Our New Study Finds Nearly 1 in 4 Fatal Crashes in Nebraska Involves a Large Truck

Our New Study Finds Nearly 1 in 4 Fatal Crashes in Nebraska Involves a Large Truck

Nearly 1 in 4 fatal crashes in Nebraska involves a large truck, the highest share in the country. North Dakota trails by less than a tenth of a percentage point, and fatal truck crashes there rose 27.78% between 2020 and 2024.

Those are the headline results of our November 2026 report, the latest installment in our ongoing truck safety research series. In our first study, we identified the states with the heaviest truck traffic and highest accident risk. This time, we followed that risk to its deadliest outcome and asked a harder question. In which states are trucks most commonly involved in the crashes that actually take lives?

These findings matter well beyond the trucking industry. More than 3.5 million Americans now work as commercial truck drivers, and every passenger car, motorcycle, and pedestrian on the road shares space with them. As truck accident lawyers who represent crash victims, truck drivers, and grieving families across the Midwest, we keep digging into this data because the same states keep showing up.

How We Measured Truck Involvement in Fatal Crashes

For this second study in our series, our research team examined all 50 US states using five years of federal crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), a census of every fatal motor vehicle crash on public roads in the United States. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also publishes state-level counts of fatal crashes involving large trucks built on the same federal data.

Our central measure is the five-year large-truck crash share. We took each state's fatal crashes involving large trucks from 2020 to 2024 and divided that number by all fatal motor vehicle crashes in the state over the same period. States were ranked by that percentage.

We also recorded the following for each state:

• How many people were killed in fatal crashes involving large trucks
• How the number of fatal truck crashes changed between 2020 and 2024
• What commercial truck drivers typically pay for insurance in each state, based on average national premium rates by state

Ranking by share rather than raw totals keeps large states from dominating the list simply because they have more roads and more drivers. Where our first study showed where truck traffic creates the most risk, this measure shows where that risk most often turns deadly. For a truck accident attorney, it is also a useful signal of where commercial truck accident claims are most likely to involve catastrophic injuries or loss of life.

The 10 States With the Highest Large-Truck Share of Fatal Crashes

Here's a look at the top 10 states with the worst truck crash records:

State	Fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes 2020-2024	Total Fatal Crashes Involving Large Trucks 2020-2024	5-Year Large-Truck Crash Share (%)	2020–2024 Truck Crash Change (%)	People Killed in Large-Truck Crashes, 2020–2024	Average Annual Truck Insurance | National Premium
Nebraska	1,052	247	23.48%	8.16%	292	$8,664
North Dakota	457	107	23.41%	27.78%	115	$9,206
Wyoming	557	121	21.72%	-13.04%	137	$7,149
Iowa	1,598	313	19.59%	-18.75%	352	$8,866
Idaho	1,089	204	18.73%	-2.27%	242	$9,008
Kansas	1,793	335	18.68%	-6.45%	386	$10,160
South Dakota	646	119	18.42%	36.36%	135	$9,013
New Mexico	1,996	365	18.29%	63.04%	413	$9,738
Utah	1,351	237	17.54%	13.89%	270	$11,110
Texas	19,209	3,263	16.99%	13.91%	3,712	$14,497

You can access the complete research findings here.

How Often Trucks Are Involved in Fatal Crashes, State by State

1. Nebraska: Trucks Involved in 23.48% of Fatal Crashes

• Total fatal crashes (2020–2024): 1,052
• Fatal crashes involving large trucks (2020–2024): 247
• 5-year truck crash share: 23.5%
• People killed in truck crashes (2020–2024): 292
• Change in truck crash numbers (2020–2024): +8.2%

Nebraska is the most dangerous state in America for truck drivers by this measure. Nearly one in four fatal road accidents here involves a large truck, the highest share of any state in the country. Over the five years we studied, those crashes killed 292 people on Nebraska's roads. The trend is moving the wrong way too, with fatal truck crashes up 8% since 2020.

2. North Dakota: Trucks Involved in 23.41% of Fatal Crashes

North Dakota comes second, with trucks involved in more than 23% of all fatal crashes in the state. Over the past five years, authorities recorded 107 fatal truck collisions that killed 115 people. The state also saw a 28% jump in fatal truck crashes since 2020, one of the steepest increases in the country. For anyone who needs a truck accident lawyer in North Dakota, that trend means more families facing serious claims against trucking companies and their insurers.

North Dakota is one of our firm states, and our North Dakota truck accident lawyer team helps people hurt in these crashes pursue compensation. We have written about how the state's energy corridor shapes truck accident liability in the Bakken, and drivers injured in the western part of the state can speak with a Williston truck accident lawyer or a Minot truck accident attorney close to where the crash happened. With 115 lives lost, families who lose someone in a fatal truck crash can also speak with a North Dakota wrongful death lawyer about their options.

3. Wyoming: Trucks Involved in 21.72% of Fatal Crashes

Wyoming comes next, with heavy vehicles involved in more than 1 in 5 fatal crashes across the state. Over the past five years, more than 120 of those accidents killed 137 people on Wyoming's roads. At the same time, fatal truck crashes dropped 13% over the same period, which likely helps explain why commercial vehicle insurance rates stay low in Wyoming, at roughly $7.1K a year.

4. Iowa: Trucks Involved in 19.59% of Fatal Crashes

Iowa is another state where trucks are a major part of the fatal crash picture, with cargo vehicles involved in nearly 20% of all fatal crashes. Over the past five years, 313 deadly truck accidents were recorded here, killing 352 people. The one encouraging sign is that fatal truck crashes fell 19% since 2020, the biggest drop of any state in the top five, which suggests the state's road safety efforts may be paying off.

