Garbage trucks work where vehicles shouldn’t — reversing on residential streets, stopping mid-block, operating at dawn with workers hanging off the back. When they hit someone, the first legal question isn’t fault; it’s ownership: a City sanitation truck triggers the six-month government notice rule, while a private hauler litigates like any commercial carrier.
- The ownership fork: municipal trucks mean notice deadlines, immunity rules, and caps (the framework our SEPTA page explains for transit); private haulers mean FMCSA-style commercial defense and ordinary deadlines. Photograph the truck’s markings — they’re the answer.
- The crash patterns: backing collisions and blind-zone pedestrian strikes, mid-block stops causing rear-end chains, wide turns, and falling debris — plus sanitation workers themselves injured by passing drivers, a work-injury dual-track scenario.
- The evidence: route logs, onboard cameras (increasingly standard), and reverse-alarm maintenance records.
Frequently Asked Questions
It was a City truck. How fast do I really need to act?
Treat six months as the working deadline for written notice — the single most missed deadline in municipal-vehicle cases. Call before researching.
The truck was backing up with no spotter. Does that matter?
Substantially — backing procedures and spotter policies exist precisely because of the blind zones, and skipped procedures are negligence evidence.
What does hiring you cost?
No attorney’s fee unless we recover; the contingency percentage and cost handling are in the written fee agreement. Consultations are free.
Hurt in a crash like this? Call (215) 464-4600 or contact us online — free, confidential consultations, contingency-fee representation.