Undefeated Texas Truck Accident Lawyers
With more than 20,000 large trucks and 18-wheelers in its fleet, J.B. Hunt is one of the largest freight carriers and trucking companies in the nation. Although its brand is known for hauling household goods and other freight across the United States each year, the company has more recently become notorious for its negligent employment practices — leaving truckers unpaid for all their hours worked and forcing them to drive longer hours than legally permitted to make a living.
As a result, deadly J.B. Hunt truck accidents have surged, with fatalities increasing by 63% from 2023 to 2024. In 2024 alone, fatal accidents involving J.B. Hunt trucks claimed 31 lives, compared to just 19 the year before, according to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reportable crash data.
Read on to learn about J.B. Hunt’s track record of preventable truck crashes and how our undefeated truck accident lawyers can protect your rights and secure the justice and compensation you deserve if you were harmed by an 18-wheeler.
What is J.B. Hunt?
Founded in 1961 in Lowell, Arkansas, J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. is one of the world’s largest transportation and logistics companies. Its U.S. fleet includes more than 145,000 trailers and shipping containers — including 24,025 large trucks, 18-wheelers, and other commercial motor vehicles and 24,043 truck drivers, per Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) data.
As the third-largest trucking firm in the U.S., J.B. Hunt services North America with major clients like Whirlpool and Walmart.
J.B. Hunt’s History of Safety Violations & Corporate Negligence
Over the last two years, at least 51 people have been killed and 519 injured in more than 1,620 collisions involving J.B. Hunt’s local and long haul truckers.
Although the FMCSA Safety Measurement System (SMS) ranks J.B Hunt’s safety performance as “satisfactory,” from January 2023 to 2025, its trucks and drivers racked up 7,663 violations for an array of reckless and careless behavior:
- 2, 692 unsafe driving violations, including speeding, distracted driving such as texting, or following too close (tailgating)
- 1,020 Hours of Service compliance violations, including numerous instances of drivers exceeding legal driving limits, driving while fatigued, and falsifying records
- 4,570 vehicle maintenance issues, including problems such as brake system defects, tire issues, and lighting deficiencies
- 157 driver fitness issues including drivers operating without a valid commercial driver’s license (CDL) and even 5 drug or alcohol violations
Beyond safety violations, J.B. Hunt has also faced increasing scrutiny for negligent employment practices, including class action lawsuits in California and Washington for failing to pay drivers for all hours worked, failing to give proper rest breaks, and more.
Common Causes of J.B. Hunt Truck Accidents
Like any truck or 18-wheeler crash, a J.B. Hunt commercial vehicle accident can occur for any number of reasons — reckless driving, speeding, distracted driving, and driver impairment, among other common causes.
However, it’s been our experience that J.B. Hunt’s business practices often create the unfortunate conditions that put both its drivers and the public at risk:
Driver Fatigue
Truck drivers are paid per mile—not per hour—meaning they often work far beyond safe limits to maximize their earnings, often resulting in fatigue-related crashes that are entirely preventable. J.B. Hunt’s wage structure and history of failing to pay drivers for hours not spent behind the wheel forces truckers to push themselves beyond safe limits, leading to exhaustion and impaired reaction times, increasing the risk of serious accidents.
Unrelenting Pressure & Unrealistic Timelines
J.B. Hunt prioritizes fast deliveries for major corporate clients, which increases the pressure on drivers to meet unrealistic schedules. Tight deadlines often result in excessive speeding, tailgating, and other aggressive driving behaviors as truckers race against the clock to avoid financial penalties or job consequences.
Unqualified & Inexperienced Drivers
Despite the enormous responsibility of operating an 80,000-pound vehicle, truck drivers today are younger, newer, and more unqualified than ever due to an ongoing nationwide driver shortage. This is exacerbated by high turnover rates in the industry, leading trucking companies such as J.B. Hunt to prioritize filling seats over ensuring drivers are properly prepared for the road.
Unsafe Maintenance Practices
When a company prioritizes profit over proper fleet maintenance, truckers are often left driving unsafe vehicles—jeopardizing both their lives and the lives of others on the road. As J.B. Hunt’s track record of vehicle maintenance violations proves, their corporate model often prioritizes efficiency and cost-cutting at the expense of safety, the result is often entirely preventable crashes, injuries, and fatalities.
What Should I Do After an Accident with a J.B. Hunt Truck Driver?
If you or a loved one were hurt in a J.B. Hunt truck accident, you must act quickly.
From the moment of impact, a trucking corporation and its team of high-power attorneys and insurance adjusters will pour their resources into achieving one goal: saving money by paying you and you and your family as little as possible. They will stop at nothing to downplay your injuries, question your credibility, and shift the blame onto you — all to prioritize and protect their bottom line.
Protect your rights by following these steps:
- Call 911 Immediately: Report the accident and request medical assistance. A police report can serve as crucial evidence. Stick to the facts and avoid speculating about fault.
