Olive Branch Truck Driver Injury Lawyer
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC represents injured workers and accident victims in Olive Branch, throughout DeSoto County, and across Mississippi and South Louisiana, and truck drivers hurt on the job are a core part of that work. If you are looking for an Olive Branch truck driver injury lawyer, you are probably dealing with two problems at once: a body that no longer works the way it did, and a paycheck that stopped or is about to.
Olive Branch sits at the center of a freight corridor. Warehouses, distribution centers, and the interstate and highway network around DeSoto County keep drivers moving all day and night, and that volume produces wrecks, loading dock injuries, back injuries from hours behind the wheel, and falls climbing in and out of cabs and trailers. Drivers also tend to get hurt far from home, which creates questions an ordinary desk-job claim never raises: which state’s comp law applies, who is actually your employer, and whether someone other than your employer caused the crash.
Those questions matter because the answers decide what benefits you can claim and who you can claim them from. A driver who is paid as an independent contractor on paper may still qualify as an employee under the law. A driver hit by a negligent motorist may have both a comp claim and a separate injury claim. Sorting that out early is far easier than untangling it after an insurer has already built its version of events.
Why Choose Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe for a Trucking Injury Claim
Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe PLLC is a workers’ compensation firm that represents injured workers throughout Mississippi and Louisiana, including Olive Branch, Southaven, Hernando, and the rest of DeSoto County. Most lawyers who take comp cases are personal injury attorneys who handle a work injury only when one walks in. This firm was built the other way around, with workers’ compensation at the center of the practice. The firm’s attorneys bring over 75 years of combined experience and have recovered more than $100 million in settlements for clients. Consultations are free, the firm advances the costs of the case, and you owe no fee unless benefits or a settlement are recovered. Phones are answered 24 hours a day, and Spanish-speaking clients can work with the team in their own language.
The people behind that record matter. Rob Lunsford, Founding Partner, has spent his entire legal career representing injured workers. Partners Brad Baskin and Jennifer Priebe have been recognized by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and The National Trial Lawyers, and the firm was ranked by Best Law Firms in 2026 for Workers’ Compensation Law, Claimants, in Jackson. Andrew Rueff has successfully tried dozens of jury and bench trials to verdict and regularly appears before the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. Keaton Belk and Erin Heimlicher round out the attorney team.
Results in cases that look like a trucker’s claim tell you more than adjectives do. The firm secured $385,000 for a project manager with back injuries after he was struck in his work vehicle, and $600,000 for a construction worker with a complex back injury. A $190,000 settlement went to a truck driver who injured his lower back in a wreck on the job, and $150,000 to a truck driver with a meniscus tear. Clients consistently describe the same thing in their reviews: attorneys who listen, explain each step, and stay in the fight with the insurance company.
Injuries and Claim Types Common to Truck Drivers
- Back, Neck, and Spine Injuries: Long hours seated, hard braking, and jarring impacts wear down and injure lumbar and cervical discs. Insurers frequently blame degenerative disc disease, so the medical evidence connecting the job or a specific incident to the injury is the heart of these claims.
- Highway Collisions in a Work Truck: A crash while on the clock is a comp claim, and if another driver caused it, you may also have a personal injury claim against that driver. The two claims have to be handled so one does not undercut the other.
- Knee and Shoulder Tears: Meniscus tears, rotator cuff tears, and SLAP tears come from climbing down from cabs, wrestling straps and tarps, and cranking landing gear. Employers sometimes call these old sports injuries.
- Falls From Cabs, Trailers, and Docks: Slick steps, icy catwalks, and uneven dock plates produce fractures of the ankles, feet, hips, and wrists that can mean specialist care and surgery.
- Loading and Unloading Injuries: Warehouses around Olive Branch put drivers in the middle of forklift traffic, pallet jacks, and shifting freight, which is a common source of crush and strain injuries.
- Independent Contractor Misclassification: Carriers often label drivers as contractors to avoid coverage. Whether you are truly an employee depends on how much control the company has over your work, not on what the paperwork says.
- Out-of-State Injuries: Drivers get hurt in other states and sometimes in Louisiana or Mississippi on the same run. Which state’s comp system governs depends on where you were hired, where you are based, and where the injury happened.
- Wrongful Death: When a trucking crash or workplace accident takes a life, surviving family members may have both comp death benefits and a separate wrongful death claim.
What to Do After a Trucking Injury, and Where Your Claim Goes
Get medical care first, and tell every provider the injury happened at work and how. Then report it to your employer, preferably in writing. Under Mississippi law you must report within 30 days of the accident, and Louisiana uses the same 30-day reporting window. Do not wait to see whether the pain fades. A late report is one of the easiest ways for an insurer to deny a claim that is otherwise solid.
If you are hurt in a crash, document everything you can: photos of the scene, the other driver’s information, the police report, your dispatch records, your logbook or electronic logging data, and names of any witnesses. Save text messages with your dispatcher. If the truck or trailer is still in service, ask in writing that the company preserve the data and camera footage, because those records can disappear on a routine schedule.
Reporting is not the same as filing. In Mississippi, if no disability benefits have been paid within two years of the injury, your right to benefits is barred unless you file a claim with the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission within that time. In Louisiana, a formal claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident, though that can extend to three years from the last payment if benefits were paid. These deadlines come with exceptions, which is exactly why talking to an attorney early is smart.
Mississippi comp claims are not heard in a regular courthouse. A claim goes first to an evidentiary hearing before an Administrative Judge, and either side can ask the Full Commission to review that decision on the existing record, which is not a new trial. A final Commission award can then be appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court within 30 days, and the Supreme Court may assign the case to the Mississippi Court of Appeals. In Louisiana, claims go before a workers’ compensation judge at the Office of Workers’ Compensation Administration, and the worker chooses among certain parishes for the hearing, including where the injury occurred. A judgment can be appealed to the appropriate Louisiana court of appeal, generally within 30 days if you want the appeal to suspend the judgment.
