$95,000 Settlement After Company Truck and Trailer Turned Left Into Midland Driver

Case at a Glance

How the Crash Happened

At approximately 7:40 a.m. on October 30, 2024, our client was driving north on FM 1788 near Midland in dark conditions.

1. The other driver was operating a company vehicle towing a trailer. That driver attempted to make a left turn from the center turn lane, crossing into the client’s northbound path.
2. The crash investigation found that stopped traffic blocked the turning driver’s view of oncoming traffic. The driver proceeded with the turn anyway. The investigating officer found that the driver failed to yield.
3. The client’s vehicle struck the side of the turning vehicle. The trailer rolled over and then struck the front of the client’s vehicle.

Why the Company Driver Was at Fault

The important issue was not simply that the company driver made a left turn. The issue was that the driver turned when the driver could not see whether northbound traffic was clear.

A driver attempting to turn left across an active roadway must yield to oncoming traffic. If stopped traffic prevents the driver from seeing whether the path is clear, the driver must wait until the turn can be completed safely.

The officer’s finding that the driver failed to yield documented the central liability issue in the case.

Left turns across oncoming traffic produced 40,149 reported Texas crashes in 2025, and their serious crash rate, 38.1 per 1,000, ran more than double the rear end figure of 17.3. The firm’s Texas Left Turn Crash Index breaks that pattern down by county, highway, signal type, and posted speed limit.

Company Truck Crashes in Midland

Midland and Odessa are major commercial and industrial traffic areas. Drivers regularly share roads with work pickups, service vehicles, trailers, equipment haulers, and other company operated vehicles.

A collision involving a company vehicle can require attention to more than the crash itself. The issues may include the driver’s work role, the company’s connection to the vehicle, commercial insurance coverage, trailer involvement, available scene evidence, and the medical record.

In this case, the work vehicle was connected to RainRock Services, LLC. The company’s business auto insurer handled the claim.

EMS Response at the Scene

EMS found the client alert with a normal Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15. He reported head and foot pain and walked with assistance to the stretcher.

EMS documented that he was wearing a seatbelt and that the airbags did not deploy.

The medical records differed on loss of consciousness. Emergency triage stated that the client was unsure whether he had lost consciousness. An emergency provider later documented a brief loss of consciousness lasting a couple of seconds.

Those differences became relevant when the insurer later evaluated the head injury portion of the claim. The complete record had to be addressed directly, rather than relying on one entry in isolation.

Same Day Emergency Treatment

The client was evaluated at Midland Memorial Hospital on the day of the collision. He reported forehead and facial pain, right foot pain, left wrist pain, and lower back pain.

CT studies of the head, face, and neck, along with X rays of the lower back and right foot, did not identify an acute fracture. The CT documented scalp soft tissue swelling, and the foot X ray showed a heel spur without fracture.

The emergency discharge diagnoses included facial contusion, left distal radius fracture, lumbar strain, and right foot sprain.

The wrist records required careful review. The emergency physician assistant interpreted the wrist X ray as a distal radius fracture and applied a splint. The radiologist’s official report on the same imaging found no fracture and described soft tissue swelling.

Medical Treatment After the Crash

The client later treated at Specialty Care Clinics from November 2024 through February 2025.

At the first visit, he reported pain in the neck, both shoulders and arms, head, and left hand. The provider documented cervical and lumbar radiculopathy with sciatica and strains of the neck, mid back, and low back.

The treatment plan included medication, further wrist evaluation, and referral for a neurological assessment because of suspected traumatic brain injury.

The client also underwent chiropractic treatment from approximately late November 2024 through March 2025. Those records listed neck and low back radiculitis, sprain and strain, and muscle spasm; care included adjustments and related modalities.

Wrist Treatment and Injections

The left wrist led to several follow up visits, immobilization, imaging, and injection treatment.

A November in office X ray was interpreted as a possible radius fracture. The client was placed in a short arm cast, and the record noted fracture manipulation.

At a later visit, the cast was removed and a thumb spica brace was fitted.

A wrist CT did not identify a fracture. It did identify a ganglion cyst, mild chronic arthritis at the base of the thumb, and a bone spur at the wrist.