- Seek Medical Attention: Even if you feel fine, get checked by a doctor. Some injuries take time to appear, and early documentation strengthens your claim.
- Document the Scene: If safe, take photos of vehicle damage, road conditions, and skid marks. Get the truck driver’s information and contact details for any witnesses.
- Do Not Communicate with J.B. Hunt or Its Insurers: Insurance adjusters are not on your side. Do not give recorded statements or sign anything without consulting an attorney.
- Preserve Evidence: Trucking companies may attempt to destroy or hide evidence. Keep copies of the police report, medical records, and any dashcam footage if available.
- Stay Off Social Media: Do not discuss the accident or your injuries online. Anything you post could be used to weaken your case.
Most importantly, contact an experienced truck accident attorney as soon as possible. While many law firms claim to be “truck accident lawyers,” very few have the resources and experience to take a trucking company to trial. Fewer still know how to combat the endless tricks and tactics a trucking company’s lawyers will use to avoid responsibility.
And only the best can recover the full justice and compensation your family deserves.
Don’t trust your future with anyone but the best. Contact us today — 1-888-603-3636.
What Truck Accident Cases Does Zehl & Associates Handle?
Our undefeated truck accident lawyers have successfully represented clients in all types of commercial truck crashes, including:
- Jackknife Accidents: When a truck’s trailer swings out at a 90-degree angle, often leading to multi-vehicle crashes
- Underride Collisions: When a smaller vehicle slides underneath the rear or side of a large truck, often due to insufficient safety guards or a truck’s failure to properly signal.
- Truck Rollovers: Frequently caused by excessive speed, improper loading, or hazardous road conditions
- Tire Blowouts: Sudden loss of control due to defective or worn-out tires
- Rear-End Collisions: Often the result of distracted, fatigued, or speeding truck drivers
- Head-On Collisions: Some of the most devastating crashes, usually caused by reckless driving or driver impairment
- No-Zone & Blind Spot Accidents: When truckers fail to check their massive blind spots before merging or turning
Due to the size and weight of 18-wheelers — nearly 20 times that of a car when fully-loaded — these crashes often cause severe, life-altering injuries. Tragically, it is often those in the passenger vehicle that often bear the brunt of the impact. Our team works from day one to make sure our clients receive the top medical treatment available for their injuries. We have experience representing victims with:
- Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)
- Burn Injuries
- Spinal Cord Injuries & Paralysis
- Broken Bones
- Wrongful Death
Victims of truck accidents often face overwhelming medical expenses, lost wages, and the need for long-term care. At Zehl & Associates, we take the time to truly get to know our clients—understanding what their life was like before the accident and what they loved to do—so we can fight to secure the maximum compensation for ALL of their damages, pain and suffering, and financial losses.
Our goal is to make sure that they never have to worry again.
Our Undefeated Truck Accident Lawyers Know How to Win — We Can Win For You Too
When you hire Zehl & Associates, you’re hiring a firm with a proven record of Billions won and the resources to take on the largest trucking companies in the country and not only win — but set records.
Just recently, our undefeated truck accident lawyers filed suit against J.B. Hunt on behalf of a family who lost their loved one in a fatal crash on Interstate 35 (I-35) in Troy, Texas. Footage from a driver-facing camera showed the J.B. Hunt driver texting just moments before impact—engaging in entirely reckless, preventable behavior that cost an innocent life.
We are relentless in holding trucking companies accountable and will do whatever it takes to secure a record-setting victory for our clients by:
- Uncovering the Evidence They Don’t Want You to See: Obtaining cell phone records, driver logs, and internal company data to prove the driver was distracted.
- Never Settling for Less: We reject any offer that doesn’t fully compensate our clients for all their injuries and losses, or the company will face us in the courtroom, where we remain undefeated.
- Forcing Industry Change: Our undefeated trial record not only ensures maximum compensation for our clients, but also compels trucking companies to change unsafe practices—making the roads safer for everyone.
Trucking companies know they have two choices when they face us: pay our clients every penny they deserve or go to trial against a firm that has never lost. As a result, we have repeatedly recovered the largest record-breaking verdicts and settlements in trucking industry history.
But our success isn’t just about winning cases—it’s about making roads safer for families in Texas and across the U.S.
“We’re hoping to create real change in the industry,” says trial attorney Matt Greenberg. Watch his full interview with 25 ABC News Central Texas to learn more about our case against J.B. Hunt and how we’re fighting for safer highways.
Contact our Undefeated Truck Accident Lawyers for a Free Consultation at 1-888-603-3636
With Billions won, including the #1 largest truck accidents and verdicts in our opponents’ corporate histories and the #1 largest truck accident settlement in Texas, our Undefeated Truck Accident Lawyers don’t just win for our clients and their families – we set records.
If you or a loved one were injured or tragically killed in an J.B. Hunt truck accident, call 1-888-603-3636, use the chat form on our website, or send us a confidential email through our Contact Us page.
All consultations are free, and you won’t pay us a dollar unless we win your case.