Truck Accident Lawyer Serving Kern County

Oilfield Truck Accident Lawyer Kern County | Colvin

An oilfield truck crash can leave you with large medical bills, lost pay, and hard questions about who is responsible. The driver, the trucking company, and other parties may all share responsibility, and the facts decide which ones. Colvin Accident Lawyers is a Bakersfield personal injury practice. This page explains how an oilfield truck accident lawyer Kern County crash victims can consult approaches these claims.

What an Oilfield Truck Accident Lawyer Handles in Kern County

An oilfield truck accident lawyer represents people hurt or killed in crashes involving trucks that support oil and gas work. These trucks include:

• Tankers and water haulers
• Flatbeds carrying pipe or equipment
• Crew transport vehicles

The people this work covers include:

• Drivers and passengers in oilfield trucks
• Motorcyclists, cyclists, and pedestrians struck on Kern County roads
• Families pursuing wrongful death claims after a fatal crash

The practice is based in Bakersfield, California. It takes cases from Kern County and nearby communities, including Fresno, Visalia, Lancaster, Palmdale, Delano, and Tehachapi. Its other work includes car, motorcycle, bicycle, pedestrian, bus, train, dog bite, premises liability, and catastrophic injury claims.

Who Can Be Held Responsible in an Oilfield Truck Crash

More than one party can be responsible, and each one’s role is different.

• The vehicle owner. An owner can be liable when someone drives the vehicle with the owner’s permission and drives negligently (Vehicle Code § 17150).
• Vehicle Code § 17150 makes an owner liable for injury resulting from a negligent act or omission in operating the vehicle by a permitted driver; it does not address the company’s own hiring, training, supervision, or maintenance choices.
• The broker.
• Maintenance shops, loaders, and site operators. Brake or tire failures, unsecured loads, and unsafe site conditions can each contribute. Liability depends on the facts.

Civil Code § 1431.2 addresses how each defendant’s liability for non-economic damages is limited to that defendant’s percentage of fault.

What an Oilfield Truck Accident Claim Can Cover

A claim can seek money for economic losses you can document and for non-economic harm. Economic losses are objectively verifiable monetary losses.

• Emergency care, surgery, hospital stays, and rehabilitation
• Medication and future treatment tied to the crash
• Lost wages and lost earning ability
• Vehicle repair, towing, and rental costs

Non-economic harm includes pain, suffering, emotional distress, and loss of companionship. Catastrophic injuries can also bring long-term care needs, home changes, and assistive equipment.

Wrongful death claims follow a set list of eligible people. Value turns on each person’s injuries and records.

How Truck Accident Claims Are Investigated

Oilfield truck cases often turn on driver logs, maintenance files, and conditions at the work site. Ordinary car crashes rarely involve these records.

• Hours of service. Federal rules limit driving time. Under the federal hours-of-service rule for property-carrying commercial motor vehicles, and except as otherwise provided in § 395.1, a driver may not drive without first taking 10 consecutive hours off duty, may not drive after a period of 14 consecutive hours after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty, and may drive a total of 11 hours during that 14-hour period.
• Fatigue. Federal motor carrier safety rules bar a driver from operating a commercial motor vehicle, and bar a motor carrier from requiring or permitting a driver to do so, while fatigue, illness, or any other cause has impaired the driver’s ability or alertness, or is so likely to impair it, that beginning or continuing to operate the vehicle would be unsafe; in a grave emergency where complying would increase the hazard to the vehicle’s occupants or other highway users, the driver may continue to the nearest place at which that hazard is removed.
• Maintenance. Under the federal inspection, repair, and maintenance rule, these records must be kept where the vehicle is housed or maintained for 1 year and for 6 months after the vehicle leaves the motor carrier’s control.
• Post-crash testing. This rule requires records of tests conducted on pushout windows, emergency doors, and emergency door marking lights on buses; drug and alcohol testing after certain crashes is covered by a separate rule (FMCSA post-accident testing rules).
• Lease roads and job sites. Dust, mud, night work, and heavy traffic can affect visibility and braking.
• Workers’ compensation. If you were working when another company’s truck hit you, a workers’ comp claim and a claim against that company can run side by side. Labor Code § 3852 says a comp claim does not affect your right to sue a third person.

How the Process Works, Step by Step

The process starts with a conversation and moves to evidence, medical records, and talks with insurers.

1. Tell us what happened. Describe the crash, your injuries, and any letters from insurers.
2. Get a free first consultation. Our first consultation is free, confidential, and comes with no obligation to continue.
3. Preserve evidence. Letters go to the driver, carrier, and insurers asking them to keep logs, dispatch records, maintenance files, and photos.
4. Document medical care. Treatment records and bills show the injury and its cost.
5. Negotiate, then file if needed. Demands go to insurers. If a fair resolution is not reached, a lawsuit may be filed.

Deadlines matter. California generally requires a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit within two years (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1). Timing varies with medical recovery, insurer response, and whether the case goes to trial.

Why Work With Colvin Accident Lawyers

Colvin Accident Lawyers is a Bakersfield practice. Donald Norman Colvin is the attorney responsible for the work, supported by assistants and office staff.

• The attorney reviews each case on its own facts.
• The practice handles personal injury and wrongful death claims across the vehicle and premises areas listed above.
• Our team keeps files organized and communication moving.
• The first meeting is a chance to ask questions before you decide anything.
• The office is in Bakersfield, California, so you can meet with the attorney in person.

Common Questions About Oilfield Truck Accident Claims

Talk With Colvin Accident Lawyers About Your Oilfield Truck Crash

If an oilfield truck left you or a loved one hurt, the next step is a conversation about who may be responsible. Driver logs, maintenance files, and scene evidence can disappear, so acting early helps. Reach out to Colvin Accident Lawyers through the contact page to schedule your free, confidential consultation in Bakersfield.