In Texas, a box truck or moving van crash can involve a professional moving company, a delivery business, or a private person who rented a truck for the weekend. Rental companies are often shielded from liability for a renter's driving by federal law, so the claim usually centers on the driver, the employer, and the available insurance. Owsley Law Firm sorts out the coverage and charges no fee unless it wins.
Why are box trucks and moving vans risky?
Box trucks are big enough to cause serious injuries but small enough that many can be driven without a commercial driver's license. That means drivers with little or no training in braking distances, blind spots, height clearances, and loaded handling are often behind the wheel, especially in rental moving trucks.
Who is liable when a moving company's truck causes a crash?
A professional moving company is generally responsible for its employee driver and can be responsible for its hiring, training, and maintenance. Interstate movers register with federal regulators, and Texas intrastate household goods movers register with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Registration and insurance records help identify the right company and its coverage. Fault is divided under Chapter 33 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
What if the driver rented the truck?
A federal statute, often called the Graves Amendment, generally protects rental and leasing companies from being held liable for a renter's negligent driving simply because they own the vehicle. The rental company can still be responsible for its own negligence, such as renting out a truck with bad brakes. In most rental truck crashes, the claim proceeds against the driver and any insurance that applies, which can include the driver's personal policy, a rental protection product, and the injured person's own coverage.
What causes box truck and moving van crashes?
The common causes reflect inexperience and the truck's size.
- Misjudged stopping distance with a loaded truck
- Blind-spot lane changes
- Striking low bridges, parking structures, and overhead signs
- Backing in tight residential streets and apartment complexes
- Unsecured contents shifting in turns
- Delivery drivers rushing between stops
What about box trucks used by local businesses?
Furniture, appliance, food service, and parcel businesses use box trucks daily. When an employee driver causes a crash during work, the business is generally responsible. Some of these trucks are heavy enough to fall under commercial vehicle safety rules, depending on their weight rating and use.
What evidence should I gather?
Photograph the truck, its company markings, and any rental company logo or unit number. Get the driver's license and insurance information and the name of their employer if they were working. Rental agreements, dispatch records, and any telematics data can be obtained through the claim.
What injuries do box truck crashes cause?
Box trucks sit higher than passenger cars, so rear-end and side impacts often strike above a car's bumper and crumple zones. That increases the risk of head, neck, and upper body injuries. Low bridge strikes can send debris into following traffic. Pedestrians struck by a backing box truck often suffer fractures and head injuries.
Medical evaluation should happen promptly, and imaging is often needed to identify disc and soft tissue injuries that do not show up right away.
What should you do after a moving van or box truck crash?
Photograph the truck, any company name or rental logo, the unit number, and the license plate. Ask the driver for their license, insurance, and the name of the business they were working for, if any. If the truck was a rental, note the rental company and location if visible on the truck.
Report the crash to police, get medical care, and avoid signing anything from a rental or moving company's claims department before getting advice.
What damages can be recovered?
Injured people can recover medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, physical pain, mental anguish, impairment, and disfigurement, along with property damage.
When the at-fault driver is a private renter with limited personal insurance, the injured person's own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection can become important sources of recovery. The firm reviews the injured person's policy as part of every claim for that reason.
What if the truck hit a low bridge or overpass?
Box trucks and moving vans strike low bridges, parking garage entrances, and gas station canopies when drivers misjudge their height. Debris from a bridge strike can injure drivers and passengers in following cars, and the impact can throw the truck into other lanes. These crashes point directly at driver inattention and, for businesses, at route planning and training.
If a rental truck was involved, the rental company's height warnings and instructions may be relevant to whether the renter was warned and whether the company did anything wrong itself.
How long do I have to file?
Texas generally allows two years under section 16.003 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
Common questions
What clients ask about box truck and moving van crashes.
Can I sue U-Haul or Penske if their rental truck hit me?
Generally not just for owning the truck, because of the federal Graves Amendment. They can be liable for their own negligence, such as renting out an unsafe truck.
Do box truck drivers need a CDL?
Many do not, depending on the truck's weight rating, which is why inexperience is a recurring factor.
The moving company says the driver was a day laborer. Who is responsible?
The company's control over the work matters more than the label. The firm investigates the relationship.
What if the driver's insurance is too low?
Your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage may help. The firm identifies every available policy.
What if the moving company damaged my belongings and caused a crash?
Property loss and injury claims can both be pursued, though they may involve different policies.
What does the firm charge?
No fee unless it wins.