispatch demands make hours-of-service compliance practically impossible, that supports an argument that the company's own operational decisions, not just the driver's conduct, caused the crash.
• Cargo Loading and Securement: Overloaded or improperly loaded cargo and unsecured cargo change a truck's handling, stopping distance, and rollover risk, which is exactly what federal cargo securement rules are meant to prevent. Liability here doesn't necessarily stop with the driver or the carrier; a separate shipping or loading company that packed the trailer can be independently liable if its work caused the crash.
• Vehicle Maintenance and Mechanical Failure: Brake failure or poor brake maintenance, tire blowouts and worn tires, and failure to inspect or maintain the truck are maintenance claims grounded in a carrier's ongoing inspection obligations under 49 CFR Part 396. A mechanical defect is a related but legally distinct theory: if a part failed because of how it was designed or manufactured, not how it was maintained, that can support a product liability claim against the manufacturer, in addition to or instead of a claim against the carrier.
• Roadway and Environmental Conditions: Hazardous road or construction conditions can shift the analysis outside the trucking industry entirely. Depending on what caused the hazard, a claim may run against a government entity responsible for road maintenance, subject to Arizona's much shorter 180-day notice-of-claim deadline under A.R.S. § 12-821.01, or against a construction contractor whose work zone created the danger.

A truck crash may involve failures by more than one person or company. Driver conduct, maintenance practices, cargo loading, and trucking company policies may all need to be examined before responsibility can be determined. A Phoenix truck accident lawyer at Kermani LLP can review these factors, preserve relevant trucking records, and identify the parties that may be liable for the collision.

Injuries Commonly Caused by Truck Accidents in Phoenix

The size and weight of a commercial truck can expose occupants of smaller vehicles to tremendous force during a collision. Truck crashes may lead to emergency surgery, lengthy hospital stays, rehabilitation, permanent disability, and months or years of ongoing medical care.

• Traumatic brain injuries: Violent impact can cause concussions, brain bleeding, cognitive problems, memory loss, and other lasting neurological symptoms.
• Spinal cord injuries: Damage to the spinal cord may result in reduced mobility, loss of sensation, or partial or complete paralysis.
• Crush injuries: Victims may become trapped between vehicles or inside a severely damaged passenger compartment, causing extensive muscle, nerve, and tissue damage.
• Broken and fractured bones: High-impact truck collisions can cause multiple fractures involving the legs, arms, ribs, pelvis, hips, and other parts of the body.
• Internal organ injuries: Trauma to the chest or abdomen can damage organs and cause dangerous internal bleeding that requires immediate treatment.
• Amputations: Severe crush injuries or damage to a limb may require surgical amputation and long-term rehabilitation.
• Neck and back injuries: Herniated discs, vertebral injuries, muscle damage, and chronic pain can develop after a violent collision.
• Burn injuries: Fuel leaks, vehicle fires, hazardous cargo, and explosions can cause severe burns and permanent scarring.
• Facial injuries and disfigurement: Broken glass, metal, airbags, and direct impact can cause fractures, lacerations, dental injuries, and lasting scars.
• Psychological trauma: Serious truck crashes can also lead to anxiety, sleep problems, post-traumatic stress, and other emotional effects.

The consequences of a truck accident may continue well beyond the initial medical treatment. Future surgeries, rehabilitation, reduced earning capacity, permanent limitations, and the need for assistance with everyday activities can all affect a claim. A Phoenix truck accident attorney at Kermani LLP can document these losses and pursue compensation that reflects the full impact of the injuries.

What Compensation Can You Recover After a Phoenix Truck Accident?

Truck accident injuries can create losses that extend far beyond the first hospital bill. Victims may face months of treatment, lengthy periods away from work, permanent physical limitations, and major changes to their ability to support themselves or their families. When a truck driver, trucking company, or another party is responsible, a claim may seek compensation for both immediate losses and future consequences.

