There are many links in the supply chain that provide the goods you find in the grocery store or that are delivered by a site like Amazon. It all starts with the trucking industry.
Wherever something is made, packaged, or shipped in from overseas, a truck has to pick it up and take it to its final destination, whether that’s a store shelf or your front door.
One way the trucking supply chain is maintained is through freight brokers. Think of freight brokers as a kind of trucking industry middleman. A distributor hires them to facilitate pickup and delivery. Brokers find available trucks and loads to prevent a carrier from “driving empty.” They also handle a lot of the paperwork for a shipment.
However, they don’t own the trucks, employ drivers, or take physical possession of cargo. Instead, they handle all the logistics of getting a shipment from point A to point B.
What does this have to do with liability for a truck accident?
A recent Supreme Court ruling opened the door for freight brokers to be named as a liable party in a truck accident, and the implications could profoundly change the trucking industry.
The Shifting Landscape of Freight Broker Liability
In the ruling handed down by the Supreme Court in the case of Shawn Montgomery vs. Caribe Transport II, LLC, et al, the court ruled that federal law does not shield freight brokers from state-level personal injury lawsuits.
Why does this matter? For decades, freight brokers found themselves immune from lawsuits by invoking the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994.
The broker successfully argued that federal laws trump state regulations.
With the ruling, the Supreme Court is essentially saying that brokers can be found vicariously liable under the “borrowed employee” doctrine. Essentially, this means that because a broker did most of the work of scheduling and finding the truck driver, they can be held responsible for that driver’s actions as much as the trucking company that hired them.
All of this stems from a recent truck accident lawsuit in Texas in which a jury returned a $604 million verdict against a group of defendants, including freight broker C.H. Robinson, who was assigned 23% of direct fault for a trucking accident that resulted in three fatalities.
Applying Respondeat Superior to a Truck Accident
When two cars get into an accident, a claim can be made against a negligent driver, and that driver’s liability insurance will cover the damages. In a truck accident, other factors can bring additional liable parties under the respondeat superior doctrine. Respondeat superior is Latin for “let the master answer,” and it allows an employer to be responsible for an employee’s wrongful actions in the same way a parent might be responsible for a teen driver’s actions.
Before the rule, only the trucking company that directly hired the trucker was held additionally liable. Upon closer scrutiny, it became clear that brokers often played a far more significant role in a truck driver’s actions than the trucking company.
For example, if a broker pressures a driver to make deliveries, it can lead to the driver violating hours-of-service rules or speeding to meet the deadline.
That added pressure can contribute to an accident and make the broker liable.
Negligent Hiring Claims Against Freight Intermediaries
After a truck accident, it is not only the freight broker’s actions during the trip that come into question. Their potential liability begins with their hiring practices.
A freight broker has a duty of care to everyone else on the road when selecting a truck driver or trucking carrier. That duty includes reviewing the driver’s and carrier’s safety history, insurance coverage, regulatory compliance, and operating authority.
If the broker failed to exercise due diligence in researching those entities, it would be considered a breach of that duty of care if those shortcomings lead to an accident that causes harm, that establishes the causation link.
Consider this scenario: A company that makes sneakers needs to transport them from San Pedro to New York. They hired a broker to facilitate the transportation. In a rush to get the job done, the broker finds a carrier and truck driver and assigns the job without checking their history. The driver gets into an accident before leaving California.
Who should be blamed? Everyone who had a hand in the route.
Navigating Complex Liability with Frost Law Firm
Assigning liability in a truck accident is extremely challenging. Many potential parties must be investigated to determine who should be held accountable. This is the type of claim Frost Law Firm handles regularly. Our firm works closely with local investigators and federal agencies who provide valuable information to support a claim.
Most importantly, we don’t charge a fee unless we win the case. That means we’ll only move forward if we believe the claim has merit. We pride ourselves on keeping our clients fully informed about the case and a realistic outcome.
If you’ve been injured in a truck accident, there is a lot to sort through. That begins with a free consultation with our legal team.
Call today to set up your talk, and let’s discuss your options for seeking a fair remedy.
