Given the recent Supreme Court decision on broker liability for hiring unsafe carriers, I asked myself the question, “Can brokers be held liable for preventable underride deaths?”
Now, when I asked my son the question, he said, “I very specifically did not go to law school.” To which I replied, “But you are very wise.” And he countered with, “which is why I know better than to give legal advice.”
Likewise, I know better than to write a post trying to give legal advice. But what I can do is to try and get the attention of brokers and simply say: This is what’s going on. . . Trailer manufacturers have been successfully sued for preventable underride deaths. Trucking companies have been successfully sued for preventable underride deaths. Could brokers be the next ones on the hook for preventable underride deaths?
Could a plaintiff claim that a broker knew (or should have known) that choosing a carrier whose trucks were not equipped with adequate comprehensive underride protection was a known, unreasonable risk of catastrophic underride injuries and death?
Eric Hein, who lost his son Riley Hein in 2015 due to a side underride crash, has published an extensive cost benefit analysis of side underride, Cost-benefit analysis of side underride guards for new semitrailers in the United States (Journal of Progress in Safety & Security, May 15, 2026) — documenting the cost effectiveness of side underride guards. According to Hein, in The Cost of Inaction: Million-Dollar Side Underride Cases, side underride crashes of passenger vehicles have repeatedly resulted in multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements.
Here are some examples of publicly-reported successful underride lawsuits:
- Missouri — $462M verdict, two rear underride fatalities
- New Mexico — $42M verdict , fatality fire following side underride
- Iowa — $26.1M verdict, catastrophic injury roof sheared off
- Texas — $38.5M verdict, fatality side underride and catastrophic injuries
- Georgia — $13M verdict , catastrophic injury side underride
- Georgia — $32.5M settlement, fatality side underride
Side underride crashes also kill or seriously injure people walking and bicycling. They may be struck during a truck’s right turn, pulled under the trailer, or crushed by the semitrailer’s rear wheels. According to Hein, publicly reported cases include:
- Utah — $81M verdict , pedestrian fatality semitrailerright turn
- New Hampshire — $8.5M verdict , bicyclist fatality under semitrailer
- Illinois — $5.9M settlement , road worker fatality semitrailer right turn
- Minnesota — $2.47M verdict , bicyclist fatality semitrailer right turn
- Virginia — $11.5M settlement , bicyclist catastrophic injury under semitrailer
Hein further writes:
These hidden costs were not accounted for in NHTSA’s side underride cost-benefit analysis. They are not isolated incidents. They reflect a national pattern of catastrophic crashes, loss of life, and substantial legal exposure resulting from the absence of federal side underride protection requirements
Public verdicts and settlements understate litigation pressure. Many side underride cases end in confidential settlements, partial settlements, or quiet dismissals after payment. From 2019 to 2024, side-underride litigation likely involved dozens of lawsuits nationwide and roughly $100 million to $250 million.
A side underride guard plus aerodynamic skirt costs about $2,500 per trailer. A $30 million verdict would equip about 12,000 trailers with guards.
Side Underrride CBA Policy Brief
Side Underride Hidden Legal Costs
In reflecting on the recent SCOTUS decision, I was reminded of the advice which I heard in 2019 when I listened to a NTSB webinar, “Collision Avoidance Technologies – Why You Need Them in Your Trucks Today!” The presenter was Robert Maag, the VP of Operations for a small trucking company, Perfect Transportation. He had some wise advice for trucking companies related to investment in safety for a fleet:
Investment in the front end can be extremely minimal in proportion to
what could be at risk at the back end.
Then he asked, As a business owner or executive, what keeps you awake at night?
From his perspective, investing in fleet safety is business commonsense. I couldn’t have said it better myself: Investing in underride protection (front, side, & rear) is in the best interest of the trucking industry — including brokers — and an appropriate cost of doing business.
Closing thought. . . could the U.S. implement a safety rating system — like that which exists in the U.K., the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS)? This is a voluntary accreditation system which enables fleets to get recognition for taking action to set higher standards for safety, efficiency, environmental protection, and overall excellence in fleet operation. I talked to FORS representatives in 2016. I thought it then, and I still think it. . . maybe we should give it a try.
Let’s make truck crashes SURVIVABLE. Win/Win.
In case you’re interested, here’s the 2019 NTSB webinar presentation:
