Miami Truck Accident Lawyer

Miami Truck Accident Lawyers

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Florida injury law changes frequently. If you are reading this after July 2026, confirm current statute deadlines with a licensed Florida attorney.

A commercial truck crash can upend your life in seconds. Medical bills stack up, your vehicle is totaled, you may be out of work, and the trucking company’s insurance team is already building a case against you. If you were hurt in a Miami truck accident, you need experienced, relentless representation on your side right now.

At LaBovick Law Group, our Miami truck accident lawyers have spent more than 35 years fighting for people exactly like you. We have recovered more than $600 million for injury victims across Florida and resolved more than 9,000 cases. Results like that do not come from backing down. They come from knowing the law, knowing the evidence, and knowing how to take a trucking company all the way to trial when they refuse to pay what is fair.

This page explains what you need to know about truck accident claims in Miami, how Florida law affects your rights, and exactly what our team does to maximize your recovery.

Why Miami Roads Produce So Many Truck Accidents

Miami is one of the busiest commercial freight corridors in the country.

PortMiami recorded more than 1.1 million TEUs of cargo volume in Fiscal Year 2025, marking 11 consecutive years above that threshold.

All of that freight moves somewhere, and much of it moves by truck, directly onto the same expressways you drive every day.

Key highways including Interstate 95, the Palmetto Expressway (State Road 826), and the Dolphin Expressway (State Road 836) carry heavy volumes of truck traffic and frequent large-vehicle collisions. The Golden Glades Interchange is a well-known trouble spot where complex merging patterns and constant commercial traffic flow create hazardous conditions.

Beyond the major expressways, neighborhoods surrounding the Port of Miami, Doral, and Hialeah deal with constant freight traffic. Trucks making deliveries or hauling cargo often move through busy local intersections and narrow residential streets, raising the risk for everyone nearby.

In 2024 alone, Miami-Dade County recorded 59,994 crashes, resulting in 284 fatalities and more than 29,000 injuries.

Commercial trucks contribute a disproportionate share of the most serious crashes because of their size and weight. Federal law permits fully loaded tractor-trailers to reach 80,000 pounds. When a truck that size collides with a passenger car, the outcomes are rarely minor.

Road Conditions That Make Miami Especially Dangerous for Trucks

Several factors combine to make Miami’s roads uniquely hazardous for large commercial vehicles.

• Port and airport freight volume.

Trucks servicing the Port of Miami regularly travel I-95, Florida’s Turnpike, and SR-826.

That constant flow keeps heavy vehicles on congested roads around the clock.

• Narrow causeways and bridge approaches. The causeways linking the mainland to Miami Beach and Key Biscayne were not designed for modern tractor-trailer widths. A drifting truck or a sudden stop has almost no margin for error.
• Tropical weather. South Florida’s afternoon storms can arrive in minutes. Rain reduces visibility, makes pavement slick, and increases stopping distances, all of which are amplified for a vehicle weighing tens of thousands of pounds.
• Tourism traffic. Rental-car drivers unfamiliar with local roads brake unexpectedly and change lanes without warning, creating sudden hazards for truck drivers who need significant distance to stop safely.

Who Can Be Held Responsible After a Miami Truck Crash

One of the most important differences between a truck accident claim and a typical car accident claim is the number of parties that may share legal responsibility.

Truck accidents occur daily in Miami, and determining liability is key to securing compensation. A skilled attorney will investigate all potential liable parties, including the truck driver, the trucking company, and others.

Here is a plain-language breakdown of who may be legally responsible:

The truck driver. Driver error causes a large share of truck crashes. Common examples include distracted driving, speeding, impaired driving, and failure to check blind spots. Drowsy driving is also a serious factor.

The trucking company.

If a trucking company failed to maintain its vehicles, properly train drivers, or enforced unrealistic schedules that led to violations, it could be held liable. If the truck driver was an employee acting within their work duties, the company may also be responsible.

The cargo loading company. Improperly secured or overweight loads can cause a truck to roll over or jackknife. The company responsible for loading the trailer can be named as a defendant.

The truck manufacturer or maintenance provider. Brake failures, tire blowouts, and steering defects sometimes trace back to a manufacturing defect or a missed maintenance inspection. When that is the case, the manufacturer or the third-party maintenance shop may share liability.

Independent contractors.

Whether a driver is an independent contractor or employed by a trucking company directly affects how liability is assigned.

Our attorneys know how to cut through the layers of contracts that trucking operations use to shift blame.

Federal and Florida Regulations That Govern Truck Drivers

Truck drivers and trucking companies operate under a web of federal and state rules. When those rules are violated, the violation itself can serve as powerful evidence of negligence.

FMCSA Hours of Service.

