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Omaha Truck Accident Lawyers
Attorneys helping people injured in semi-truck and commercial vehicle crashes
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Truck crashes often result in severe injuries and, as a result, high-stakes claims. However, the severity of the injuries isn’t the only reason that truck crashes are different from standard car accidents. There are complex liability and insurance issues as well. At Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell, our Omaha trial firm started handling complicated cases, including truck accident claims, in 1960. We’re prepared to take on these cases and to handle the legal and insurance matters so that you can focus on healing.
How We Can Help
- Why are truck accident cases different from car accident cases?
- What causes semi-truck accidents in Omaha?
- Who can be liable for a truck accident?
- What evidence is important after a commercial truck crash?
- What compensation may be available after a truck accident?
- Where do truck accidents happen around Omaha?
- How does Nebraska law affect a truck accident claim?
- Why choose Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell?
- Omaha truck accident FAQs
- Talk to an Omaha truck accident lawyer
Why are truck accident cases different from car accident cases?
The commercial trucking industry is subject to regulations beyond the ordinary rules of the road. Some regulations that may apply, depending on the carrier, include:
- Hours of service limits
- Driver qualifications
- Electronic logging requirements
- Vehicle inspection and maintenance standards
- Cargo securement rules
- Drug and alcohol testing
- Insurance limits and financial responsibility
Some of the relevant evidence in these cases, such as information showing that a driver violated their hours-of-service limits or didn’t perform proper inspections, may be in the control of the truck company. This can make building a claim more complicated.
Liability may also lie with several companies, such as:
- A motor carrier
- The truck owner
- A shipper or cargo loader
- The maintenance contractor
- Other service providers
Commercial insurance requirements are different as well. For example, FMCSA currently requires at least $750,000 in bodily injury/property damage financial responsibility for many for-hire interstate property carriers operating vehicles weighing 10,001 pounds or more. In some cases, such as when trucks are transporting hazardous chemicals, there are higher requirements for some hazardous-material operations.
What causes semi-truck accidents in Omaha?
There are endless possible reasons for a crash, but there are some common ones.
Driver fatigue and hours-of-service violations
Commercial drivers can’t spend unlimited time behind the wheel. Hours of service rules create specific limits on them. Those responsible for transporting property generally may drive:
- Up to 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty
- Not beyond the 14th consecutive hour after coming on duty
- Generally, you must take a 30-minute interruption after eight cumulative hours of driving without an interruption
These are the standard rules, so there are some exceptions. However, they are largely aimed at preventing drivers from becoming fatigued, as a tired truck driver creates dangers for themselves and everyone around them. In a case where fatigue might be a contributing factor, it’s important to look into evidence like:
- Electronic logs
- Dispatch records
- GPS data
- Fuel and toll receipts
- Delivery schedules
It’s possible that the carrier's schedule failed to make safe compliance realistic. That’s important information to have following a collision.
Unsafe driving, maintenance, and cargo problems
Some of the causes of truck accidents are similar to those involved in smaller vehicle crashes, while others are relatively unique to the trucking industry. Here are some possible causes of a crash.
- Speeding or driving too fast for traffic or weather conditions
- Distracted driving
- Unsafe lane changes and blind-spot errors
- Following too closely
- Impaired driving
- Inadequate training or qualification
- Worn brakes or tires and other maintenance failures
- Overloaded, imbalanced, or improperly secured cargo
The FMCSA requires carriers to systematically inspect, repair, and maintain vehicles under their control because a flaw in a truck can present severe risks. There are also separate federal rules governing cargo securement. Unsecured cargo can fall from a truck, causing serious accidents, or it can create balance issues that make trucks challenging to maneuver, increasing the risk of a driver losing control of their massive vehicle.
Who can be liable for a truck accident?
Liability following a truck crash is one of the most important issues. In many cases, more than one party may be legally responsible for the resulting injuries.
The truck driver and motor carrier
Driver liability can result from a truck driver who is speeding, distracted, fatigued, making unsafe turns or lane changes, impaired, or otherwise behaving negligently behind the wheel.
