The Devastating Reality of Commercial Vehicle Crashes
Sharing the road with an 80,000-pound commercial semi-truck can be incredibly intimidating for any Florida motorist. Because of their immense size, unique shape, and heavy weight, commercial drivers must undergo rigorous training and obtain specialized commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs). This training is meant to help them safely execute maneuvers that passenger car drivers take for granted, such as making a simple right-hand turn.
When a truck driver fails to execute these turns safely, the results can be catastrophic. Squeeze play accidents happen when a careless truck driver traps a smaller passenger vehicle, bicyclist, or pedestrian between the trailer and a curb or another lane. If you or a loved one are struggling to recover from one of these terrifying collisions, you need an experienced, empathetic advocate on your side.
Our legal team is dedicated to helping victims navigate the complex aftermath of these preventable tragedies. We understand the physical pain, emotional trauma, and financial stress you are experiencing, and we are here to help you demand justice.
What Are Squeeze Play Accidents?
To understand how to build a winning legal claim, it is important to first understand the mechanics of the crash. Squeeze play accidents typically occur at intersections when a large tractor-trailer attempts to make a right turn.
Because commercial trucks are incredibly long, they require a wide turning radius. To avoid driving over the curb or hitting a utility pole on the corner, the truck driver will often swing out into the left lane before initiating their right turn.
This maneuver creates a dangerous illusion. To the driver of a passenger car traveling behind the truck, it may look like the truck is changing lanes to the left, or simply leaving the right lane wide open. If the smaller vehicle attempts to proceed straight or pass on the right, they enter a trap. As the truck completes its right turn, the massive trailer cuts back across the right lane, violently squeezing or crushing the smaller vehicle against the curb, guardrail, or shoulder.
Common Causes of Squeeze Play Accidents
While truck drivers often attempt to blame the passenger vehicle in these crashes, the reality is that commercial operators receive extensive training to prevent these exact scenarios. Squeeze play collisions almost always occur due to a truck driver’s failure to properly assess their surroundings and monitor other motorists.
Some of the most common negligent behaviors that lead to a squeeze play include:
Failure to Check Mirrors: A commercial truck has massive areas around the vehicle where the driver has zero visibility. Failing to thoroughly check these blind spots before and during a turn is extremely dangerous.
Improper Signaling: If a truck driver swings left without using their right turn signal, drivers behind them have no warning that the truck is about to cut back across their lane.
Misjudging Road Width: A driver may miscalculate the narrowness of a city street or how close another vehicle is to the truck’s side.
Inadequate Training: Some trucking companies rush inexperienced drivers onto the road without sufficient training regarding the safe operation of a tractor-trailer in tight, urban environments.
Fatigue and Distraction: Drivers pushed to meet unrealistic delivery deadlines often suffer from fatigue, severely slowing their reaction times and situational awareness.
Severe Injuries Sustained in Squeeze Play Accidents
Because of the sheer size disparity between an 18-wheeler and a standard passenger sedan, the occupants of the smaller vehicle almost always bear the brunt of the trauma. The crushing force of a fully loaded trailer can obliterate a smaller car.
Victims involved in a squeeze play accident frequently suffer permanent, life-altering injuries. These traumatic injuries often include:
Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI): Ranging from severe concussions to permanent cognitive impairment, requiring lifelong neurological care.
Spinal Cord Damage: The violent twisting of the crash can cause partial or complete paralysis.
Crush Injuries and Amputations: Limbs pinned inside the mangled wreckage of a passenger car may require emergency surgical amputation.
Internal Bleeding: The blunt force impact can cause organs to rupture, creating life-threatening internal hemorrhaging.
Severe Disfigurement: Deep lacerations from shattered glass and crushed metal can lead to permanent scarring.
Severe injuries require long-term, intensive medical treatment. This may include multiple surgeries, months of physical therapy, and expensive rehabilitative measures. Ensuring that the negligent driver is held financially accountable is vital for protecting your family’s financial well-being.
Establishing Liability in Squeeze Play Accidents
When a victim is injured in a squeeze play collision, our legal team will launch an aggressive investigation to identify all liable parties. Often, liability extends far beyond just the driver sitting in the cab of the truck.
Holding the Truck Driver Accountable
A negligent truck driver is usually the primary factor in these collisions. In legal terms, negligence exists when a driver breaches their legal “duty of care” to other motorists by acting in a careless or unreasonable manner.
A truck driver who fails to look out for a smaller motorist, pedestrian, or bicyclist when swinging out to make a turn has breached this duty. If that breach is the proximate cause of the crash, the driver can be held legally liable for the victim’s damages.
