Hit by a Tow Truck?

Tow Truck Crash Risk Factors

Tow truck crashes involve weight, visibility, and load-securement factors that a standard car accident does not. Heavy wreckers, flatbeds, and the vehicles they carry change how liability gets determined after a collision.

Tow truck operators work irregular hours, take overnight calls, stop on the shoulders of active highways, work in low light, and travel with a disabled vehicle attached. A semi-truck usually runs a scheduled route. A tow truck responds to calls at any hour, in any weather, often with little preparation time. Towing industry workers died at a rate of nearly 43 deaths per 100,000 workers from 2011 to 2016, more than 15 times the rate for all private industries, and motor vehicle incidents were the leading cause, frequently workers on the roadside struck by passing vehicles, according to NIOSH.

When a tow truck causes a crash, liability typically falls on the driver and the towing company, and in some cases on the company that dispatched the truck.

Move Over Law Under KRS 189.930

Kentucky’s Move Over Law, KRS 189.930, applies to drivers approaching a stationary emergency vehicle or public safety vehicle displaying flashing warning lights, and a stationary disabled vehicle displaying a warning signal. Wreckers are public safety vehicles under KRS 189.910. On a highway with at least four lanes, two in the driver’s direction, the driver must move to a lane not adjacent to the stopped vehicle when that can be done safely. On smaller roads, or when a lane change is impossible or unsafe, the driver must reduce speed.

Tow trucks routinely stop on highway shoulders to retrieve disabled vehicles, which puts the tow operator and any waiting motorist in the path of passing traffic. A passing driver who fails to slow down or move over can strike the tow truck, the operator standing outside it, or the vehicle being loaded, and each impact raises its own liability question depending on who was where at the moment of impact.

Under KRS 446.070, a person injured by the violation of a statute may recover damages from the offender, so a driver’s failure to comply with KRS 189.930 can support a claim when it causes a crash or injury during a recovery operation. Bystanders whose actions created additional hazards at the scene are part of the same review.

A negligent tow truck driver and the towing company that employs the driver can both be named in a claim. When a mechanical defect in the tow truck or its towing equipment contributed to the crash, a manufacturer or maintenance provider can share responsibility.

Kentucky Towing Regulations

Towing and storage companies must be licensed by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to operate in Kentucky, and the Cabinet regulates their licensing and insurance requirements. Larger operations that cross state lines or exceed certain weight thresholds also fall under federal motor carrier regulation. Federal rules cover driver qualifications, vehicle maintenance, and insurance minimums.

Insurance Coverage in a Tow Truck Claim

Towing companies typically carry commercial auto liability coverage with higher limits than a standard personal auto policy, reflecting the size and risk of the vehicles they operate. Identifying the correct at-fault party and its insurer early in a claim can change how much compensation is available.

A serious tow truck crash can produce losses that exceed a single policy’s limits, so a coverage review looks past the tow truck’s own policy. When a towing company works under a broader trucking or roadside assistance contract, umbrella policies and other layers can apply. Other sources include garage keeper’s liability coverage, cargo coverage on the towed vehicle, and contractual indemnity agreements between the towing company and a referring business, such as a dealership or repair shop that called for the tow.

Injuries in Tow Truck Crashes

Crashes involving tow trucks frequently produce more severe injuries than a comparable car-to-car collision because of the size and weight gap between a heavy-duty wrecker and a passenger vehicle. Traumatic brain injuries, spinal injuries, and multiple fractures are commonly reported when a tow truck or towed vehicle strikes another vehicle at highway speed.

Occupants of a vehicle struck by a detached towed vehicle face a distinct injury pattern, since the towed vehicle is typically unoccupied and moves unpredictably once it separates from the tow connection. Emergency responders and treating physicians often document the mechanism of injury carefully, and that record later shows how the crash occurred.

Evidence in a Tow Truck Claim

A tow truck claim can draw on more documentation than a typical two-car crash because towing companies keep commercial insurance files, dispatch logs, and vehicle maintenance records. Dispatch records showing when and where the tow truck was called establish the driver’s schedule and time pressure before the crash. Maintenance logs show whether known mechanical issues went unaddressed. Driver qualification files show who the company put behind the wheel. The police report does not replace any of these records.

Photographs of the tow connection, the towed vehicle’s position, and skid marks or debris at the scene show how the crash unfolded. When a towed vehicle detached during transport, the hitch, chains, safety cables, tow bar, safety latch, or hydraulic line become physical evidence. Equipment failure claims depend on inspecting the actual part involved, so it has to be preserved before it is repaired, replaced, discarded, or resold.

How Sam Aguiar Injury Lawyers Handles Tow Truck Claims

Sam Aguiar Injury Lawyers identifies the towing company’s commercial insurer and puts it on notice, because delayed notice can give an insurer more room to dispute liability. The firm requests dispatch records, maintenance logs, and driver qualification files from the towing company where relevant.

Every tow truck claim the firm accepts carries the same terms:

• Dedicated three-person team: a top-rated attorney, an experienced case manager, and a skilled legal assistant.
• Bigger Share Guarantee®: Clients always walk away with more money than the firm after medical bills, liens, and case expenses are paid. If the client’s share would ever be less than the legal fee, the firm cuts its fee.
• Flat contingency fee that never increases if your case goes to trial.
• $0 Out-Of-Pocket Forever.

If a wrecker, a flatbed, or a vehicle that broke loose from one hit you, the towing company’s dispatch logs, maintenance records, and the tow connection itself are the evidence, and the equipment can be repaired or replaced. Most cases qualify in under 10 minutes. Start a free case review about your tow truck crash at 502-888-8888.