Truck Accidents in Washington: Who Can Be Responsible and What Evidence Matters

Hypothetical example: a loaded tractor-trailer drifts across a lane on I-5 and sideswipes a car. The car's driver is hurt, and the trucking company's insurer calls within days.

Truck crashes can involve more parties than car crashes, and federal rules create records that can show what happened.

This article explains what the law says. It is general education, not advice about any one crash.

Who Can Be Responsible

A truck crash can involve several businesses besides the driver. Depending on the facts, these may include the motor carrier that employed or dispatched the driver, a company that loaded the cargo, and whoever inspected and maintained the truck.

Washington law allocates fault among all of them. Under RCW 4.22.070(1), the trier of fact determines the percentage of total fault attributable to every entity that caused the claimant's damages, and the percentages total one hundred percent.

Liability is generally several only, meaning each defendant pays its own share. The statute lists exceptions, described below.

Joint and Several Liability Exceptions

RCW 4.22.070(1)(a) makes a party responsible for the fault of another person when both were acting in concert, or when a person was acting as an agent or servant of the party. Whether a driver was acting as a carrier's agent or servant is a fact question.

Under RCW 4.22.070(1)(b), if the claimant is found not at fault, the defendants against whom judgment is entered are jointly and severally liable for the sum of their proportionate shares. Joint and several liability means each such defendant can be required to pay that combined amount.

Hours-of-Service Rules

Federal rules limit how long a property-carrying commercial driver may drive. Under 49 CFR 395.3(a), a driver may not drive without first taking 10 consecutive hours off duty, and may not drive after 14 consecutive hours on duty following that break.

Within that 14-hour period, a driver may drive a total of 11 hours. Driving is not permitted after 8 hours of driving time without at least a 30-minute interruption, except for drivers who qualify for certain short-haul exceptions.

Section 395.3(b) also bars driving after 60 hours on duty in 7 consecutive days, or 70 hours in 8 consecutive days if the carrier operates every day of the week. These rules apply "except as otherwise provided in § 395.1," which lists exceptions.

Records That Can Show What Happened

49 CFR 395.8(a) requires a motor carrier to have each driver record duty status for each 24-hour period. Carriers generally must use an electronic logging device (ELD), with limited exceptions for manual records.

Under 49 CFR 391.51, each motor carrier must keep a driver qualification file for each driver it employs. The file includes the employment application, motor vehicle records, the road test certificate or equivalent, and the medical examiner's certificate.

49 CFR 396.3(a) requires carriers to systematically inspect, repair and maintain the vehicles they control, and keep parts in safe and proper operating condition at all times. 49 CFR 396.11 requires drivers to prepare a written report at the end of each day's work on each vehicle, listing any defect discovered or reported, with exceptions. 49 CFR 396.17 requires periodic inspections at least once every 12 months.

Before a vehicle is operated again, the carrier or its agent must repair any listed defect likely to affect safe operation, and certify on the report that it was repaired or that repair is unnecessary (49 CFR 396.11(a)(3)). Those reports and certifications can help show whether a known problem was fixed.

How Long Carriers Keep Records

The federal rules set minimum retention periods, and some are short. After a period ends, a carrier may no longer be required to keep the record.

• Records of duty status and supporting documents: at least 6 months from receipt (49 CFR 395.8(k)(1)).
• Driver vehicle inspection reports and repair certifications: three months from the date prepared (49 CFR 396.11(a)(4)).
• Inspection, repair and maintenance records: 1 year where the vehicle is housed or maintained, and 6 months after it leaves the carrier's control (49 CFR 396.3(c)).
• Driver qualification file: while the driver is employed and three years after, with some items removable after three years (49 CFR 391.51(c), (d)).

Insurance Minimums for Motor Carriers

Under 49 CFR 387.7(a), a covered motor carrier may not operate a motor vehicle until it has the minimum financial responsibility set out in 49 CFR 387.9. Proof must be kept at the carrier's principal place of business and is public information available on reasonable request.

The 387.9 schedule sets $750,000 for for-hire carriage of nonhazardous property in interstate or foreign commerce in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more. Higher minimums of $1,000,000 or $5,000,000 apply to listed hazardous materials. These are minimums, not amounts anyone recovers.

Fault and Deadlines

Under RCW 4.22.005, contributory fault chargeable to the claimant reduces damages proportionately but does not bar recovery. Our comparative fault article explains how that works.

RCW 4.16.080(2) requires an action for injury to the person to be commenced within three years. That is the general rule, not a calculation for any one person. Families who lost someone can read our wrongful death article.

For first steps after any crash, see our guide on what to do after a car accident in Washington. If an adjuster calls, our article on dealing with insurance adjusters explains the claim-handling rules. If the truck left the scene, see our hit-and-run article.

To talk through a truck crash, visit our personal injury practice page or contact us. Nelson Allen Walk & Scott, PLLC is at 1103 Shaw Road, Puyallup, WA 98372, and the phone is (253) 845-8895.

Written by Nathan D. Sukhia, Of Counsel.