Our Iowa truck accident lawyer team works with people affected by these crashes, and we have looked closely at how the I-80 corridor influences Iowa semi-truck accident litigation. Many of these cases involve semi-truck accident claims against out-of-state carriers, which is one reason an experienced Iowa truck accident attorney matters. Even with fewer crashes than in 2020, 352 deaths over five years means hundreds of grieving families, and an Iowa wrongful death lawyer can help them understand their rights. People hurt in and around the capital can also reach our Des Moines personal injury lawyer team.

5. Idaho: Trucks Involved in 18.73% of Fatal Crashes

Idaho rounds out the top five, with large trucks involved in 18.7% of all fatal road accidents in the state. Over the five-year period, 204 fatal truck crashes were recorded here, killing more than 240 people. Unlike Iowa and Wyoming, Idaho's numbers barely moved, falling just 2% since 2020, which means truck involvement in fatal crashes has stayed about the same throughout.

6. Kansas: Trucks Involved in 18.68% of Fatal Crashes

Kansas recorded 335 fatal crashes involving large trucks between 2020 and 2024, and 386 people died in them. Trucks were involved in 18.68% of all fatal crashes in the state. Fatal truck crashes fell 6.45% over the period, but Kansas truckers still pay an average of $10,160 a year for insurance.

7. South Dakota: Trucks Involved in 18.42% of Fatal Crashes

South Dakota had 119 fatal truck crashes and 135 deaths over five years, with large trucks involved in 18.42% of the state's fatal crashes. The bigger concern is the direction. Fatal truck crashes rose 36.36% between 2020 and 2024, the second-largest increase in our top 10.

8. New Mexico: Trucks Involved in 18.29% of Fatal Crashes

New Mexico's share of 18.29% places it eighth, but no state saw a sharper rise in fatal truck crashes. They went up 63.04% since 2020, the biggest increase in America. Over five years, 365 fatal crashes involving large trucks killed 413 people.

9. Utah: Trucks Involved in 17.54% of Fatal Crashes

In Utah, large trucks were involved in 17.54% of fatal crashes, with 237 fatal truck crashes and 270 deaths from 2020 to 2024. Fatal truck crashes rose 13.89% over the period, and Utah truckers pay an average of $11,110 a year for insurance.

10. Texas: Trucks Involved in 16.99% of Fatal Crashes

Texas has the lowest truck share in the top 10, at 16.99%, but its raw numbers are far larger than any other state on the list. Texas saw 3,263 deadly truck collisions over the five years, claiming 3,712 lives. Fatal truck crashes rose 13.91% since 2020, and Texas truckers pay the highest average insurance premium in our top 10, at $14,497 a year.

When a Truck Crash Is Fatal: How a Truck Accident Lawyer Helps Families

Across the 10 states in this report, thousands of people were killed in crashes involving large trucks between 2020 and 2024. Each of those deaths left behind a spouse, a child, a parent, or a friend.

Fatal truck crash cases are rarely simple. The trucking company, the driver, a cargo loader, or a parts manufacturer may share responsibility, and the evidence that shows what happened, from electronic logs to black box data, can disappear quickly. A truck accident lawyer can move to preserve that evidence before it is lost. We have explained who can file a wrongful death suit and who is liable for a truck accident, because those are often the first questions families ask us.

Minnesota and Wisconsin did not make the top 10, but they share the same freight corridors as North Dakota and Iowa. Families there can speak with a Minnesota wrongful death lawyer or a Wisconsin wrongful death lawyer, and our Minnesota truck accident attorney and Wisconsin truck accident lawyer teams handle injury claims in both states.

Why Injured Truck Drivers Need Their Own Truck Accident Attorney

Truck drivers are often treated as the cause of these crashes, but many of them are injured or killed too, and they are frequently left without anyone protecting their interests afterward.

Russell Nicolet, the president of Nicolet Law, commented on the study and on why drivers should consider talking with a truck accident lawyer after a crash:

"One of the biggest mistakes truck drivers make after an accident is assuming their employer's insurance has their back. But in many cases, the carrier's insurer is protecting the company, not the driver. If you're seriously injured or facing a liability claim, you need your own attorney reviewing the policy before you sign anything. It's also worth knowing that hours-of-service violations, even minor ones, can be used to establish negligence in court. Keeping clean logs is your best legal protection."

Federal hours-of-service rules limit how long commercial drivers can be on duty and behind the wheel, and driver logs are among the first records reviewed after a serious crash. We have also written about the dangers when truckers drive fatigued.

"In many cases, the carrier's insurer is protecting the company, not the driver." Russell Nicolet, President of Nicolet Law

Frequently Asked Questions

Reducing Truck-Involved Deaths Across the Heartland

Taken together, our truck safety research series shows that large trucks are involved in an outsized share of fatal crashes across the Plains and Midwest, and that in states like North Dakota, South Dakota, and New Mexico, the numbers are climbing. Behind every percentage in this report are families who lost someone and drivers whose lives changed in a moment.

If you were injured in a crash with a commercial truck or if you lost a loved one in a fatal truck crash, you deserve someone looking out for your interests rather than the carrier's. Our truck accident lawyers represent crash victims, truck drivers, and grieving families throughout North Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and beyond. Contact us today for a free case evaluation, and we will help you understand your options.