Truck Underride Accident Lawyer

In an underride crash, a passenger vehicle slides under the rear or side of a tractor-trailer or other large truck. The trailer can intrude into the passenger compartment at windshield level, so occupants can suffer head, neck, and spinal injuries even at moderate speeds, and these crashes can be fatal. Gross Law Group represents people and families after underride and other truck crashes across the Florida Panhandle and the Space Coast.

We handle injury cases on a contingency fee: No Recovery, No Fee, but the client is responsible for costs such as filing fees, medical records, and expert fees. The first consultation is free. Call (888) 858-1505 or contact us online.

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Key Takeaways About Underride Crash Claims

• Federal rules require rear impact guards on most trailers and semitrailers of 10,000 pounds or more manufactured on or after January 26, 1998.
• Federal standards for rear impact guards were strengthened in 2022.
• No federal rule currently requires side underride guards; federal rulemaking on side guards remains at an early stage.
• The trailer and its guard are physical evidence, so they should be preserved before repair or salvage.
• Gross Law Group handles injury cases on a No Recovery, No Fee basis; the client is responsible for costs.

Federal Rear Impact Guard Rules

Under 49 CFR 393.86, each trailer and semitrailer with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or more, manufactured on or after January 26, 1998, must have a rear impact guard that meets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 223 and, as installed, Standard No. 224. The rule sets guard dimensions, including:

• The bottom of the guard may be no more than 22 inches above the ground.
• The guard must extend to within 4 inches of each side of the vehicle.
• At any height of 22 inches or more above the ground, the guard's rear surface must be within 12 inches of the rear of the vehicle.

The rule does not apply to some specialized vehicles, including pole trailers, pulpwood trailers, low chassis vehicles, special purpose vehicles, wheels back vehicles, road construction controlled horizontal discharge trailers, and trailers towed in driveaway-towaway operations. Other motor vehicles manufactured after 1952, including older trailers and many single-unit trucks, must have a rear guard no more than 30 inches above the ground when the rear of the body or chassis is more than 30 inches off the ground; truck tractors are excluded from that requirement.

Standard No. 223 sets strength and energy-absorption tests for the guard itself (49 CFR 571.223), and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration amended the standard in 2022. Federal rules also require carriers to systematically inspect, repair, and maintain their vehicles and to keep the parts and accessories required by Part 393 in safe and proper operating condition at all times (49 CFR 396.3).

Side Underride Guards

No federal rule currently requires side underride guards on trailers. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act directed federal research on side guards, and NHTSA published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking in April 2023; the current federal regulatory agenda still lists that action at the pre-rule stage (Unified Agenda, RIN 2127-AM54). A side underride crash can still support a claim based on how the truck was driven, parked, lit, or maintained.

Questions We Investigate in an Underride Case

• Was this trailer required to have a rear impact guard, and did the guard meet the dimensions in 49 CFR 393.86?
• Was the guard bent, corroded, detached, or repaired before the crash, and what do the carrier's inspection and maintenance records show?
• Were the trailer's lamps and reflective devices working (49 CFR 393.11)?
• If the truck was stopped on the road or shoulder, did the driver use hazard flashers and warning devices as required (49 CFR 392.22)?
• Was the truck turning, backing, or crossing lanes at night or in low light?
• Who owned, leased, maintained, and manufactured the trailer and the guard?

Who May Be Responsible

• The truck driver
• The motor carrier that employed or contracted with the driver
• The owner or lessor of the trailer
• A shop responsible for inspecting or repairing the trailer
• The manufacturer of the trailer or the rear impact guard

Insurance in Underride Cases

Federal rules set minimum liability insurance for interstate for-hire carriers hauling property in vehicles of 10,001 pounds or more: $750,000 for general freight, $1,000,000 for oil and many hazardous materials, and $5,000,000 for certain bulk hazardous materials (49 CFR 387.9). Trucks that run only inside Florida can carry far less. Florida's minimums for intrastate commercial motor vehicles weighing 26,000 pounds or more range from $50,000 to $300,000 depending on weight (Fla. Stat. 627.7415).

Early in a truck case we work to identify the carrier, its operating authority, the trailer's owner, and each company's insurers.

Florida Law That Affects Underride Claims

Under the 2023 changes to Florida law (HB 837), most negligence claims arising after March 24, 2023 must be filed within two years (Fla. Stat. 95.11(5)(a)), and wrongful death claims also carry a two-year deadline (Fla. Stat. 95.11(5)(e)). Florida now uses modified comparative fault: in most negligence cases (medical negligence claims are an exception), a person found more than 50 percent at fault for their own injury cannot recover damages, and a lower share of fault reduces the recovery (Fla. Stat. 768.81(6)).

HB 837 also changed how medical bills are proven. Evidence of medical bills that have already been paid is now limited to the amount actually paid; evidence of unpaid bills generally includes what the injured person's health coverage would pay (or, for people without private coverage, an amount tied to Medicare or Medicaid rates); and treatment under a letter of protection must be disclosed (Fla. Stat. 768.0427). That makes careful documentation of current and future care more important than ever.

Many underride crashes cause catastrophic or fatal injuries. Learn more about our catastrophic injury and wrongful death practice.

How Gross Law Group Handles an Underride Case

• We send preservation demands so the trailer and guard are not repaired, sold, or scrapped before they can be inspected.
• We request ELD data, engine control module downloads, dash camera video, and dispatch records.
• We request the driver qualification file and the trailer's inspection, maintenance, and repair history.
• We work with accident reconstruction and engineering professionals when needed.
• We work with your doctors to document current and future medical needs and lost earning capacity.

For crashes in specific areas, see our Pensacola truck accident and Panama City truck accident pages.

Offices Serving the Florida Panhandle and the Space Coast

Gross Law Group handles truck underride cases from our offices in Pensacola, Panama City Beach, and Melbourne. If you contact us and can't travel, we can arrange to meet by video or at a location convenient to you.

Gross Law Group, P.A. – Pensacola Office
21 East Garden Street, Suite 208
Pensacola, FL 32502
Phone: (888) 858-1505

Gross Law Group, P.A. – Panama City Beach Office
4408 Delwood Ln, Suite 14
Panama City Beach, FL 32408
Phone: (888) 858-1505

Gross Law Group, P.A. – Melbourne Office
2084 Meadowlane Ave
Melbourne, FL 32904
Phone: (321) 321-1441

Talk With a Truck Underride Accident Lawyer

If you were seriously hurt, or lost a loved one, in an underride crash, call Gross Law Group at (888) 858-1505 or reach us online. We handle injury cases on a contingency fee: No Recovery, No Fee, but the client is responsible for costs such as filing fees, medical records, and expert fees. The first consultation is free.

Truck Underride Accident FAQs

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