After a Truck Crash in Miramar, Your Family Doesn't Have to Face the Road Ahead Alone

Truck accidents in Miramar can cause serious, lasting injuries. The first weeks after a crash matter a great deal, so get medical care, protect the evidence, and learn Florida’s deadlines early. This guide explains the truck accidents Miramar families most often face and what Florida law means for them.

Facing a trucking company and its insurance team alone is a lot like walking the full length of Miramar Regional Park in July with no shade. It’s long, it’s hot, and it goes much better with someone beside you.

Why Truck Crashes in Miramar Are Different From Other Crashes

A truck crash differs mainly because of size, weight, and the number of companies that can be involved. A loaded commercial truck weighs far more than a passenger car. When the two collide, the force on the people in the car is much greater, and that force can mean more severe injuries.

Heavy trucks share Miramar’s roads with commuters every day. Florida’s Turnpike, Interstate 75, and Interstate 595 carry heavy traffic through South Broward. Surface streets connect those highways to warehouses and distribution sites, so trucks also turn, stop, and merge in neighborhoods and business areas.

A truck crash often involves more than one party. The driver may work for one company, the truck may belong to another, and a maintenance or cargo contractor may have had a role. Each may have its own insurer. Trucking companies and their insurers often start investigating quickly. Their investigators work for them, not for you. That is why it helps to know who may be responsible before you talk with anyone from the other side.

Common Ways Truck Crashes Happen in Miramar

Many truck crashes come from a few common causes: following too closely, unsafe lane changes, wide turns, and rushed or tired driving. Each one can happen on a busy Miramar corridor at any hour.

Rear-end collisions happen in heavy traffic, when a big truck cannot stop as quickly as a car. Lane changes into a truck’s blind spots and wide turns that swing into another lane are other common setups.

Fatigue is another concern. Federal rules limit how long commercial drivers may work. Under federal driving-hour limits in 49 C.F.R. § 395.3, a driver may not drive after 14 consecutive hours that follow 10 consecutive hours off duty. A driver may drive a total of 11 hours in that period. Carriers also may not let drivers exceed 60 hours on duty in 7 days, or 70 hours in 8 days, based on how often the company runs trucks.

Load and maintenance problems can contribute too. An investigation may look at whether cargo was secured and whether the truck was properly maintained.

Delivery trucks carrying Amazon and FedEx packages share these roads, and contract delivery work can involve several companies. In those cases, the contracting company, the driver’s employer, or both may be part of a claim.

Catastrophic Injuries That Can Change a Family’s Life

Large-truck crashes can cause injuries that are permanent and change daily life. These include spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, amputations, severe burns, and serious back and neck injuries.

Some of these injuries need long-term medical care, rehabilitation, adaptive equipment, and changes to a home or vehicle. Those needs can continue for years, and families often feel the financial strain along with the physical one. Follow your doctors’ treatment plans. Keep a folder with every appointment note, bill, and receipt, plus a log of trips to care.

When a crash causes a death, Florida law allows the family to bring a wrongful-death claim. Under Fla. Stat. § 768.19, the party that would have been liable if the injured person had lived remains liable for the death. The law also lists who may recover. Under Fla. Stat. § 768.21, a surviving spouse may recover for loss of companionship and protection, and for mental pain and suffering. Minor children, and all children if there is no surviving spouse, may recover for lost parental companionship, instruction, and guidance and for mental pain and suffering from the date of injury. Each parent of a deceased minor child may recover for mental pain and suffering.

No award can replace a loved one. The law does, however, recognize what the family has lost.

Florida Rules and Deadlines That Affect Your Claim

Florida sets filing deadlines for injury and wrongful-death lawsuits, and those deadlines apply to every claim. Waiting can narrow your options, so talk with a lawyer promptly. The state’s time limits appear in Fla. Stat. § 95.11. When the clock starts depends on the facts of each case.

Florida also uses a shared-fault rule. Under Fla. Stat. § 768.81, a party found more than 50 percent at fault for its own harm may not recover any damages. Partial fault does not automatically end a claim. The same statute says each liable party is judged by its own percentage of fault, not by the doctrine of joint and several liability. In plain terms, each responsible party answers for its own share.

A common mistake is assuming there is plenty of time. Dates are easy to lose track of while you’re healing, and missing one can close the door on a claim.

Evidence in a Truck Crash Can Disappear Quickly

The most useful truck crash evidence often sits with the trucking company, so ask for it early. Records that can help show what happened include:

• electronic logging device data
• dashcam or onboard camera footage
• driver qualification files
• dispatch and delivery records
• maintenance logs
• cargo manifests

Under 49 C.F.R. § 395.8, a motor carrier subject to the requirements of this part, except a private motor carrier of passengers (nonbusiness), must require each driver to record the driver’s duty status for each 24-hour period. Those logs can show how a driver’s time was spent, including driving and rest.

Federal rules also allow carriers to keep records in digital form. Under 49 C.F.R. § 379.7, records may be preserved by any technology that accurately reflects all of the information and stays accessible. In plain terms, digital files count, but only if they stay accurate and can be reproduced later.

A lawyer may send a preservation letter, which is a written request that the company keep these records. Sending it early matters because the company controls the files. Digital data can be lost or overwritten. Lawyers call losing evidence “spoliation,” and early requests help prevent it.

Police reports, photos of the scene and vehicles, witness names, and medical records are also important to keep.

Steps to Take After a Truck Crash in Miramar

Get medical care right away, even when pain seems minor. Some injuries show up hours or days later, so a prompt checkup matters. Follow your doctors’ care and keep records of every visit.

Write down what you can. Record the names of the drivers, the trucking company’s name, the unit number, and any company markings on the truck. Take photos of the vehicles, your injuries, and the scene. Save every receipt for medical care, prescriptions, and travel to appointments.

Request the police crash report. Under Fla. Stat. § 316.066, a Florida Traffic Crash Report, Long Form must be completed and submitted within 10 days after the investigating officer finishes a crash investigation involving death, injury, complaints of pain, or a commercial motor vehicle. The report must include the date, time, and location of the crash, the vehicles involved, and the names and addresses of all drivers and passengers. Under Fla. Stat. § 316.066, crash reports held by the agency may be made immediately available to the parties involved in the crash and their legal representatives, but not for redistribution to any person or entity not listed in the statute.

A call from a trucking company’s insurer is not a court case. Still, your words can affect your claim. You may choose to speak with a lawyer before giving any recorded statement.

How Our Firm Helps Miramar Families After a Truck Crash

CHG Personal Injury Lawyers is a Florida-based personal injury firm. It handles truck accidents, catastrophic injury claims, and wrongful-death cases for people throughout Florida. Igor Hernandez is the responsible lawyer for this page. Our lawyers are licensed attorneys admitted to The Florida Bar.

Our focus includes investigating the driver, the carrier, and other responsible parties. We ask for the records described above early, while they are still available.

The firm charges no attorney’s fees and no case costs unless there is a recovery. The first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation to continue. This matter may be referred to, or handled together with, another law firm where appropriate.

Frequently Asked Questions