Cell Phone Evidence Helps Secure $600,000 Settlement After Distracted Tow Truck Driver Rear-Ends Vehicle on US 17A

A commercial truck driver is supposed to keep his attention on the road and follow the federal safety rules built to protect the people around him. When that doesn’t happen, people get hurt.

Steinberg Law Firm attorney Wilson Jackson recently obtained a $600,000 settlement for a client who was seriously injured when a Freightliner flatbed tow truck struck her from behind on US 17A.

The Crash

Traffic had slowed. Our client was stopped behind another vehicle when the tow truck, traveling roughly 45 mph, slammed into the back of her car and drove it into the vehicle ahead of her.

She suffered a concussion and multiple soft tissue injuries, and her medical bills came to $54,777.20. Her injuries healed within about a year of the collision.

Looking Beyond the Accident Report

On paper, this looked like a routine rear-end collision. Wilson Jackson didn’t believe that was the whole story.

His team pushed for an inspection of the tow truck and a download of the driver’s cell phone. That download is where the case turned.

The records showed the driver had been on the clock longer than the hours-of-service rules allow. They also showed that, at the moment of the crash, he was in the middle of a texting argument with his girlfriend.

Put together, the evidence showed a commercial driver who was both distracted and over his hours—the two things those regulations exist to prevent.

“Commercial vehicle cases often require digging much deeper than the initial accident report,” said Attorney Wilson Jackson. “Critical evidence can exist on a driver’s cell phone or in electronic records. When we uncover that evidence, we can show exactly what happened and why.”

Why Early Investigation Matters

Commercial vehicle cases are not ordinary car accident claims.

Much of the evidence that decides them—cell phone data, electronic logging records, onboard computer data, and company files—can be gone if no one requests it and preserves it quickly.

A lawyer who handles these cases knows what to look for and how to get it. Here, the cell phone records became some of the most important evidence in the file, and they showed what led up to the collision.

The investigation helped someone else, too. Because our client’s car was pushed into the vehicle ahead, that driver was injured as well, and the evidence Steinberg Law Firm uncovered helped that driver’s attorney reach a favorable result with the tow truck company and its insurer.

Experienced Representation Matters

Wilson Jackson comes at these cases from both sides. Before he represented injured people, he defended trucking companies and insurance carriers. He also holds a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) and completed the National Association of Trucking Industry Management’s Certified Director of Safety program, which gave him firsthand knowledge of the trucking industry and the federal regulations that govern commercial drivers.

That background lets him spot problems that are easy to miss—hours-of-service violations, distracted driving, and other evidence that never makes it into an initial police report.

If you or someone you love has been injured in a collision involving a commercial truck, tow truck, or other commercial vehicle, a prompt investigation can make a real difference. Preserving evidence early may be one of the most important steps in protecting your claim. Call the Steinberg Law Firm for a free consultation.