Long Beach Truck Accident Lawyer

Port Traffic and the I-710 Corridor

The Port of Long Beach handles millions of shipping containers a year. A large share of those boxes leave the terminals on trucks.

The Long Beach Freeway (I-710) is a major truck route out of the harbor. Caltrans’s 2024 truck traffic table counts about 32,000 trucks a day on the 710 at Del Amo Boulevard, out of roughly 180,000 vehicles, and about two in three of those trucks are five-axle rigs. At the 405 interchange, the count on one leg is about 25,300 trucks a day.

Closer to the water, the share of trucks is even higher. At the Heim lift bridge on State Route 47, the table lists about 11,600 trucks out of 20,200 vehicles, which means trucks make up more than half of the traffic (truck share last checked by Caltrans in 2011).

Finding the Right Company Behind a Port Truck

The name painted on the cab is not always the company that is legally responsible. Federal rules in 49 CFR 390.21 require a commercial truck to display the legal or trade name of the motor carrier operating it and the carrier’s USDOT number. If another company’s name appears on the truck, the operating carrier’s name must be shown with that information. Photographs of the door, the trailer and the chassis plate taken at the scene can save weeks of work later.

Port drayage often involves several businesses for a single trip: the trucking company, the owner of the chassis, the terminal, the company that arranged the move and sometimes a driver working as an independent contractor. Each one may carry separate insurance, and each one has its own records.

Why Naming Every Responsible Party Matters in California

California splits responsibility for some damages among defendants. Under Civil Code section 1431.2, in an injury case based on comparative fault, each defendant’s share of non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, is several only. Each defendant pays only its percentage of those damages, not the whole amount.

In practice, that means leaving a responsible company out of the case can leave part of your non-economic damages uncollected. Economic losses, such as medical bills and lost wages, follow different rules. Sorting out which company did what is one of the first jobs in a port truck case.

Police Reports in Long Beach

The Long Beach Police Department generally takes reports on crashes on city streets. Freeway crashes on the 710, the 405 and the 91 are generally handled by the California Highway Patrol. The CHP’s South Los Angeles Area, based at 19700 Hamilton Avenue in Torrance, lists Long Beach among the communities it serves. You can request a CHP report with form CHP 190.

If you were hurt but declined the ambulance, tell the officer you are hurt and see a doctor the same day. For a city-street crash, LBPD reports can be requested by mail or in person from its Information Management Division at 400 West Broadway, and the city lists a $30 fee.

Medical Care After a Long Beach Truck Crash

The Los Angeles County EMS Agency lists MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center as a Level II trauma center. Paramedics in Los Angeles County follow county criteria to decide whether a patient goes to a trauma center or a regular emergency room.

Truck collisions often cause injuries that take days to show their full extent: herniated discs, concussions and internal bleeding among them. Follow-up visits with your own doctor, imaging ordered after the first week and any physical therapy all become part of the medical picture an insurer will review.

Deadlines and Where the Case Is Filed

Under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1, a California injury lawsuit against a private party must be filed within two years. If a public vehicle was involved, such as a city truck or a port-owned vehicle, Government Code section 911.2 requires a written claim within six months first.

Los Angeles Superior Court Local Rule 2.3 requires an unlimited civil personal injury case to be filed in the court district where the incident happened. Long Beach is in the South District, which sits at the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse, 275 Magnolia Avenue. The court’s online filing locator confirms the correct courthouse for a specific address.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who is responsible when a port drayage truck causes a crash in Long Beach?

Responsibility depends on how the trip was arranged. The motor carrier whose USDOT number is on the cab is usually the first place to look, because federal rule 49 CFR 390.21 requires the operating carrier’s name and number to be displayed. The chassis owner may be responsible if a brake or tire defect contributed. If the driver worked as an independent contractor, the contract between the driver and the carrier becomes evidence. We request the dispatch records and the equipment interchange paperwork early, because they show who controlled the truck at the moment of the crash.

Does the Long Beach Police Department take reports on freeway crashes?

Generally, no. Long Beach police take reports on city-street crashes, not on most portions of the freeways. Crashes on the 710, the 405, the 91 and the 47 are usually investigated by the California Highway Patrol, and the CHP’s South Los Angeles Area lists Long Beach among the communities it serves. To get a CHP report, fill out form CHP 190 and submit it in person or by mail. For a crash on Ocean Boulevard, Pacific Coast Highway or another city street, LBPD’s Information Management Division at 400 West Broadway handles the request.

What if I did not take the ambulance from the crash scene?

If you declined the ambulance, your report may list the crash as non-injury even though you were hurt. It does not stop you from making an injury claim, but it gives the insurer something to argue about. See a doctor as soon as you can, describe every symptom, and keep the visit records. If your injuries were left off the report, a lawyer can gather the medical evidence that shows when your symptoms started and connect them to the crash.

How does Civil Code section 1431.2 affect a truck case with several companies?

Section 1431.2 makes each defendant’s liability for non-economic damages several only. Each company pays only its percentage share of damages such as pain, suffering and emotional distress tied to your injury. If a jury finds the carrier 60 percent responsible and an unnamed chassis company 40 percent responsible, that 40 percent of non-economic damages may be lost. Economic damages, such as medical bills and lost earnings, are not covered by that several-only rule. That is why we try to identify every party with a role in the crash before the case is filed, rather than suing only the driver.

Which courthouse handles a Long Beach truck accident lawsuit?