Be careful with the recorded statement the adjuster will ask for, with social media posts that could be read as contradicting your injury, and with any push to return to work before your doctor releases you. Do not sign a release or settlement paper you have not had reviewed.
Wage Benefits, Medical Care, and Third-Party Claims for Drivers
In Mississippi, coverage begins on your first day of employment, with no waiting period. Temporary and permanent total disability benefits pay two-thirds of your average weekly wage, subject to a statutory weekly maximum, and generally cannot run past 450 weeks. Permanent partial disability in most other cases is also capped at 450 weeks. Medical treatment that is reasonable and necessary is covered on top of wage benefits.
Louisiana also pays two-thirds of wages up to an annual maximum set by the date of the accident. If you can return to work but only at lower pay, supplemental earnings benefits may make up part of the difference, paid at two-thirds of the gap when you cannot earn at least 90 percent of your pre-injury wages. Those benefits can continue until you are released to full duty, are earning your old wages, or reach the 520-week limit. If an insurer denies a treatment request in Louisiana, the clock is short: a Form 1009 dispute must be filed within 15 calendar days of the written denial.
Driver cases often have a second track. If a negligent driver or a contractor’s unsafe site caused your injury, you can pursue that party in a personal injury claim, in addition to comp. Fault rules differ by state. Mississippi reduces a recovery by your share of fault rather than barring it. Louisiana now bars recovery if you are found 51 percent or more at fault for causes of action arising on or after the start of 2026, so how liability is framed early on can decide the whole claim. Louisiana’s period to sue in most injury cases is two years for injuries after July 1, 2024, and Mississippi generally allows three years for most negligence claims. The firm’s personal injury attorneys work alongside the comp team so both claims move together.
Questions Truck Drivers Ask About Injury Claims
Do I need a lawyer for a trucking injury claim?
Not every claim needs one, but if benefits are denied, delayed, reduced, or cut off, or if you will be out of work for a long time, a lawyer changes the picture. The insurer has adjusters and attorneys protecting its side, and drivers with jurisdiction or classification issues especially need someone protecting theirs.
How much does it cost to hire Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe?
Nothing up front. Consultations are free, the firm advances case costs, and fees are collected only if benefits or a settlement are recovered. Attorney fees in workers’ compensation cases are also limited and approved under state law.
How long do I have to report and file?
Report to your employer right away and within 30 days at the latest. In Mississippi, you generally have two years to file with the Commission. In Louisiana, a claim generally must be filed within one year of the accident, with an extension possible when benefits have been paid. Exceptions exist, so do not rely on the calendar alone.
My company says I am an independent contractor. Can I still get comp?
Possibly. The label in a contract is not the final word. What matters is how the relationship actually works, including who controls your routes, schedule, equipment, and pay. Many drivers treated as contractors turn out to be employees entitled to coverage.
Which state’s workers’ compensation law applies if I was hurt on the road?
It can depend on where you were hired, where your job is based, and where the injury occurred. A driver can sometimes choose between systems, and the choice can affect benefits. Bring your hiring paperwork and trip records to your consultation.
What if the wreck was caused by another driver?
You can generally claim comp from your employer’s insurer regardless of fault, and also pursue the at-fault driver for losses comp does not cover. The comp insurer may have a right to be repaid from that recovery, so the two claims must be coordinated.
Can my employer fire me for filing a claim?
Both Mississippi and Louisiana protect workers from retaliation for filing a comp claim. If you were let go, cut from the schedule, or disciplined after reporting an injury, tell your attorney.
The insurer says my back problem is pre-existing. Is my claim over?
No. If your work caused, worsened, or accelerated the condition, benefits may still be owed. Years of driving, lifting, and vibration can aggravate a spine that already had wear, and strong medical opinions are how that argument gets answered.
Will my health insurance cover treatment while the comp claim is pending?
Comp is supposed to pay for work-related treatment, and health plans often resist covering injuries that belong under comp. If the insurer is denying care, talk to your attorney before shifting everything to your own plan, since billing the wrong payer can create problems later.
Can I lose my CDL or my job if I cannot pass a medical card exam?
An injury can affect your ability to meet certification standards for commercial driving. That is a real concern for drivers, and it is part of why vocational issues and the value of permanent restrictions matter in negotiating any settlement.
What if my claim was already denied?
A denial is a starting point, not a final answer. Denied claims can be taken before the Commission in Mississippi or a workers’ compensation judge in Louisiana, and appealed further if needed. Deadlines for disputing a denial can be short, particularly for Louisiana treatment disputes, so call quickly.
Serving Truck Drivers From Olive Branch Across the Region
From Olive Branch, our team represents injured drivers and warehouse workers throughout DeSoto County, including Southaven, Hernando, Horn Lake, Walls, and Nesbit. We also serve clients in neighboring communities across north Mississippi, and throughout the state, from Jackson and Madison to Hattiesburg, the Gulf Coast, and the Delta. Because trucking work crosses state lines, the firm’s reach extends into Louisiana as well, covering New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Shreveport, and the rest of South Louisiana and north Louisiana. Wherever the wreck or injury happened, the case can be evaluated and pursued.
Talk With an Olive Branch Truck Driver Injury Attorney
If you were hurt behind the wheel, on a dock, or climbing out of a cab, an Olive Branch truck driver injury attorney at Lunsford, Baskin & Priebe can review what happened, explain which benefits and claims are available, and deal with the employer and insurer so you can focus on recovering. Calls are answered around the clock, the consultation is free, and you pay no fee unless the firm recovers benefits for you. Call today and tell us what happened.