Motor carriers may have potential responsibility based on their driver's conduct or their own conduct, depending on the facts. Some ways that a motor carrier may be directly liable following a collision include:
- Hiring drivers who lack the proper qualifications, training, or supervision
- Scheduling drivers for routes that encourage hours-of-service violations
- Failing to perform proper maintenance on their vehicles
- Ignoring known safety problems, like a driver with a history of dangerous behaviors or a vehicle with critical flaws that create risks
Other companies may share responsibility
Depending on the evidence, there could be other individuals or companies that share liability for a crash, such as:
- The tractor or trailer owner
- A company that loaded or secured the cargo
- The repair and maintenance contractor
- A manufacturer of a defective tire, brake component, steering component, or other product
It’s also possible that another motorist’s conduct contributed to a multi-vehicle crash. In such cases, the truck driver and company may share liability with a passenger car driver, creating complicated insurance questions.
At Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell, our attorneys work to investigate the crash and determine all possible sources for recovery for our clients. Remember that these cases are especially complicated when companies characterize drivers as independent contractors or when different companies own the tractor and trailer. You don’t have to know all the facts before coming to us. We know where to start looking to find the information and evidence necessary to build your case.
What evidence is important after a commercial truck crash?
Our team can start investigating your crash as soon as you hire us to handle your case. In fact, the sooner we’re involved, the better. Evidence can start to disappear quickly, so if we’re able to start our investigation right away, we’ll be off to a good start.
Evidence at the crash scene
Evidence available at the crash scene may include:
- Photographs and video footage
- Witness information
- Skid marks and debris
- Vehicle positions and damage
- Road and weather conditions
- Nearby business or traffic-camera footage
Evidence held by the trucking company
The truck company may have exclusive access to potentially significant evidence, such as:
- Electronic logging device (ELD) records
- Driver records of duty status
- Dispatch communications
- GPS and telematics
- Dashcam video
- Engine or electronic control module data, when available
- Driver qualification files
- Inspection and maintenance records
- Post-crash inspection information
- Cargo bills, loading records, weight information, and securement documentation
- Cellphone records when distraction is genuinely at issue
- Drug and alcohol testing records, where applicable
Just because the company has control over this evidence doesn’t mean we can’t get hold of it. Federal rules generally require carriers to retain ELD records of duty status and supporting documentation, but they are only required to keep them for six months. Once we’re involved, we can send a preservation/spoliation letter that will promptly notify relevant companies of their need to preserve identified evidence.
What compensation may be available after a truck accident?
Although truck crashes often create the same legal categories of damages as other negligence cases (such as car accident claims), the scale of the losses can be much greater. When large trucks are involved, injuries are often catastrophic. Here are some of the potential damages available to those injured in these incidents:
Financial losses
These are often referred to as “economic damages,” and they can include:
- Emergency and hospital treatment
- Surgery and rehabilitation
- Future medical treatment
- Lost wages
- Diminished earning capacity
- Vehicle and property damage
Human consequences
Even if you are compensated for every bill and all lost income, a crash takes a human toll. The law acknowledges this and allows you to recover for “non-economic damages” like:
- Physical pain
- Mental suffering and emotional distress
- Disability or permanent impairment
- Loss of enjoyment of life
Serious truck injuries can include TBI, spinal cord damage, major fractures, amputations, organ injuries, and other catastrophic trauma. It’s critical that you have a personal injury lawyer who is taking the time to dig in and determine your real losses and your future needs. Once you resolve a claim, either through settlement or a verdict, you can’t go back to ask for more, even if you realize your losses are greater than you initially thought.
Where do truck accidents happen around Omaha?
Omaha sits at a major east-west freight crossroads, and roads like I-80 serve as major truck corridors. Records from prior years indicate that almost 13,000 trucks traveled every day on portions of I-80 in Omaha, while more than 5,500 trucks a day used portions of I-680 and I-480.