Economic Damages

Economic damages may cover financial losses connected to the crash, including:

• Emergency transportation and hospital care
• Surgeries and specialist treatment
• Future medical care
• Physical and occupational therapy
• Prescription medications
• Lost wages and employment benefits
• Reduced future earning capacity
• Vehicle repair or replacement
• Medical equipment and mobility aids
• Home modifications or in-home assistance
• Other accident-related expenses

Non-Economic Damages

Truck accident injuries can also affect independence, relationships, mobility, and daily routines. Non-economic damages may account for losses such as:

• Physical pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Physical impairment
• Permanent disability
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Loss of consortium

Punitive Damages

In limited cases, punitive damages may be considered when the conduct involved goes beyond ordinary negligence. In a truck accident case, this could involve particularly serious misconduct by a driver or trucking company. These damages are intended to punish wrongful conduct and discourage similar behavior.

The value of a truck accident claim can depend on more than the severity of the injuries. Commercial insurance coverage, the number of responsible parties, trucking company practices, future medical needs, lost earning ability, and the long-term effect of the crash may all influence the compensation available. A Phoenix truck accident lawyer at Kermani LLP can investigate these factors and pursue recovery from every party that may be legally responsible.

Arizona Truck Accident Laws That Can Affect Your Claim

Arizona law can affect how long you have to bring a truck accident claim, how fault is divided, and which parties may be responsible for paying damages. Commercial truck cases can also involve state and federal safety regulations that do not typically arise in an ordinary car accident.

Statute of Limitations

Under A.R.S. § 12-542, most Arizona personal injury lawsuits must be filed within two years after the cause of action accrues. Waiting too long can result in losing the right to pursue the claim in court. 

There are important exceptions. If a public entity or public employee may be responsible, Arizona generally requires a notice of claim within 180 days under A.R.S. § 12-821.01, and a lawsuit against a public entity or employee generally must be filed within one year under A.R.S. § 12-821. 

Speaking with a Phoenix truck accident attorney early can provide more time to preserve electronic data, obtain trucking records, interview witnesses, and investigate the vehicles involved.

Comparative Fault

Arizona follows a pure comparative fault system under A.R.S. § 12-2505. You may still recover compensation even if you were partly responsible for the truck accident, but your damages can be reduced in proportion to your share of fault.

For example, if your damages total $100,000 and you are found 20% responsible for the collision, your recovery could be reduced to $80,000.

Liability When Several Parties Contributed to the Crash

Truck accident cases frequently involve more than one potentially responsible party. Arizona generally allocates damages according to each party’s percentage of fault under A.R.S. § 12-2506. The law also contains exceptions, including circumstances involving an agent or servant of another party. 

Depending on the facts, a truck accident claim may involve:

• The truck driver
• The trucking or motor carrier company
• A company responsible for loading cargo
• A maintenance or repair provider
• The owner of the truck or trailer
• A manufacturer of defective truck parts
• Another driver who contributed to the collision

Identifying every responsible party can be particularly important when a serious truck accident results in substantial medical expenses, lost income, or permanent injuries.

Commercial Trucking Safety Requirements

Commercial trucks operating in Arizona are subject to state and federal motor carrier safety requirements. Arizona law applies these rules to commercial vehicles, motor carriers, shippers, and drivers, while the Arizona Department of Public Safety enforces applicable state requirements and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. 

These safety requirements can involve issues such as:

• Driver qualifications
• Hours of service and driver fatigue
• Vehicle inspections
• Brake and tire condition
• Maintenance practices
• Cargo securement
• Safe commercial vehicle operation

Violations of trucking safety requirements can become important evidence when determining how a crash occurred and whether a driver, motor carrier, or another party failed to operate safely.

Because Phoenix truck accident claims may involve comparative fault, multiple defendants, commercial trucking records, and strict filing deadlines, a truck accident lawyer at Kermani LLP can investigate the collision, identify the laws and regulations that apply, and pursue compensation from the parties responsible for your injuries and losses.

Reach Out to Kermani LLP After a Phoenix Truck Accident

Truck accident claims can become complicated quickly when a commercial carrier, multiple insurers, corporate records, and federal trucking requirements are involved. Kermani LLP helps injured people cut through that complexity and understand what their case may require. Our Phoenix truck accident attorneys can secure evidence before it disappears, examine the conduct of the driver and trucking company, and pursue every available source of compensation. Contact Kermani LLP for a free consultation and learn how we can help you move your claim forward.