Hours of service regulations for truck drivers are federal laws established to reduce the risk of fatigue-related truck accidents. Under current FMCSA rules, drivers face an 11-hour maximum driving limit after 10 consecutive hours off-duty, a 14-consecutive-hour on-duty window, and a mandatory 30-minute break after 8 cumulative hours of driving.

The FMCSA also requires the use of electronic logging devices (ELDs) to track compliance. Most truck drivers are limited to 11 hours of driving within a 14-hour on-duty window, after which they must take at least 10 consecutive hours off duty.

When a trucking company pushes drivers past these limits to meet tight delivery schedules, the result is a fatigued driver behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound vehicle. We subpoena ELD data, driver logs, and dispatch records to show exactly what happened.

Florida commercial vehicle insurance minimums.

Florida enforces its own commercial vehicle regulations. All commercial vehicles must carry a minimum level of liability insurance, and specific weight and size limits apply to trucks on Florida highways.

Commercial trucks are typically required to carry far higher liability limits than ordinary passenger vehicles, which means more coverage is available to compensate you.

Florida Law and Your Truck Accident Claim

Florida changed its personal injury laws significantly in 2023. Those changes directly affect the value and timing of your case.

You Have Two Years to File, Not Four

HB 837 shortened the statute of limitations for general negligence claims. The previous rule allowed four years from the date of injury to file a lawsuit. Under the new rule, for causes of action accruing after March 24, 2023, you have two years from the date of injury.

This deadline is governed by Fla. Stat. §95.11(4)(a) as amended by HB 837.

Flag for update: The statute of limitations is subject to legislative change. Verify the current deadline with counsel before relying on this page.

Two years sounds like a long time, but evidence disappears fast. Surveillance footage is routinely overwritten in days. Trucking companies are required to preserve electronic data for a limited window. The sooner our team can send a legal hold notice and begin gathering proof, the stronger your case.

The 51% Rule: How Fault Affects Your Recovery

In 2023, Governor DeSantis signed HB 837, one of the most significant tort reform bills in Florida history. Among its changes, the law moved Florida from a pure comparative negligence state to a modified comparative negligence state.

HB 837 added subsection (6) to Florida Statute §768.81, which states that in a negligence action, any party found to be greater than 50% at fault for their own harm may not recover any damages. This is the 51% bar.

In plain terms: if you are found to bear more than half of the fault for the crash, you cannot recover anything.

This gives trucking companies and their insurers a powerful incentive to push your fault percentage above that threshold.

Expect the defense to argue that you were speeding, following too closely, or changed lanes without signaling. Our job is to gather the evidence that keeps those arguments from sticking.

Flag for update: The modified comparative negligence rule under §768.81(6) applies to claims filed on or after March 24, 2023. Confirm current law with counsel.

The PIP 14-Day Rule

Under Florida Statute §627.736(1)(a), individuals involved in auto accidents must receive initial medical services and care within 14 days of the incident to be eligible for PIP benefits.

PIP covers 80% of reasonable medical expenses and 60% of lost wages, up to $10,000. The injured person must seek treatment within 14 days. The full $10,000 cap requires a treating provider to certify an emergency medical condition; without that certification, the cap drops to $2,500.

Do not wait to see a doctor. Many injuries, including traumatic brain injuries, internal bleeding, and spinal damage, do not produce obvious symptoms immediately after a crash. Getting evaluated quickly protects both your health and your legal rights.

Flag for update: Florida’s PIP system has faced ongoing repeal efforts.

Bills in 2023 and 2024 aimed to repeal the system, though none passed. For now, Florida’s PIP requirements remain in effect, but future legislative changes could impact coverage rules.

Confirm current PIP law with counsel.

What Compensation Can You Recover?

Every truck accident case is different, but the categories of damages available under Florida law typically include:

• Medical expenses (past and future): Emergency treatment, surgery, hospitalization, physical therapy, medication, and any ongoing care your injuries require.
• Lost wages and reduced earning capacity: The income you missed while recovering, plus any long-term impact on what you can earn.
• Pain and suffering: Compensation for physical pain, emotional distress, and how your injuries have changed the quality of your daily life.
• Property damage: The cost to repair or replace your vehicle and any other personal property damaged in the crash.
• Wrongful death damages: If a loved one died in the crash, surviving family members may have claims for funeral costs, loss of financial support, and loss of companionship under Florida’s wrongful death statute.

The size of your recovery depends on the severity of your injuries, the clarity of the liability evidence, and the insurance coverage available from all responsible parties. Our team analyzes every possible source of compensation, not just the truck driver’s policy.

