A car crash is usually between two drivers. One ran the light, the other didn't. Fault is straightforward.

‍Truck accidents don't work that way.

The driver may have caused the collision, but the reason they caused it often traces back to someone else entirely. A dispatcher scheduled a route that couldn't be driven safely. A mechanic who signed off on an inspection without doing one. A warehouse crew that loaded the trailer unevenly and cleared it for departure.

Virginia law allows injured people to pursue claims against every party whose negligence contributed to the injury. That can mean one defendant or five. Figuring out who is liable in a truck accident requires looking beyond the driver's seat to the business decisions that put a dangerous truck on the road.

If you or someone you know has been injured in a Virginia truck accident, call Smith Law Center at (757) 244-7000 now. Our team will explain how liability is evaluated and discuss your legal options after a serious crash.

Does the Truck Driver Always Bear Responsibility?

Sometimes, yes. A truck driver who runs a red light, drifts out of their lane while texting, or gets behind the wheel after drinking is personally liable for whatever damage follows.

Truck drivers, however, often face significant pressure. They drive long shifts, manage challenging routes under demanding deadlines, and risk penalties for late deliveries. While this pressure does not excuse negligence, it often points to company policies that create unsafe conditions.

Federal law requires commercial drivers to hold a valid CDL, pass regular medical exams, and submit to drug and alcohol testing. A driver who falsifies any of those records can be held individually liable. So can a driver who exceeds the hours-of-service limits set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which cap driving time at 11 consecutive hours after 10 hours off duty.

The key question is whether the driver made an independent choice to act recklessly, or whether they were following instructions, meeting expectations, or working within a system that made the crash inevitable. In many cases, the answer is both.

When Does the Trucking Company Share the Blame?

Under a legal doctrine called respondeat superior, an employer is responsible for the actions of its employees when those actions occur within the scope of employment. If a truck driver causes a crash while hauling a load on a company-assigned route, the trucking company bears liability for that crash.

But liability often goes deeper than that.

Trucking companies set schedules, assign routes, choose which drivers to hire, and decide how much money to spend on vehicle upkeep. Any one of those choices can expose the company to a negligence claim. 

A company that hires a driver with a suspended CDL or a history of moving violations has made a negligent-hiring decision. A company that assigns a 14-hour route after the driver just finished a full shift has deliberately created a fatigue problem.

Some of the most common forms of company negligence include:

• Failing to enforce rest requirements;
• Delaying or skipping vehicle maintenance;
• Pressuring drivers to meet delivery windows that cannot be achieved within legal driving limits; and
• Retaining drivers after repeated safety violations.

Each of these failures can support a separate negligence claim against the company. Even if the driver caused the crash, the company that created the conditions can be held equally or primarily responsible.

Were you or a family member hurt in a truck crash? Contact Smith Law Center at (757) 244-7000 to request a free, confidential case review. We have experience taking on national trucking companies and have recovered more than $1 billion for injured clients across Virginia.

Can the Company That Loaded the Trailer Be Held Liable?

Yes. Improper cargo loading is one of the less visible causes of truck wrecks, but it contributes to a substantial number of them.

Federal regulations require freight to be distributed evenly and secured so it won't shift during transit. When a loading crew makes mistakes, the trailer behaves unpredictably on the road:

• Stacking cargo too high or leaving it unbalanced;
• Failing to strap down or chain heavy items; or
• Ignoring weight distribution requirements across axles.

Weight that shifts during a turn or a sudden stop can pull the entire rig sideways, causing a jackknife or rollover. The driver may have done nothing wrong—driving safely and obeying traffic laws—yet still lost control due to an unstable load.

In these cases, the shipping company or warehouse responsible for loading the trailer can be named as a defendant. The trucking company may also be liable if it failed to verify the load before the driver left the facility, as federal rules require.

What About the Company That Maintained the Truck?