Our office is just off 72nd Street and the I-80 corridor, so we’re familiar with how busy these roads are and how truck traffic can create stressful situations. The numbers show just how dangerous truck collisions can be. FMCSA's 2023 FARS data identified 50 fatal crashes involving large trucks in Nebraska, resulting in 60 fatalities.
How does Nebraska law affect a truck accident claim?
There are several laws that are likely to impact your case. If you contact us for a free case evaluation, we can discuss how these may apply specifically to your claim.
Nebraska's filing deadline
Nebraska's general statute of limitations for most negligence-based personal injury claims is four years. Wrongful death actions generally must be commenced within two years after the death. There are exceptions that can shorten or otherwise alter deadlines. A truck accident may also involve an uninsured or underinsured motorist claim with a different deadline, particularly if the applicable insurance policy was issued in another state. Nebraska courts may enforce a shorter contractual deadline in an out-of-state policy when the law governing that policy permits it.
You should never assume that you have time to wait. The reality is that preserving trucking evidence is much more urgent than the four-year period suggests. It’s best to contact a lawyer as soon as possible to start collecting evidence before it becomes harder to obtain.
What if the injured person is partly at fault?
In Nebraska, being partly at fault for the accident that caused your injuries won’t necessarily prevent you from recovering compensation. The state uses a modified comparative negligence standard under which your damages will be reduced by your percentage of negligence as long as your liability is not equal to or greater than the combined negligence of the party or parties from whom you are seeking recovery. Essentially, you must be under 50% at fault to recover.
It’s important to understand this policy because a trucking insurer may try to allege that you cut off the truck, remained in a blind spot, changed lanes improperly, stopped unexpectedly, or otherwise contributed to the crash. Even if you did contribute, that doesn’t mean you have no legal options.
Why choose Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell?
Our attorneys are fully prepared to take on complex trucking accident litigation. Here are some of the reasons clients choose us.
Trial experience trucking insurers notice
At Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell, we work on every case as though it will go to trial. If insurers know you’re not going to back down, they are more inclined to make a reasonable settlement offer.
Omaha roots and personal client relationships
We’ve spent more than 65 years representing injured people in the Omaha area. Each client who comes to us deals directly with an attorney. We try to hold initial meetings in person because we really want to take the time to learn about you and your case. However, we can arrange a consultation by phone and, when needed, at a hospital if you’re unable to come to us.
Significant results in trucking cases
While past results can’t predict outcomes in future cases, we’ve achieved successful outcomes in many truck accident claims. A few examples of past results include:
$6 million
settlement — 2026: Interstate rollover collision involving significant orthopedic injury.
$4 million
settlement — 2024: Driver rear-ended at highway speed by a commercial semi-truck.
$1 million
settlement — 2025: Rear-ended by a commercial motor vehicle on a rural highway.
What clients say
"From a personal experience, when my wife and I got rear-ended by a truck and we both got severely injured, our medical bills were above 500k, Craig and Randy worked so hard negotiating with the hospitals and insurance companies. They are well experienced, fast to reply and answer our questions. They are awesome in getting everything settled and we ended having a fair compensation other than being in bankruptcy."– Mostafa E.
"Inserra Kelly helped me get through a stressful situation in a timely manner. They focused on my healing first and foremost and walked me through the legal steps one by one."– Jayne G.
Omaha truck accident FAQs
Can I bring a claim if the truck driver was not given a ticket?
Yes, potentially. Traffic citations and civil negligence claims are different proceedings. Just because there is no ticket does not mean there was no negligence.
What if the trucking company says the driver was an independent contractor?
What if the truck involved in my crash wasn’t a semi?
How much does it cost to hire an Omaha truck accident lawyer?
Do you have an Omaha truck accident lawyer near me?
Talk to an Omaha truck accident lawyer
A truck crash can leave you managing serious injuries, complicated medical treatments, and challenging logistics surrounding liability. Reach out to Inserra Kelley Cooper Sewell today so our lawyers can begin gathering and preserving evidence, identify the companies and insurance coverage involved, and explain your available options. Call us today or fill out our contact form to schedule your free confidential consultation.