What to Do Right After a Truck Accident in Miami

The steps you take in the hours and days after a crash have a direct effect on your case. Here is what to do:

1. Call 911. Get law enforcement and emergency medical services to the scene. A police report creates an official record of what happened.
2. See a doctor within 14 days. Florida’s PIP 14-day rule (Fla. Stat. §627.736) means delaying treatment can cost you up to $10,000 in benefits. Do not wait, even if you feel fine.
3. Document everything. Take photos and video of the vehicles, road conditions, skid marks, cargo spills, and any visible injuries. Get the truck driver’s name, CDL number, insurance information, and the name of the trucking company.
4. Do not give a recorded statement. The trucking company’s insurer may call you within hours. Politely decline any recorded statement until you have spoken with an attorney.
5. Preserve evidence. Do not repair or dispose of your vehicle before it is inspected. Truck black boxes and ELD data can be overwritten quickly. An attorney can send a legal hold letter to preserve that data.
6. Call LaBovick. The sooner our Warriors for Justice get involved, the more evidence we can secure and the stronger your position.

How LaBovick Law Group Fights for Miami Truck Accident Victims

We are not a settlement mill. When you hire LaBovick, the same dedicated legal team handles your case from the first call through settlement or trial. Here is what sets our representation apart:

Warrior Vision: Exclusive Traffic Camera Access. Our proprietary Warrior Vision system gives our attorneys immediate access to footage from traffic cameras across the Miami area. That footage can show exactly how a crash unfolded before it is overwritten. No other local firm offers this capability.

We go after every liable party. Most truck accidents involve more than one responsible party. We investigate the driver, the carrier, the cargo company, the maintenance provider, and any other entity whose negligence contributed to the crash. More defendants can mean more available insurance coverage.

We subpoena the data trucking companies would rather you never saw. ELD records, dispatch logs, driver qualification files, vehicle maintenance records, prior safety violation histories. We know what to ask for and how to get it.

We take tough cases to trial.

Trucking companies have teams of lawyers working to protect their interests. Without strong legal representation, you risk being taken advantage of during negotiations or in court.

Insurance carriers know LaBovick is ready for trial. That reputation changes how they negotiate.

You are treated like family, not a file number. From your first call through your final resolution, you will have direct access to your legal team. We explain what is happening at every step in plain language, not legal jargon. We are also proud to have Spanish-speaking attorneys and team members ready to assist clients in the language they are most comfortable with.

No Fee Guarantee. You pay nothing unless we win compensation for you. There are no upfront costs and no hourly charges. Our fee comes from the recovery we secure on your behalf.

Frequently Asked Questions About Miami Truck Accident Claims

How much does it cost to hire a Miami truck accident attorney?

Nothing upfront. LaBovick works on a contingency fee basis, which means our fee is a percentage of the compensation we recover for you. If we do not win, you owe us nothing. This is our No Fee Guarantee.

How long do I have to file a Miami truck accident lawsuit?

For accidents occurring on or after March 24, 2023, Florida law (Fla. Stat. §95.11(4)(a) as amended by HB 837) gives you two years from the date of the crash to file a negligence lawsuit. Missing this deadline almost certainly means losing your right to recover compensation. Do not wait.

What if the truck driver was an independent contractor?

Trucking companies sometimes classify drivers as independent contractors to limit their own liability exposure. Florida courts look at the actual nature of the working relationship, not just the label on a contract. In many cases, the company that hired the driver can still be held responsible. Our attorneys know how to pierce these arrangements and identify every party who shares liability.

What if I was partially at fault?

Under Florida’s modified comparative negligence rule (Fla. Stat. §768.81(6), amended by HB 837), you can still recover if you were 50% or less at fault for the crash. Your recovery will be reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are found more than 50% at fault, you cannot recover. This is exactly why having an attorney who can build a strong liability case matters: the defense will try to shift blame onto you.

What kinds of truck accidents does LaBovick handle in Miami?

We handle all types of commercial vehicle crashes, including tractor-trailer and 18-wheeler collisions, box truck crashes, tanker truck accidents, flatbed and overweight-load crashes, delivery vehicle accidents (Amazon, FedEx, UPS), and rideshare driver collisions with commercial trucks. If a commercial vehicle was involved and you were hurt, call us.

Talk to a Miami Truck Accident Lawyer Today, For Free

You were hurt through someone else’s negligence. You should not have to navigate this alone, and you should not have to pay out of pocket to get justice. Our Warriors for Justice are ready to take on the trucking companies and their insurers so you can focus on getting your life back.

LaBovick Law Group serves clients throughout Miami-Dade County, including Brickell, Coral Gables, Little Havana, Hialeah, Doral, and the surrounding communities. We also serve clients across South Florida and Massachusetts.

Call us now or complete the form below for a free, no-obligation case review. Remember: you pay nothing unless we win.

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