Trucking companies are required to keep their vehicles in a safe operating condition. The following systems all have to meet federal standards, and inspections must be documented:

• Brakes,
• Tires,
• Lights,
• Coupling devices, and
• Steering systems.

Many companies outsource this work to third-party maintenance providers. When evaluating who can be held liable in a truck accident, these contractors are often overlooked. But when a provider cuts corners, misses a defect, or clears a truck that should not be on the road, they can be held liable for any crash that results.

Brake failure is a recurring issue. A truck traveling at highway speed with worn brake pads or a leaking air line needs far more distance to stop, and in heavy traffic, that distance doesn't exist. If an inspection report shows the brakes were serviced recently but the work was done improperly, the maintenance company faces direct liability.

The same applies to tire blowouts, steering malfunctions, and electrical failures that knock out turn signals or brake lights. If a defect existed and should have been caught during routine maintenance, the company responsible for that maintenance can be sued.

Could the Manufacturer Be at Fault?

Sometimes the part itself is defective from the factory.

Truck components are manufactured by companies separate from the truck maker. Parts that come from specialized suppliers include:

• Brake assemblies,
• Tire treads,
• Coupling pins,
• Lighting systems, and
• Electronic stability controls.

If a part is defectively designed or manufactured, and that defect causes a crash, the manufacturer can be held liable under Virginia's product liability laws.

Virginia recognizes strict liability for defective products, meaning the injured person needs only to show that the product was defective and that the defect caused their injury.

Product liability claims in truck cases often surface after the initial investigation. A brake failure that initially appears to be a maintenance issue may turn out to involve a design flaw affecting an entire product line. Tire blowouts blamed on road debris may actually stem from a manufacturing defect in the tread compound. 

This is one reason thorough evidence preservation matters early in the case. If the truck or its parts are repaired, scrapped, or returned to the fleet before an independent inspection, critical proof of a defect may be lost permanently.

What Happens When Multiple Parties Are at Fault?

Truck crash cases often involve shared liability. Fatigue may result from illegal schedules, brake failure from missed defects, and shifting loads from ignored or unchecked securement rules.

Virginia allows injured people to bring claims against every party whose negligence contributed to the crash. Each defendant is responsible for their share of the harm. Determining fault in a truck accident requires your attorney to investigate the collision itself and the entire chain of decisions, inspections, and failures that led to it.

This is also where things get adversarial. When multiple defendants are involved, each tries to shift the blame onto the others. The trucking company points at the maintenance provider. The maintenance provider points at the manufacturer. Everyone points at the driver. A strong legal team counters that blame-shifting with evidence that establishes each party's role in causing the crash.

How Virginia's Contributory Negligence Rule Complicates Things

Virginia is one of a small number of states that still follows pure contributory negligence. If the trucking company or its insurer can argue that you were even slightly at fault for the crash, you lose your right to compensation.

This rule gives defendants an aggressive incentive to scrutinize everything you did before, during, and after the collision:

• Were you a few miles over the speed limit?
• Did you change lanes without signaling?
• Were you glancing at your phone?

Any of these can be used to argue contributory fault, and one successful argument bars you from recovering compensation.

This is the single biggest reason truck accident cases in Virginia require experienced legal representation. Proving what the trucking company, driver, loader, or manufacturer did wrong is only half the job. The other half is making sure no one successfully pins a fraction of the blame on you. 

That means collecting evidence early, preserving witness accounts, and building a record of the crash that the defense cannot undermine.

Talk to a Virginia Truck Accident Lawyer

Liability in a truck crash case can involve five or six defendants, each deflecting blame onto the others while the insurance company works to pay you as little as possible. The trucking company's legal team starts assembling its defense within hours of the collision with one goal in mind: protecting the company's bottom line.

Smith Law Center has represented truck crash victims across Virginia for over 75 years. If you need help understanding who is liable in a truck accident that injured you or a family member, call (757) 244-7000 or contact us online for a free consultation.