Truck drivers often travel solo, but in some cases they're accompanied for part or all of their trip by a passenger. Unfortunately, if those passengers are riding along when the truck driver gets careless and crashes, they too might suffer serious or even fatal injuries. If a trucker causes an 18-wheeler accident while someone else is along for the ride in Texas, can their injured passenger sue?

Answer: Generally speaking, an injured truck passenger can usually file a lawsuit if they're hurt during a Texas 18-wheeler accident. However, their remedies may vary depending on the accident's circumstances.

After a Texas truck accident, the area of the law that provides an injured truck passenger's remedy depends on their specific circumstances. In this article, we'll look at some typical scenarios in which a truck passenger might be injured—and how they might affect the victim's potential lawsuit. For instance, one of the first questions to ask is whether the passenger worked for the same company as the truck driver who crashed.

Does the Passenger Work for the Trucking Company?

Determining why the victim was in the truck at the time is key to figuring out what recourse they have after an accident. The victim's options for recovery may change depending on their reason for being there.

If the Passenger Does Not Work for the Trucking Company

Plenty of passengers injured in truck accidents are simply along for the ride as civilians with no affiliation to the driver's employer. For instance, many trucking companies allow their drivers to have spouses or significant others along to keep them company. Other common scenarios include friends or hitchhikers, and we've even seen instances where sex workers were present in the truck's cab when the driver caused an accident.

In most such cases the passengers aren't fellow company employees, so they have the same rights as any other unaffiliated person would when they are injured in a crash with an 18-wheeler. That means there is usually nothing stopping them from filing a negligence-based lawsuit against the company after being hurt in a truck accident.

If the Passenger Works for the Trucking Company

If an injured 18-wheeler passenger works for the same trucking company as the driver, things get more complex. Why? Because Texas work accident law may come into play—and that's one of the most complex bodies of law in the whole country.

Unlike every other state, Texas allows employers to opt out of participating in workers' compensation. Because of that, remedies available to a worker injured on the job in Texas depend largely on the circumstances of that worker's accident. Let's run through the most common situations a truck passenger employed by the trucking company might encounter:

• Scenario 1: Injured passenger works for trucking company. Employer is enrolled in workers' compensation.
  • Remedy: Employers enrolled in workers' comp are immune to litigation in almost all cases. The injured employee is barred from filing suit and their sole remedy is through the workers' comp system.
• Scenario 2: Injured passenger works for trucking company and dies in accident. Employer is enrolled in workers' compensation.
  • Remedy: Workers' compensation may still be the sole remedy, but depending on circumstances there may be grounds to argue gross negligence. If it can be shown the truck driver was especially reckless in causing the accident, the victim's family may be able to file a lawsuit in addition to receiving workers' comp benefits.
• Scenario 3: Injured passenger works for trucking company. Injury occurred while passenger was off-duty (e.g. in the sleeper berth, watching a movie, etc). Employer is enrolled in workers' compensation.
  • Remedy: This gets a little trickier. With circumstances like these, most employers will try to avoid lawsuits by arguing that workers' compensation is the sole remedy for an injured employee. However, it is our opinion (and we think the law agrees) that a passenger hurt "off the clock" was not an active employee at the time. If they were not injured in the course and scope of their occupational duties, workers' comp would not apply and they would have the right to file a lawsuit.
• Scenario 4: Injured or killed passenger works for trucking company. Employer is not enrolled in workers' compensation.
  • Remedy: A non-subscriber, or company that chooses not to participate in workers' comp, receives no immunity from lawsuits. In such cases, an injured worker or the family of a slain worker would be able to file a non-subscriber work injury or wrongful death claim against the company.

The rules surrounding injured truck passengers can be pretty confusing to sort through; as I mentioned before, resolving an 18-wheeler accident and getting help for the victims can be highly circumstantial and fact-dependent. As a consequence, even knowing what remedies are potentially available to you after you're hurt in a Texas truck accident can be tough if you lack sufficient experience with the law. Fortunately, you don't have to go it alone.

Grossman Law Offices Is Here to Help

The Texas truck accident attorneys at Grossman Law Offices have decades of experience helping all sorts of people hurt in 18-wheeler and other other commercial truck accidents, including injured truck passengers. If you were hurt or lost a loved one in an 18-wheeler accident, whatever its circumstances, call Grossman Law any time for a free and confidential consultation.