Texas Dump, Tow, Garbage and Tanker Truck Accident Lawyer (Updated November 2026)

By the Beverly Law legal team. Updated November 2026.

What to do after a work truck crash in Texas

1. Get medical care right away.
2. Get the crash report (Houston, Dallas, other cities).
3. Photograph the truck: company name, USDOT number, plate, unit number and any city seal. A city truck starts a notice clock.
4. Photograph the road, including any gravel, refuse or concrete on the pavement.
5. Send a written request to keep evidence: engine data, GPS records, camera video, load tickets. See truck black box and dashcam evidence.
6. Skip the recorded statement until you get advice (why).

Texas rules for each kind of work truck

Who can be responsible in Texas

The company behind the driver usually carries the real insurance. In Painter v. Amerimex Drilling I, Ltd., 561 S.W.3d 125 (Tex. 2018), the Texas Supreme Court said a worker’s status turns on whether the employer had “the right to control the progress, details, and methods of operations of the work,” and that the act must fall “within the scope of the employee’s general authority in furtherance of the employer’s business.” The court held the employer was not entitled to summary judgment and sent the case back to the trial court (Painter opinion). That test matters when an owner-operator hauls for a contractor. See owner-operator or company driver: who pays.

Other parties can share fault: the quarry or plant that loaded the truck, a shop that skipped brake repairs on a vehicle the carrier must systematically inspect and maintain (49 C.F.R. § 396.3), or a city that owns the truck. Texas assigns each defendant its own percentage of responsibility, and a defendant found more than 50% responsible is jointly and severally liable for all of the recoverable damages (Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.013). See who is liable in a truck accident.

Texas trial rules for commercial vehicle crashes

Since 2021, Subchapter B of Chapter 72 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code has governed injury and death suits over collisions with a “commercial motor vehicle,” which includes a vehicle used for commercial purposes to “deliver or transport goods, or provide services” (§ 72.051). That can reach every kind of truck on this page when it is being used for business. On a defendant’s motion, the court must split the trial into a compensatory phase and an exemplary damages phase (§ 72.052). If the employer stipulates in time that the driver was its employee acting in the scope of employment, its liability for the driver’s ordinary negligence rests on respondeat superior, though for regulated carriers proof of a disqualified driver or an hours-of-service violation can still come in (§ 72.054). A properly authenticated photo or video of a vehicle involved is presumed admissible, and no expert is needed except to authenticate it (§ 72.055).

City garbage trucks and the Texas Tort Claims Act

Garbage and solid waste collection is a governmental function of a Texas city (§ 101.0215(a)(6)). A governmental unit is liable for injury caused by an employee’s negligence that arises from the operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle, if the employee would be personally liable under Texas law (§ 101.021(1)).

• Notice. The city is entitled to notice within six months, describing the injury, the time and place, and the incident. City charter and ordinance notice periods are ratified by the statute, so check the charter right away. Formal notice is not required if the city had actual notice of the death or injury (§ 101.101).
• Caps. A city’s liability is capped at $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence for bodily injury or death (§ 101.023(c)).
• No punitive damages against the city (§ 101.024).

A private hauler collecting under a city contract is a regular defendant without these caps. Federal motor carrier safety rules generally do not apply to a political subdivision’s own trucks (49 C.F.R. § 390.3(f)(2)).

Insurance for heavy work trucks in Texas

For-hire carriers hauling ordinary freight across state lines in trucks rated at 10,001 pounds or more must carry at least $750,000 in public liability coverage. Oil and most listed hazardous materials require $1,000,000, and certain hazardous substances hauled in bulk in cargo tanks, portable tanks or hopper-type vehicles require $5,000,000 (49 C.F.R. § 387.9).

Carriers that must register with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles have to keep liability insurance in an amount the department sets by rule (Transp. Code § 643.101) and file proof of it (43 Tex. Admin. Code § 218.16).

Tow trucks have their own permits. A truck used for police-initiated, nonconsent tows needs at least $500,000 in liability insurance (Occ. Code § 2308.103). Private property towing requires $300,000 (§ 2308.104), and consent towing requires $300,000 (§ 2308.105).

Evidence that matters with these trucks

• Engine, GPS and camera data from the truck.
• Load and scale tickets, route sheets and tow dispatch logs.
• Driving time. A property-carrying driver may drive 11 hours after 10 hours off and may not drive after the 14th hour on duty (49 C.F.R. § 395.3). Local short-haul drivers may skip the logbook, but the carrier must keep six months of time records (§ 395.1(e)(1)). See hours-of-service logs.
• Maintenance files, kept for a year and for six months after the vehicle leaves the carrier (§ 396.3(c)), and the annual inspection (§ 396.17).

You can look up a trucking company safety record.

Texas deadlines, fault and punitive damages

Exemplary damages against a private company require clear and convincing proof that the harm resulted from fraud, malice or gross negligence, and a unanimous jury (§ 41.003). For a death claim, see the Texas wrongful death deadline and comparative fault in California, Texas and Washington.

Recent dump truck crashes in Texas

In August 2026, a dump truck and three passenger vehicles collided at Chandler Road and County Road 119 in Round Rock. An 80-year-old man died at the scene and three others had minor injuries (our report on the Round Rock crash). In September 2026, a pickup and a dump truck collided on FM 973 near Tesla Road in southeast Travis County, and the pickup driver was hospitalized with serious injuries (our report on the FM 973 crash). Police had not announced a cause in either crash when we reported them.

TxDOT counts 38,533 crashes involving a commercial motor vehicle in Texas in 2025. There were 469 fatal crashes that killed 528 people, and 1,611 people suffered suspected serious injuries. Travis County had 11 deaths (TxDOT, CMV-involved crashes and injuries by county, 2025, data as of April 7, 2026). We handle cases across Texas, including Austin truck accidents. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou.

Related pages

• California dump, tow, garbage and tanker truck accident lawyer
• Washington dump, tow, garbage and tanker truck accident lawyer
• Texas truck accident lawyer and Texas delivery truck accident lawyer
• Falling loads and cargo spills and overloaded truck crashes
• Texas wrongful death lawyer

Common questions

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026.