Boca Raton Jackknife Accident Lawyer
A 70-Foot Trailer Across Multiple Lanes. Someone Is Responsible.

Jackknife Accidents in Boca Raton — Driver Error & Mechanical Failures Create Clear Liability

A jackknife occurs when a truck driver applies brakes unevenly or too aggressively, causing the drive axle brakes to lock while the trailer continues forward — pivoting the trailer around the fifth wheel until it swings outward at a 90° angle. On I-95 through Boca Raton, a jackknifed trailer can span two to three lanes of traffic instantly, striking every vehicle in its path with the force of a 30,000-lb. steel wall sweeping laterally at highway speed.

Jackknife crashes have two primary causes, both of which create direct carrier liability. The first is driver error: improper braking technique, excessive speed in wet conditions, overloading, and sudden steering inputs that destabilize an articulated vehicle. The second is mechanical failure: brake system defects, out-of-adjustment brakes, worn brake shoes, and air system failures that cause uneven braking force across axles. Both causes are preventable — and both are the subject of FMCSA regulations that carriers are required to enforce.

Modern commercial trucks are equipped with Anti-Lock Braking Systems (ABS) that are designed to prevent jackknife by modulating brake pressure automatically. When a jackknife occurs on a truck equipped with ABS, our attorneys investigate whether the system was functioning, was properly maintained, or was deliberately disabled — each scenario pointing to a separate basis for carrier liability.