Holding the Trucking Company Accountable
You should not be limited to the driver’s individual insurance policy. A trucking company may also be held liable for your injuries. This is often done through a legal doctrine called vicarious liability, which holds employers responsible for the negligent actions their employees commit while on the job.
Furthermore, the company can be held directly liable for its own negligent corporate practices. For instance, if a commercial carrier fails to conduct proper background checks, ignores federal hours-of-service regulations, or fails to adequately train drivers before entrusting them with 80,000-pound vehicles, they share the blame. The attorneys who handle truck accidents understand how to audit corporate records, driver logs, and black box data to prove this negligence.
Key Florida Legal Concepts to Understand
Navigating a personal injury lawsuit requires a deep understanding of state law. The insurance companies have teams of corporate lawyers protecting their bottom line; you deserve an expert fighting for yours.
The Duty of Care
Every driver on the road owes a legal duty to operate their vehicle safely and avoid causing foreseeable harm. Because commercial trucks pose a significantly higher risk of catastrophic damage, CDL holders are held to an even stricter professional standard of care than everyday passenger car drivers.
Florida’s Modified Comparative Negligence
Florida operates under a “modified comparative negligence” system. This means that fault can be shared between multiple parties. The trucking company’s insurance adjusters will inevitably try to claim that you caused the squeeze play by illegally passing on the right.
Even if you are found partially at fault, you may still recover damages, but your compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault. However, under recent changes to Florida law, if you are found to be more than 50% responsible for the crash, you may be barred from recovering any financial compensation. This makes it critical to have an attorney who can fiercely defend you against baseless victim-blaming tactics.
The Statute of Limitations
The law imposes strict deadlines on your right to file a lawsuit, known as the statute of limitations. Historically, Florida allowed four years for personal injury cases. However, recent tort reform laws have reduced this window significantly.
For general negligence claims occurring after March 24, 2023, you generally have only two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. For wrongful death claims, the limit is also strictly two years from the date of the victim’s passing. Missing these deadlines means permanently losing your right to seek justice.
Steps to Take Following a Squeeze Play Accident
The moments following a devastating commercial collision are chaotic and terrifying. However, the actions you take immediately at the scene and in the days following can make or break your legal claim.
Seek Immediate Medical Attention: Your physical health is the absolute priority. Even if you feel okay, adrenaline can mask the pain of severe internal injuries. A prompt medical exam also creates an official, time-stamped medical record linking your injuries to the crash.
Call Law Enforcement: Always call the police to the scene. Do not let the truck driver talk you out of an official report. The police report will document the position of the vehicles, weather conditions, and any citations issued to the trucker for an improper turn.
Document the Scene Thoroughly: If you are physically able, take photos and videos of everything. Capture the damage to both vehicles, the truck’s license plate, commercial DOT numbers on the cab, skid marks, and the layout of the intersection.
Gather Witness Information: In squeeze play accidents, independent witnesses are gold. They can testify that the truck swung left without a blinker, deceiving you into moving forward. Collect names, phone numbers, and emails of anyone who saw the crash.
Do Not Speak to Corporate Adjusters: Trucking companies dispatch aggressive rapid-response teams to crash scenes to mitigate their liability. Do not provide a recorded statement or accept a fast, lowball settlement offer without consulting your attorney first.
Seeking Maximum Compensation for Your Damages
If negligence is successfully proven, truck accident victims have the right to demand comprehensive financial compensation to make them “whole” again. A skilled legal team will fight for both economic and non-economic damages.
Economic Damages: These are your tangible, out-of-pocket financial losses. They include all medical expenses (both past emergency care and anticipated future treatments), rehabilitative therapy, property damage, and lost wages. If your injuries permanently prevent you from returning to your career, you can also claim compensation for diminished earning capacity.
Non-Economic Damages: These compensate you for the intangible, deeply personal toll the crash has taken on your life. This includes physical pain and suffering, emotional trauma, PTSD, loss of enjoyment of life, and the psychological impact of permanent disfigurement.
Wrongful Death Claims: When a negligent driver causes a fatal squeeze play accident, surviving family members may file a wrongful death claim under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. While no amount of money can replace a loved one, this claim seeks critical financial assistance for funeral and burial costs, lost future income, and the profound loss of companionship and support.
Contact a Trusted Miami Truck Crash Attorney Today
Drivers who fail to exercise proper care on South Florida roadways must be held accountable for the devastation they cause. You do not have to navigate the complex legal system alone while struggling to recover from severe injuries.
Let the skilled, empathetic team at the Law Offices of Robert Dixon handle the aggressive commercial insurance companies and fiercely fight for the maximum compensation you deserve. We know how to beat the trucking corporations at their own game. Contact our office today to schedule a free, confidential consultation about your potential claim.