After the CT was reviewed, the diagnosis changed to de Quervain’s tenosynovitis and a ganglion cyst. The client received two wrist steroid injections.

At the final orthopedic follow up, the client reported improvement and was released with follow up as needed.

Headache and Concussion Evaluation

The client later underwent neurological evaluation after reporting daily headaches, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, and mild depression.

The provider documented normal strength and intact recent memory. The record included diagnoses of traumatic brain injury, post concussive syndrome, migraine, and insomnia. Medication was prescribed, and a brain MRI was ordered.

The brain MRI did not show bleeding, bruising, diffuse axonal injury, or other acute traumatic brain findings. It showed normal white matter along with non traumatic findings.

A later eye tracking test and concussion questionnaire were reported as abnormal and consistent with post concussion syndrome. The testing materials listed brain injury and cognitive impairment as conditions to rule out, rather than confirmed diagnoses.

The neurology documentation also contained differing entries: the patient history recorded headaches and memory concerns, while another portion of the record reflected denials of those same symptoms.

What the Imaging Showed

The records also listed radiculopathy or radiculitis during pain management and chiropractic treatment. The medical materials reviewed did not include a spine MRI or nerve conduction study, and the neurology examination documented normal strength.

Documented Recovery

The client’s final wrist follow up reflected reduced pain and release from orthopedic care, with follow up as needed.

Chiropractic care was the final documented treatment in the medical record reviewed and ended around March 2025.

The reviewed materials did not identify a future care recommendation.

A complete account of the case includes the symptoms and treatment following the crash, as well as the improvement and release reflected in later records.

How the Insurer Challenged the Claim

The company’s commercial insurer did not initially accept the policy limits demand. It disputed aspects of the head injury and wrist fracture allegations.

The insurer pointed to the differing records regarding loss of consciousness, normal brain imaging, and the lack of a confirmed wrist fracture on the radiologist’s report and later imaging.

Those were issues that required a complete, accurate explanation, not avoidance. The claim focused on the commercial driver’s documented failure to yield, the trailer rollover impact, the post crash symptoms, the care actually provided, the testing performed, and the medical course shown in the records.

$95,000 Settlement Before Lawsuit

The claim resolved before a lawsuit was filed for:

The resolution reflected the full record: a commercial driver turning left with a blocked view, a trailer rollover impact, emergency response and treatment, orthopedic and pain management care, wrist immobilization and injections, neurological evaluation, chiropractic treatment, and the issues that required direct treatment in negotiations.

What This Midland Crash Case Shows

A commercial vehicle crash is not evaluated solely by the first emergency room diagnosis or an insurer’s first response.

Here, the police investigation identified the central liability issue: a company driver turned left across oncoming traffic when stopped vehicles blocked the driver’s view. The officer found that the driver failed to yield.

The medical record documented emergency evaluation, follow up treatment, wrist care, injections, neurological evaluation, medication, and chiropractic treatment. It also included issues that required candor: later imaging did not confirm a wrist fracture; brain imaging did not show acute traumatic injury; and different records described loss of consciousness and airbag deployment differently.

Those details did not prevent a pre litigation resolution. They made it necessary to present the case accurately, distinguish preliminary impressions from confirmed findings, and explain the full medical course without overstating the evidence.

Attorney Case Review

The liability evidence was significant because the investigation identified the turning driver’s failure to yield. Stopped traffic blocked the driver’s view, but the company vehicle entered the path of oncoming traffic while towing a trailer.

The damages presentation required the same level of care. The records documented emergency evaluation, facial and soft tissue complaints, back symptoms, wrist treatment, orthopedic care, medication, injections, neurological evaluation, and chiropractic treatment.

The records also had weaknesses that needed to be addressed honestly. No wrist fracture was confirmed by the radiologist, follow up X rays, or CT. Brain imaging did not identify acute traumatic injury, and the documentation varied regarding loss of consciousness and airbag deployment.

The claim resolved before litigation for $95,000 because the case was presented as the complete record, not as a simplified or overstated version of it.

Identifying information has been withheld to protect client privacy. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts, injuries, evidence, insurance coverage, and applicable law.

Reviewed by: Josh Alexander, Founder and Managing Attorney

Published: September 27, 2026
Last reviewed: September 27, 2026

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