Trucking accident lawyer, Dallas
Every trucking company that runs commercial trucks on Dallas roads works under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, and Texas applies those rules to commercial vehicles that never leave the state as well (Transportation Code 644.051). This page, from LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC in Dallas, walks through the rules our trucking accident lawyers use most, what record each one creates, and how long the company has to keep it.
In brief
The rules tell us which records must exist. The records tell us what the company knew. Some of them may be discarded after six months, so the request for them goes out in the first days. No Fees or Costs Unless We Win. The firm advances case costs, and you owe no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered for you.
Hours of service: how long a trucker may drive
For trucks carrying property, 49 CFR 395.3 sets the limits. A driver needs 10 consecutive hours off duty before driving. After that, the driver may drive at most 11 hours and may not drive at all after the 14th hour on duty. A 30-minute break is required after 8 hours of driving. Over the week, a driver may not drive after 60 hours on duty in 7 days, or 70 hours in 8 days; a 34-hour restart resets the count.
Fatigue is a known danger in trucking, which is why the rule exists. It is also why the rule is enforced through records. A driver who ran out of hours and kept going leaves traces: log entries, fuel receipts, toll records, dispatch messages, delivery times.
Electronic logging devices and the 6-month clock
Duty status is recorded with an electronic logging device (49 CFR 395.8(a)). The carrier must keep the records of duty status and the supporting documents for at least 6 months (395.8(k)). After that, the company may lawfully discard them, unless it has been told to keep them.
That is the reason for the preservation letter. It tells the carrier, in writing and early, that a claim is coming and that the records must be kept. A trucking accident lawyer who waits for a lawsuit to ask for the logs may be asking for records that no longer exist.
Fatigue, illness, drugs and alcohol
- Fatigued or ill drivers. A driver may not drive while so tired or ill that it is unsafe, and the carrier may not require or permit it (49 CFR 392.3).
- Drugs. No driver may be on duty under the influence of a Schedule I drug, an amphetamine or a narcotic (392.4).
- Alcohol. No alcohol within 4 hours before going on duty or while on duty (392.5).
- Testing. A carrier must have a pre-employment drug test result before a driver performs safety-sensitive work (382.301).
Phones and texting
A commercial driver may not text while driving (49 CFR 392.80) and may not use a hand-held phone while driving (392.82). Both rules also bind the carrier, which may not allow or require it. Texas law separately makes it an offense for any driver to read, write or send an electronic message on a portable device while the vehicle is moving (Transportation Code 545.4251). Phone records, cab cameras and dispatch systems can show what a driver was doing in the moments before a crash.
Who may drive: the driver qualification file
An interstate commercial driver must be at least 21 years old (49 CFR 391.11(b)(1)), and the carrier must keep a driver qualification file on each driver it uses (391.51). The file shows what the company checked before putting the driver in the truck, and what it knew afterward. A gap in the file can be as telling as what is in it.
Inspection, repair and maintenance
Carriers must systematically inspect, repair and maintain every vehicle under their control (49 CFR 396.3). Brakes, tires, lights and couplings are the usual subjects. A maintenance file shows what was done and when. It also shows what was put off.
Cargo securement
Cargo must be contained, immobilized or secured so it cannot leak, spill, blow off, fall from or shift on the vehicle (49 CFR 393.100). When a load shifts on a curve or spills onto the freeway, the loading records and the bill of lading show who loaded and secured it.
| Record | Rule | What it can show |
|---|---|---|
| Records of duty status and supporting documents (kept at least 6 months) | 49 CFR 395.8 | Hours driven and on duty, breaks, where the truck was |
| Driver qualification file | 49 CFR 391.51 | What the carrier checked before hiring and since |
| Pre-employment drug test result | 49 CFR 382.301 | Whether the carrier tested before the first trip |
| Inspection, repair and maintenance records | 49 CFR 396.3 | Brakes, tires and lights: what was done and what was put off |
| Loading records and bill of lading | 49 CFR 393.100 | Who loaded and secured the cargo |
Only the duty records come with a short federal minimum written into the rule we cite. We ask for every record in the preservation letter and do not wait to learn how long the company keeps the others.
A truck crash in Dallas County? The 6-month clock on the logs has already started. Call us any hour.
What the crash report adds
The federal records show what the company did before the crash. The crash report shows what an officer saw after it. In Texas, an officer who investigates a crash with an injury, a death or property damage over the threshold the statute sets must file the Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report (CR-3) with TxDOT within 10 days (Transportation Code 550.062). The people involved, their authorized representatives and the insurers can buy a copy through TxDOT’s Crash Report Online Purchase System (Transportation Code 550.065).
We read the two together. The officer’s narrative may say the truck changed lanes; the log may show the driver had been on duty for 13 hours. The diagram may put the impact at the rear of the trailer; the maintenance file may show the rear lights were written up and never fixed. Neither record tells the whole story alone.
How the federal rules meet Texas trial rules
Breaking a rule is not the end of the question. Under the 2021 Texas law for commercial vehicle trials, evidence that the company or its driver broke a regulation comes into the first phase of trial only if it tends to show the breach caused the injury (CPRC 72.053). On the company’s motion the trial is split in two, with compensatory damages first and exemplary damages second (72.052).
So we connect each rule to the crash itself. A driver over his hours who then drifts out of his lane on LBJ is one story. A driver over his hours who was stopped at a red light when he was hit is another. We read the logs against the crash report, the scene and the truck’s data to show what actually caused the harm.
Why our background helps here
Five LAWBOSS attorneys worked on the insurance side before they joined the firm. They know how a carrier’s insurer reads the same records, which ones it worries about, and which ones it hopes nobody asks for. We use that knowledge to ask the right questions early. It is not a promise of any outcome; every case depends on its own facts.
To see who besides the carrier may share the fault, read our truck accident attorney Dallas page. For the roads where Dallas truck crashes cluster, see our truck wreck lawyer Dallas page.
Talk to a trucking accident lawyer in Dallas
Michael Uvalle, founder of the firm and the attorney responsible for this site, practices from our Dallas office on Spring Valley Road. The line is answered 24 hours a day. No Fees or Costs Unless We Win. The firm advances case costs, and you owe no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered for you.
Questions people ask
How long does a trucking company keep its logs?
Records of duty status and supporting documents must be kept at least 6 months (49 CFR 395.8(k)). After that the company may discard them unless it has been told to keep them.
What is a preservation letter?
A written demand, sent early, telling the carrier that a claim is coming and that it must keep the logs, camera footage, truck data, driver file and maintenance records.
Do the federal rules apply to a truck that only drives in Texas?
Texas adopts commercial vehicle safety rules consistent with the federal ones (Transportation Code 644.051), so most of the same standards apply.
If the driver broke a rule, does that decide the case?
Not by itself. Under CPRC 72.053 the violation has to tend to show it caused the injury. We build that link with the logs, the scene and the truck’s data.
Talk to a lawyer tonight
We answer every call, any hour. The first conversation is free.
No Fees or Costs Unless We Win: the firm advances case costs, and you owe no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered for you.
Free case review
Tell us what happened
What helps us start
- Where and when the crash happened, as near as you know it
- Any photos, the other driver’s details and the company name on the truck
- The crash report number, if an officer gave you one
- Who was hurt and where they were treated
No Fees or Costs Unless We Win: the firm advances case costs, and you owe no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered for you.