When a Truck Loses Its Cargo: Who Can Be Liable for the Crash That Follows?
A piece of cargo falling onto a highway can give surrounding drivers only seconds to react. A motorist may strike the object, collide with another vehicle while swerving, or lose control entirely. Other crashes happen when cargo shifts and affects a truck’s balance, causing a rollover, jackknife, or sudden lane departure.
Determining responsibility for a lost-load truck accident requires looking beyond the moments before the collision. Investigators may need to determine who loaded the freight, who secured it, whether it was inspected, and whether the truck was safe to operate.
Why Is Cargo Securement So Important?
Commercial trucks carry freight that varies widely in size, weight, and shape. Some loads are enclosed within trailers, while others are transported on flatbeds using straps, chains, tie-downs, and other restraints.
Cargo that is poorly positioned or inadequately secured can shift during braking, turns, or evasive maneuvers. The moving weight may make the truck difficult to control. Freight can also break through a trailer door or fall from an open trailer directly into traffic.
Federal regulations require cargo to be distributed and secured so it cannot fall from the vehicle or shift enough to affect the truck’s stability or handling. Additional requirements apply to certain types of freight.
When Can the Truck Driver Be Responsible?
Under federal inspection rules, a driver generally must confirm that cargo is properly distributed and secured before operating the truck. When required, the driver must inspect the load and securement devices within the first 50 miles and at specified points later in the trip. Exceptions may apply to sealed trailers or loads that cannot practically be inspected.
A driver may bear responsibility for skipping an inspection, ignoring a loose restraint, or continuing after noticing that the truck was leaning or handling differently. Driving behavior may also contribute. Excessive speed around a curve or abrupt steering can cause an unstable load to shift.
A regulatory violation may be relevant evidence, but it does not automatically establish liability. The evidence must still connect the driver’s conduct to the cargo loss and resulting crash.
Can the Trucking Company Be Liable?
A motor carrier may be responsible when its employees improperly loaded or secured the freight. Investigators may also review the carrier’s hiring, training, and supervision practices, as well as its inspection and maintenance procedures.
Depending on state law and the employment relationship, the carrier may also be liable for the driver’s conduct. Company records may reveal prior loading problems, damaged equipment or other known safety concerns.
What If Another Company Loaded the Cargo?
Commercial freight often passes through several hands. A shipper, warehouse, freight company or independent contractor may control how the cargo is positioned and secured.
A loading company could distribute the weight unevenly, use inadequate restraints or overload the truck. Some defects may not be visible to the driver, particularly when a sealed trailer arrives ready for transport.
Determining liability requires identifying who performed and controlled the relevant work. Contracts, shipping documents, and loading records may help answer that question.
Can Defective Securement Equipment Cause an Accident?
Even properly positioned cargo may be lost if the securement equipment fails. Straps can tear, chains can break, and anchor points can separate from the trailer.
Investigators may examine whether the equipment was appropriate for the cargo and properly maintained. If a restraint failed because of a manufacturing or design defect, the manufacturer or distributor could be responsible. When worn equipment should have been replaced, responsibility may rest with the carrier, maintenance provider, or company that supplied it.
What Evidence Can Show Why the Cargo Was Lost?
Evidence in a lost-load case may include:
- Bills of lading and loading records
- Weight tickets and inspection reports
- Driver logs and electronic logging device data
- Photographs of the cargo and securement equipment
- Dashcam, traffic camera, or surveillance footage
- Electronic truck data and witness statements
This evidence may reveal where the securement process failed and who controlled that stage of the shipment. Because trucks can be repaired and electronic information overwritten, promptly preserving records may be important in a personal injury claim.
Can More Than One Party Be Responsible?
Responsibility for a lost-load collision may be shared. For example, a loading company may improperly distribute the cargo, while the driver fails to respond to signs that the load has shifted. The carrier could also bear responsibility for inadequate training, damaged equipment, or an employee’s conduct.
A truck accident lawyer can investigate the companies involved and identify whose actions contributed to the crash.
Determining Responsibility After a Lost-Load Crash
Identifying the truck is only the beginning. An investigation may need to trace the cargo from the loading dock to the moment it fell or shifted, including who controlled its loading, securement, inspection, and transportation.
Those findings can show whether the driver, carrier, loader, maintenance provider, equipment manufacturer or multiple parties may be held responsible for the crash.
