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Who Pays After a Semi-Truck Crash in Santa Barbara?

By Renee Nordstrand on December 30, 2025

A blue semi-truck drives down a California highway on a clear day, representing commercial trucking liability and accident claims in Santa Barbara.

If you have been injured in a semi-truck accident, it is important to find the right attorney to file your claim. These cases may involve complicated technical issues, and more than one party could share liability for your injuries.

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Effective Accident Reconstructions After a Truck Crash in Santa Barbara

By Renee Nordstrand on November 5, 2025

A large white semi-truck has collided with a gray SUV at an intersection, causing severe rear-end damage to the smaller vehicle. Debris is scattered across the road. The image represents the aftermath of a truck crash in Santa Barbara and underscores the importance of professional accident reconstruction, including scene analysis, data recovery, and expert evaluation to determine liability and support injury claims.

If you were injured in a semi-truck accident, it is important to act fast and call a lawyer right away. Trucking firms and their insurance companies often move quickly to protect their own interests. Your attorney can take active measures to prevent evidence from being lost or destroyed.

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AI in the Trucking Industry: Reducing Accidents or Complicating Liability?

By Renee Nordstrand on July 15, 2025

Three large semi-trucks parked side by side in a lot, shown from the front with different colored cabs. The image relates to how AI and automation in commercial trucking may reduce accidents or complicate liability in California trucking accident claims.

Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize transportation, and the trucking industry is embracing the shift with unprecedented speed.

Technologies such as automated emergency braking, driver fatigue monitoring, and real-time data tracking are no longer futuristic concepts. These are now actively being deployed on California highways.

Such innovations aim to make roads safer, but they also raise difficult questions about AI trucking accident liability in California.

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Big-Rig Truck Braking Protocols That Keep Civilians Safe

By Renee Nordstrand on May 20, 2024

Mastering truck braking techniques is crucial to preventing brake failure in semi-trucks. A fully loaded big rig truck weighs up to 30 tons, and it becomes a deadly hazard when the driver is unable to stop it, especially while traveling downhill. This is part of why brake failure is a leading cause of catastrophic truck accidents on the road.

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How Truck Weigh Stations Prevent Accidents

By Renee Nordstrand on March 30, 2021

a deserted semi-truck weigh station

As a California driver, you have likely seen the many weigh stations that line our major highways, including those here in Santa Barbara County. And what gets weighed? Vehicles that weigh more than 10,000 lbs. These weigh stations exist to ensure that large commercial trucks and trailers meet all California and federal safety standards and to ensure these vehicles are not overloaded.

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Black Box Investigations: Getting the Most Out of Your Claim

By Renee Nordstrand on January 11, 2021

lots of semi-trucks parked in a row

Most people have heard of black boxes in the context of planes. However, many don’t know that modern cars and trucks have black boxes as well. These black boxes record key data, which can be used in the course of a truck accident claim to help victims get the compensation they deserve. The team at NordstrandBlack PC has personally investigated numerous truck accidents, including a recent one where we worked with investigators to secure a truck’s black box data. We understand first-hand how important these devices are to accident victims and know how to quickly gain access to them to help our clients recover full compensation after a truck accident.

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That Amazon Delivery May Turn Deadly

By Renee Nordstrand on August 19, 2020

bright yellow Amazon delivery truck and boxes

Americans love convenience, particularly in these unusual times. Online shopping and front-door deliveries have skyrocketed in recent months. Amazon is ahead of the curve with its promise of speedy delivery. That convenience for consumers comes at a cost, as more Amazon delivery trucks and vans can be seen on the roadways, and these vehicles are involved in more serious accidents.

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Trucking Company Negligence Can Kill

By Renee Nordstrand on September 14, 2019

semi-truck dropping off cargo at a business

In June 2019, a group of 22 bikers on their way to a charity event in New Hampshire were struck by a pickup truck driver hauling a large trailer. This man was a professional driver working for a company named Westfield Transport, based in Springfield. Seven of the bikers, members of the Marine JarHeads MC, were killed. Many others were catastrophically injured by the truck accident.

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Truck Drivers Aren’t Always Responsible for Causing Accidents

By Renee Nordstrand on July 19, 2019

the interior cab of a semi-truck

Big rigs are the heaviest vehicles on the roads around Santa Barbara. The 101 sees thousands of commercial trucks travel up the coast every day. When they crash into smaller cars, they cause serious injuries to the occupants inside. At our Southern California law firm of NordstrandBlack PC, we handle many personal injury cases that involve negligent truck drivers. But sometimes, the truck driver is only partially to blame. Here are ways that other parties can be involved in these collisions and why they can be held liable to the victims.

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Unsafe Lane Changes and Truck Accidents

By Renee Nordstrand on June 7, 2017

parked red semi with sunset in the background

Unsafe lane changes are among the most dangerous and common ways motorists end up colliding with a large truck in California. Many people see large trucks with their drivers high up and assume the truck driver must have a great view of the road. While the elevation does tend to give a truck driver excellent perception in front of a truck, in reality there are several large blind spots truckers also have to deal with. Knowing these blind spots and avoiding them can keep you from a potentially deadly collision.

While truck drivers should always be aware of their environments and know if a vehicle is beside them, this may not always be the case. All too often, situations on a road may force a truck driver to suddenly change lanes, and anyone in the truck’s blind spots can be in peril.

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