West Jordan Truck Accident Lawyer
Injured in a truck accident in West Jordan, UT? If a negligent truck driver caused your crash, the experienced West Jordan truck accident attorneys at Kramer Injury Law can help you recover maximum compensation and secure top medical care. Call us today for a free consultation.
Our results-driven legal team brings 20+ years of experience fighting for truck accident victims across Utah. Commercial truck accidents involve federal regulations, electronic logging data, and corporate defense teams that mobilize immediately after a crash – we match that preparation and hit the ground running before evidence disappears. We have recovered millions for our clients, including a $1.6M commercial truck crash verdict and numerous six and seven-figure settlements and verdicts. Don’t just take our word for it – read what our past clients have to say.
Schedule a free legal review with one of our West Jordan truck accident attorneys today.
Why Ron Kramer Is the Truck Accident Attorney You Want in Your Corner
A loaded tractor-trailer weighs up to 80,000 pounds. Your car weighs about 4,000. That ratio decides everything – what happens in the first second of the crash, and most of what happens in the year that follows.
It also decides who shows up. A car wreck brings an adjuster. A truck wreck brings a rapid response team – sometimes on scene before the tow truck leaves – with an investigator, a photographer, and defense counsel already retained. The motor carrier’s insurer starts building its defense while you are still in the emergency room.
Ron Kramer built his practice around refusing to be outpaced by that team. He enrolled in commercial driving school, earned a Commercial Driver’s License, and learned to read hours-of-service records, electronic logging device data, and pre-trip inspection reports the way a fleet safety director reads them. When the carrier’s story arrives, it gets tested against their own paperwork – in the first weeks, not after a year of discovery.
Ron has represented injured Utahns since 1997 and has worked from the West Jordan office since 2004. If a hospital bed or an immobilizer keeps you from coming to us, we come to you.
What to Do in the First 48 Hours
Truck cases turn on evidence that disappears faster than most people realize.
Say nothing recorded. The carrier’s adjuster will call quickly and sound helpful. Those questions are built to lock in a version of events and to get you describing injuries before you know what they are.
Get the truck’s identifying information. The USDOT number and MC number painted on the cab door, the trailer number, and the carrier’s name. That information routes directly to the carrier’s federal safety record, its inspection history, and its insurance filing.
See a doctor today. Adrenaline hides spinal and head injuries for days. A gap between the crash and your first medical visit is the argument insurers use most often to discount a claim.
Call a lawyer before the ELD data cycles. This is the one that actually costs people money. Federal rules require carriers to keep electronic logging records for six months under 49 CFR § 395.8(k), but the engine control module on the truck itself can overwrite crash data in a matter of days, and a carrier under no legal duty to preserve it has no reason to protect it. A spoliation letter sent in week one freezes the ECM data, the ELD records, dispatch communications, the driver qualification file, and the maintenance history. Sent in month three, it arrives after the record is gone.
Why Truck Cases Are Not Car Cases
Three structural differences change how these claims get built.
The rulebook is federal
A car crash is governed by Utah traffic law. A commercial truck crash is also governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, which Utah has adopted for intrastate carriers as well. Those rules create duties a passenger driver never has, and a violation is evidence of negligence rather than a technicality.
| Federal rule | What it requires |
|---|---|
| 11-hour driving limit | A driver may drive up to 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty |
| 14-hour window | Driving is prohibited beyond the 14th hour after coming on duty |
| 30-minute break | Required after 8 cumulative hours of driving |
| 60/70-hour limit | No driving after 60 hours on duty in 7 days, or 70 in 8 days |
| ELD records | Records of duty status retained by the carrier for 6 months (49 CFR § 395.8(k)) |
| Post-crash testing | Alcohol testing within 8 hours, controlled substance testing within 32 hours (49 CFR § 382.303) |
| Driver qualification file | Medical certification, driving record, and employment history on file for every driver |
When the logs show a driver in hour sixteen, the case stops being about one tired man and starts being about the dispatcher who scheduled him there.
More than one defendant is usually liable
A car crash has a driver. A truck crash frequently has a driver, a motor carrier, a separate trailer owner, a loading or shipping company, a maintenance contractor, and sometimes a broker who placed the load.
That matters more in Utah than in most states. Utah abolished joint and several liability. Under Utah Code § 78B-5-820, each defendant pays only its own percentage of fault, which means a party you fail to identify is a percentage of your recovery you simply never collect. Finding every responsible entity early is not thoroughness for its own sake. It is the difference between a full recovery and a partial one.
The insurance is layered
Federal law sets minimum coverage far above what a passenger driver carries. Under 49 CFR § 387.9, a for-hire interstate carrier hauling general freight in a vehicle rated over 10,001 pounds must carry at least $750,000. Carriers hauling oil and most hazardous materials must carry $1 million. Those hauling hazardous substances in cargo tanks or bulk must carry $5 million.
Large carriers routinely stack excess policies above the primary layer. Identifying the full insurance tower, rather than settling against the primary policy, is often where the real value of a serious truck case sits.
Types of Truck Collisions We Handle
Some truck crashes happen the way car crashes do. Rear-end impacts, front-end collisions, and sideswipes all occur – and when the vehicle is a semi-truck, 18-wheeler, or big rig, the size difference alone turns a survivable wreck into a catastrophic one.
Others only happen with commercial vehicles.
| Collision type | What makes it different |
|---|---|
| Jackknife | The trailer swings out of line with the cab, often from braking on a curve or wet pavement, sweeping across multiple lanes |
| Rollover | A high center of gravity and shifting cargo make loaded trailers roll on ramps and turns that a car handles easily |
| Side-impact | A truck entering an intersection against the light strikes with force no passenger-side structure is built to absorb |
| Blind spot | Tractor-trailers carry no-zones on all four sides, and a lane change into one is routinely fatal |
| Unsafe lane change | Merging without clearing the no-zone, common on the Bangerter and I-15 |
| Overloaded and overweight | Excess or improperly secured weight extends stopping distance and destabilizes the trailer |
| Bad weather | Wasatch Front snow and canyon wind, where a carrier’s schedule pressure meets conditions the driver should have refused |
| Turning radius | Wide right turns squeeze vehicles in the adjacent lane against the curb |
| Underride | A car passing beneath a trailer at bumper height, the crash type that produces the worst injuries in this practice |
We also handle crashes by vehicle type – including box trucks, flatbed trucks, tanker trucks, logging trucks, dump trucks, and tow trucks – and delivery fleet collisions involving Amazon, FedEx, and UPS vehicles.
What Caused It, and Who Pays
Liability in a truck case runs up the chain. The driver is rarely the only answer, and often not the most solvent one.
Common causes we investigate: driver fatigue and hours-of-service violations, drowsy driving, distracted driving, texting behind the wheel, impaired driving, speeding, brake failure, tire blowouts, improper loading, deferred maintenance, and unrealistic delivery schedules. See the full breakdown of common causes.
Parties who may share liability:
- The driver, for the conduct that caused the crash
- The motor carrier, for negligent hiring, inadequate training, deferred maintenance, or scheduling that made a violation inevitable
- The loading or shipping company, where cargo was improperly secured or distributed
- The maintenance contractor, where brake or tire failure traces to service records
- The manufacturer, where a defective component contributed
- The broker, in some arrangements, for placing a load with an unsafe carrier
A carrier is also vicariously liable for its driver’s negligence within the scope of employment, which is why the employment relationship gets examined early and why “independent contractor” labels get tested rather than accepted.
Further reading: federal trucking laws that apply in West Jordan · evidence in truck accident cases · the role of logbooks · who you can sue after a Utah truck accident
How We Build Your Truck Case
Ron reads the trucking records himself. Hours-of-service logs, ELD data, weight distribution, pre-trip inspection reports. Not summarized by an expert weeks later. Read by the lawyer trying the case, in the first weeks.
The preservation letter goes out immediately. ECM data, ELD records, dispatch logs, the driver qualification file, maintenance history, and post-accident test results all get frozen before anything cycles.
Private investigators go to the scene right away. While skid marks are still visible and while the gas station on the corner still has last week’s footage. We canvass nearby businesses for surveillance video before it overwrites.
We pull the carrier’s federal safety record. Inspection history, out-of-service rates, and prior violations sometimes show a pattern that reframes a single crash as the predictable result of how a company operates.
We get you into a rental car. Losing your only vehicle turns a bad week into an impossible one. That is a first-week task, not a someday task.
We file your PIP household services paperwork. Utah PIP applies to truck crashes the same as any other motor vehicle collision. Up to $20 per day, roughly $600 a month, so a family member can be paid to help around the house while you recover. It is separate from your settlement, and most people never claim it because nobody tells them it exists.
Your paralegal calls you every month. Cases needing closer attention get calls every two weeks. You should never have to chase us for an answer about your own claim.
Utah Rules That Apply to Your Claim
Your PIP pays first. Utah is a no-fault state, so your own policy covers at least $3,000 in medical bills, wage loss at the lesser of $250 per week or 85% of gross income for up to 52 weeks, and $20 per day in household services, regardless of who caused the crash.
You have to clear the tort threshold. Under Utah Code § 31A-22-309, pain and suffering damages require medical expenses over $3,000, a bone fracture, permanent disability or impairment, permanent disfigurement, dismemberment, or death. Serious truck crash injuries clear this without difficulty, which is why the threshold rarely becomes an issue in these cases.
Comparative fault reduces your recovery. Under Utah Code § 78B-5-818, you recover nothing at 50 percent or more responsibility, and your award drops by your percentage below that line. Carriers argue lane position and following distance aggressively for exactly this reason.
The clock is four years, or two. Most Utah injury claims must be filed within four years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307. A wrongful death claim runs two years from the date of death under Utah Code § 78B-2-304. If the truck was a UTA vehicle, a city or county vehicle, or operated by a UDOT contractor, the Utah Governmental Immunity Act requires a written notice of claim within one year.
Damages available in a West Jordan truck accident case · Common truck accident injuries · West Jordan truck accident settlements
Truck Case Results
- $1.6 Million – Commercial truck crash, jury verdict
- $360 Thousand – Commercial Rear-End Truck Accident
- $350 Thousand – Gravel Truck Versus Dump Truck Wreck
More than $100 million recovered across 27 published verdicts and settlements. See all case results.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case is different.
Why Kramer Injury Law
A lawyer who holds a CDL. Ron went through commercial driving school himself. That is not a marketing credential. It means the logbook analysis, the weight distribution question, and the hours-of-service argument get handled by the attorney trying the case.
Trial capacity. Ron completed the Gerry Spence Trial Lawyers College in 2013 and takes cases to verdict when the offer is too low. Carriers and their insurers track which firms file and which ones always settle.
You pay nothing unless we win. No retainer, no hourly billing, no invoice while you are out of work.
Someone answers, day or night. A live legal assistant takes calls 24/7.
We come to you. Home and hospital visits, anywhere in the valley.
More about the Kramer Law difference · Meet Ron Kramer
Serving West Jordan and the Surrounding Commercial Corridors
Our Redwood Road office sits between two of the heaviest freight routes in Salt Lake County. Semi-trucks, 18-wheelers, and big rigs on the Bangerter Highway and the Mountain View Corridor feed into I-15 and I-80, and the distribution facilities along 7800 South and the Jordan Landing corridor put loaded tractor-trailers on surface streets alongside passenger cars all day.
We take truck accident cases from across the county and the state, including Salt Lake City, West Valley City, South Jordan, Sandy, Riverton, Taylorsville, Herriman, Ogden, and St. George.
Ron is also licensed in Nevada and Idaho. Utah drivers get hit by semi-trucks and big rigs on I-15 south of Mesquite and on I-84 north of Snowville, and we handle those claims directly instead of referring them out.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is my West Jordan truck accident case worth?
Nobody can quote a number on day one. The three factors that move it most are the severity and permanence of your injuries, the size of the insurance tower behind the carrier, and how much of the carrier’s fault you can prove with its own records. Truck cases often carry substantially more available coverage than car cases, because federal law requires it.
How long do I have to file?
Four years for most Utah injury claims, two years for wrongful death from the date of death. If a government vehicle or a public contractor was involved, a written notice of claim is due within one year. Evidence preservation, though, is a matter of weeks rather than years.
Who pays for my medical bills while the case is pending?
Your own PIP coverage pays first, regardless of fault, with at least $3,000 in medical benefits. Health insurance covers beyond that, subject to a lien we negotiate down at the end. You do not pay us anything along the way.
Do I have a case if the truck driver was not ticketed?
Often yes. A citation helps, but liability in a truck case frequently turns on records rather than a trooper’s on-scene judgment. Hours-of-service violations, maintenance failures, and improper loading do not show up in a crash report, and they are exactly what a preservation letter and a records request are for.
What if the trucking company already offered me money?
An offer arriving within days of a serious crash is an offer made before anyone knows your treatment costs. Accepting it closes the claim permanently. Have it reviewed before you sign or deposit anything.
Is a truck accident lawyer different from a car accident lawyer?
The license is the same. The work is not. Truck cases involve federal regulations, electronic data with short retention windows, multiple potential defendants, and layered insurance. Ask any firm you are considering how many commercial vehicle cases it has tried and whether the attorney handling your file reads logbooks personally.
Can I switch lawyers if I already hired someone?
Yes, but the mechanics matter. Your current attorney likely holds a lien on the file, often 30 percent once a settlement offer is on the table, plus a claim for hours worked. Ron has talked prospective clients out of switching more than once when the math did not favor them. Call and we will walk through it honestly.
Talk to a West Jordan Truck Accident Lawyer Today
Evidence in a truck case has a shelf life. The engine control module, the surveillance footage, the dispatch records. Every week that passes is a week the carrier’s team spends building a defense you have not started answering.