Los Angeles Superior Court Local Rule 2.3 requires an unlimited civil personal injury case to be filed in the judicial district where the incident arose. Long Beach falls in the South District, and the court’s local rules list the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse at 275 Magnolia Avenue in Long Beach for that district. Because district lines follow mapped boundaries, the court tells filers to use its online filing court locator to confirm the right courthouse for an exact crash address. Some cases against out-of-state carriers can also be moved to federal court, which is decided case by case.

How soon should I contact a lawyer after a truck crash near the port?

As early as you can, mainly because of evidence. Interstate carriers must keep hours-of-service records for at least six months, but dashcam footage and the truck’s engine data can be overwritten much sooner. Terminal gate records and container tracking data are kept by companies that have no reason to hold them for you. A preservation letter sent in the first days asks each company to keep that information. Speaking with a lawyer early also protects you from giving a recorded statement to the trucking insurer before you know the full extent of your injuries.

How much insurance does a semi truck have to carry after a Long Beach crash?

Federal rule 49 CFR 387.9 sets the minimum public liability coverage for for-hire carriers in interstate or foreign commerce. For a truck with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,001 pounds or more hauling ordinary freight, such as a container of consumer goods leaving a Long Beach terminal, the floor is $750,000. Oil and most hazardous materials raise it to $1,000,000. Certain bulk hazardous loads raise it to $5,000,000. Those figures are minimums, and the carrier may hold more. The chassis owner, the broker and the shipper may also have their own policies. Proof of coverage is usually a Form MCS-90 endorsement, issued in the exact name of the motor carrier and kept at its principal place of business. For-hire carriers also file insurance certificates with FMCSA, which can be matched to the USDOT number on the cab. A required minimum is not a measure of what any claim is worth.

Does a port truck in Long Beach have to be registered with the port?

Yes, if it enters a container terminal. Under the Clean Trucks Program run by the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles, every truck going into a marine terminal at the two ports must be listed on the Port Drayage Truck Registry. Trucks registering for the first time on or after October 1, 2018 had to be model year 2014 or newer. In an injury claim, the registry and a terminal’s gate records can link a specific tractor to a motor carrier and to the time it entered or left the terminal. That matters when the truck drove off after the crash, or when the driver says the trip belonged to a different company. These records sit with the ports, the terminals and the carriers, not with you, so a preservation request goes out early.

Who is responsible if a bad chassis caused a semi truck crash near the Long Beach port?

Federal rules split the duties. Before taking a container chassis onto the road, the driver must inspect the parts listed in 49 CFR 392.7(b), among them visible brake components, lights, tires, wheels, air lines, the king pin, locking pins and the sliders. A driver who pulls the chassis out is treated as having confirmed those parts were in good working order. A defect the driver could not readily see on a walk-around, such as hidden brake wear, may point toward the intermodal equipment provider, meaning the company that interchanges the chassis under a written agreement or is responsible for maintaining it. Under 49 CFR 390.40T, that provider has to systematically inspect, repair and maintain the chassis it offers for interchange and hand it over in safe and proper operating condition. Its inspection and repair records, and any driver reports of defects, become part of the evidence.

Do port truck drivers in Long Beach have to keep a logbook?

Many do not. Under 49 CFR 395.1(e)(1), a driver who stays within 150 air miles of the normal work reporting location and is released from work within 14 consecutive hours is exempt from the standard record of duty status. A run from a Long Beach terminal to a warehouse in Carson or Ontario sits well inside that radius. The exemption has conditions, though. The carrier must keep accurate time records for six months showing when the driver reported for duty, the total hours on duty each day and the time the driver was released. Put those records next to the terminal gate times and they can show whether a driver had already worked 13 hours when the crash happened. No logbook does not mean no evidence.

What safety rules apply to a semi truck driver on the 710 or the road to Terminal Island?

Truck drivers answer to stricter rules than car drivers. At the Heim lift bridge on State Route 47, Caltrans counts show trucks make up more than half of all traffic, so these rules come up often. Vehicle Code section 22406 limits any truck with three or more axles, or any truck tractor pulling another vehicle, to 55 miles per hour on a highway. Vehicle Code section 23152(d) sets the alcohol limit for a commercial motor vehicle driver at 0.04 percent, half the general limit. After a fatal crash, federal rule 49 CFR 382.303 requires the carrier to test a surviving driver for alcohol and drugs. The same applies when the driver is cited for a moving violation and someone was treated away from the scene or a vehicle was towed away with disabling damage. If no alcohol test happens within eight hours, the carrier must stop trying and keep a written record explaining why.

Is St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach a trauma center?

Yes. The Southern California chapter of the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma lists Saint Mary Medical Center as an adult Level II trauma center, and the Los Angeles County EMS Agency includes Dignity Health St. Mary Medical Center in its trauma center directory. The hospital is at 1050 Linden Avenue in Long Beach. The same chapter lists Harbor-UCLA Medical Center as adult Level I. Paramedics choose the destination using county criteria, so two people hurt in the same semi truck crash on the 710 can end up at different hospitals. Ask each hospital for the full chart. The trauma team’s notes and the first imaging record your injuries before an insurer has a chance to argue about them, and a discharge summary leaves most of that out.

About the Author

Michael Saeedian, Esq., Founding Attorney, Saeedian Law Group (California State Bar #265470). Michael founded Saeedian Law Group in 2009 and has spent more than 16 years representing injured Californians and their families in personal injury and wrongful death matters across the state. His practice includes truck accident cases throughout Los Angeles County.

Legal disclaimer: This page provides general information about California injury law and does not constitute legal advice. Every case is different; past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship with Saeedian Law Group. For advice specific to your situation, contact our office at (310) 288-3000 or schedule a free consultation.