A crash with a big rig can involve more than one responsible party. The driver, the carrier, and other companies can each share fault, and Wisconsin assigns each a percentage. Those percentages decide how much an injured person can recover.
How Wisconsin Compares Fault
Section 895.045 of the Wisconsin Statutes says contributory negligence does not bar recovery when the injured person’s negligence was not greater than the negligence of the person against whom recovery is sought. Damages are reduced in proportion to the negligence attributed to the injured person. A person whose negligence is greater than the defendant’s is barred from recovering from that defendant.
The comparison is made separately against each causally negligent party, so every party in a truck case gets its own percentage. That makes the identity of each party matter from the start. A claim that names only the driver may leave out a company that shares fault.
The Fifty-One Percent Line
The statute also decides how much each defendant pays. A defendant whose causal negligence is under 51 percent is liable only for the percentage assigned to that defendant. A defendant at 51 percent or more is jointly and severally liable for the damages allowed.
That line matters when a trucking company and its driver are separate parties. A company assigned 51 percent or more can be responsible for the whole award. Each party gets a number. Questions about who pays start with how the driver and the company were connected.
Parties in a Big-Rig Crash
A commercial truck crash can involve several parties, and each can receive a percentage. The relationship between them shapes which records matter, and the claim has to account for every one. The parties can include:
- The truck driver
- The motor carrier that employs or dispatches the driver
- A company that loaded the cargo
- A company that maintained the truck or trailer
- Another motorist on the road
Records That Support the Fault Analysis
Fault percentages rest on evidence, and in a truck case the carrier holds most of the records. Those records tell a story that the crash report alone can’t tell. A claim should seek:
- Driver logs and records of hours worked
- Maintenance and inspection records
- Loading and cargo documents
- The crash report and photographs of the scene
- Data recorded by the truck’s onboard systems
Driver fatigue is one possible source of fault. Limits on hours come from the federal fatigue rules, and the logs can be measured against them. A log that shows long stretches without rest points to a problem the carrier may have missed.
Tanker crashes add their own evidence. Lessons from a Wisconsin milk tanker crash show how the load itself can matter to the analysis. The weight and movement of liquid cargo can change how a truck handles.
Why the Injured Person’s Share Matters
An injured person’s own percentage reduces the award and bars it entirely when it exceeds the defendant’s. Questions about speed, lane position, and following distance are answered by physical evidence such as vehicle damage and skid marks. Photographs taken before the vehicles are moved show where each one came to rest, which helps assign a percentage to each party.
Our Wisconsin truck accident lawyer team builds the fault analysis around the carrier’s records and the physical evidence. The goal is a clear account of what each party did. That account supports every percentage in the claim.
Trucks That Carry Specific Loads
The load changes the evidence a claim needs. Our Wisconsin semi-truck accident lawyer team handles crashes with tractor-trailers on interstates and state routes. These cases start with the carrier’s records and the truck’s data.
Fuel and chemical carriers have their own hazards. Our Wisconsin tanker truck accident lawyer team reviews those claims, including what the tanker was hauling. The cargo can change who is responsible.
Logging trucks carry timber loads, which raise their own questions about securing and weight. Our Wisconsin logging truck accident lawyer team handles crashes involving those loads. Photographs of the load matter here.
Working With Our Firm
Christopher P. Martineau is a founding partner of Johnston | Martineau PLLP, where he focuses on truck accident litigation. He is admitted in Minnesota and Wisconsin and is a member of the Academy of Truck Accident Attorneys. Wisconsin’s rule turns on percentages, and the percentages turn on evidence. People hurt in a commercial truck crash can get in touch with us, and we’ll review the records and the other parties involved together.
