$600,000 Work-Related Auto Accident Wrongful Death Settlement
Fatal Crash While Driving a County Truck for Work
While working and driving a county truck in Mississippi, this 41-year-old married father of two was broadsided by a gravel truck. The force of the serious collision caused his wrongful death.
Before Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC was hired to assist his widow, the two children had already accepted settlements, and the workers’ compensation case had also already been resolved. But for years, the widow’s prior attorneys had been unable to negotiate an acceptable settlement for her as well.
Because she believed the proposed offer was far too small, she hired our firm and new local counsel to see if a better result could be obtained. Her trust in our office was well placed. In less than a year, our affiliated attorneys secured a $600,000 settlement, which was more than double the amount her previous attorney had been offered. Our client was pleased and felt that justice had finally been done.
When a Work-Related Crash Also Involves Wrongful Death
Some fatal motor vehicle crashes involve only a claim against the at-fault driver. Other crashes are more complicated because the person who was killed was working at the time. When a fatal crash occurs during the course of employment, the family may need to evaluate both workers’ compensation benefits and a separate claim against a negligent third party.
In this case, the man who died was driving a county truck while working. Because the crash happened in Mississippi, local counsel and state-specific workers’ compensation rules were important. The general issue, however, is one that can arise in many serious work-related crash cases: the workers’ compensation claim may not be the only possible source of recovery.
Roadway incidents are a major workplace safety concern. The National Safety Council reports that roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicles are the leading cause of work-related deaths and that 1,146 workers died in such incidents in 2024.
How Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Claims Can Intersect
If a person is injured or killed while performing work duties, the case may involve workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation may provide certain benefits after a work-related injury or death, but the available benefits depend on the state, the employment relationship, the facts of the accident, and the applicable law.
A separate third-party claim may exist when someone other than the employer contributed to the injury or death. In a work-related crash, that third party may be another driver, a trucking company, a vehicle owner, a maintenance company, a contractor, a product manufacturer, or another person or business whose negligence helped cause the collision.
This distinction matters because a workers’ compensation claim and a third-party lawsuit may serve different purposes. Workers’ compensation may address certain employment-related benefits, while a third-party claim may seek compensation for broader losses caused by the negligent party.
Truck Crashes Can Cause Catastrophic Harm
This case involved a gravel truck striking a county truck. Crashes involving large trucks can be especially dangerous because of vehicle size, weight, stopping distance, cargo, speed, and the force of impact.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration publishes Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts, a recurring annual report containing statistics about fatal, injury, and property-damage-only crashes involving large trucks and buses. The National Safety Council also reports that in 2024, 5,340 people died in large-truck crashes, and that most deaths in those crashes were occupants of other vehicles.
When a fatal work-related crash involves a commercial vehicle, construction vehicle, gravel truck, dump truck, delivery truck, or other large vehicle, the legal investigation may need to examine driver conduct, employer responsibility, maintenance records, vehicle ownership, cargo, routes, safety policies, insurance coverage, and whether any company failed to act reasonably.
Wrongful Death Claims After Fatal Vehicle Collisions
A wrongful death claim seeks accountability when a person dies because of another party’s negligence or misconduct. In a fatal crash case, the claim may involve the surviving spouse, children, estate, dependents, or other legally recognized beneficiaries depending on the applicable law.
A fatal car accident or truck accident case may involve damages such as loss of financial support, loss of companionship, grief, funeral and burial expenses, final medical expenses, loss of household services, and the emotional and practical harm caused to the surviving family.
In this case, the widow had already seen other parts of the matter resolved before hiring our firm. The remaining challenge was whether a substantially better settlement could be obtained for her. Through additional work, negotiation, and coordination with local counsel, the final settlement was more than double the previous offer.
Why Identifying All Responsible Parties Matters
One of the most important tasks after a serious work-related crash is identifying every possible responsible party. The at-fault driver may be one part of the case, but additional liability may exist if another company owned the truck, employed the driver, maintained the vehicle, loaded the cargo, controlled the worksite, or created unsafe conditions.
Potentially responsible parties may include:
- The driver who caused the crash
- The driver’s employer
- The owner of the truck or trailer
- A trucking, hauling, construction, or gravel company
- A vehicle maintenance or repair company
- A government entity, contractor, or subcontractor
- A manufacturer of defective vehicle parts or safety equipment
- Another party whose negligence contributed to the crash
Identifying these parties early matters because evidence can disappear, vehicles can be repaired, driver records may be difficult to obtain, witnesses may become harder to locate, and deadlines can affect the right to bring a claim.
Evidence That May Matter in a Work-Related Fatal Crash
Fatal work-related crash cases often require careful evidence review. The legal team may need to understand the employment relationship, the work assignment, how the collision occurred, what insurance coverage existed, and how prior settlements or workers’ compensation benefits affect any remaining claim.
Important evidence may include:
- Police reports and crash reconstruction materials
- Photographs, video, 911 records, and witness statements
- Vehicle damage, inspection records, maintenance records, and repair history
- Driver logs, employment records, route records, and dispatch information
- Insurance policies and coverage-limit information
- Workers’ compensation settlement documents
- Estate, dependency, and family-loss documentation
- Prior settlement offers and negotiation history
- Records showing the full financial and emotional effect on the surviving spouse and family
Legal Help After a Work-Related Crash or Wrongful Death
Work-related crash cases can become complicated when workers’ compensation, third-party liability, trucking insurance, local counsel, prior settlements, and wrongful death issues overlap. Families should not assume that the first offer is fair or that all available sources of recovery have been identified.
Since 1990, Sexner Injury Lawyers LLC has represented injured people, workers, widows, widowers, and families in serious injury and wrongful death matters. If a loved one died in a work-related crash, truck accident, car accident, or other preventable incident, contact us for a free case evaluation at (312) 243-9922 or contact us online.
