California Tow Truck Driver Injury Lawyer

California's towing industry had 11,835 private-sector workers at 1,377 locations in 2024, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW data. Tow operators run flatbeds, wheel-lift trucks and wreckers. They clear crashes, haul impounds and handle roadside calls such as jump starts, tire changes and lockouts.

Much of the work happens a few feet from moving traffic, often at night. The state's fatality investigators reported on two tow operator deaths from 2023, and in each a passing car hit the operator. This page explains coverage, owner-operator disputes, the Move Over law, benefits and claims against an at-fault driver.

Does workers' comp cover tow truck drivers?

Yes. A tow operator hurt while working for a towing business is covered by California workers' comp, and the claim does not depend on fault.

Labor Code 3600 makes the towing business pay benefits whether or not anyone was negligent. That covers a roadside strike, a fall from a truck bed, a winch or chain injury and a back hurt while lifting a wheel-lift or dolly. It also covers harm that builds up over time, such as a back or shoulder worn down by years of hooking up, which Labor Code 3208.1 treats as a cumulative injury. Workers' comp is usually your only claim against the towing business itself under Labor Code 3602.

What if the towing company calls me an owner-operator or independent contractor?

The label does not decide it. California presumes a worker is an employee, and a towing company generally has to prove all three parts of the ABC test to treat you as a contractor.

Under Labor Code 3357, anyone who works for another is presumed to be an employee unless they are an independent contractor or the law expressly excludes them. Since July 1, 2020, Labor Code 3351 has counted anyone who is an employee under the ABC test in Labor Code 2775. Under that test, you are an employee unless the company proves all three of these: you are free from its control, the work is outside its usual business, and you run your own independent business of the same kind. For a towing company, towing is the usual business, so the second part is often hard for it to prove.

Motor club calls add a wrinkle. Under Labor Code 2784, if a motor club shows that the towing business it contracts with is separate and independent, the ABC test does not decide whether that business's drivers are the motor club's own employees; an older multi-factor test does. The rule speaks only to the motor club, not to the towing business that dispatches you. Save what shows who controlled the work: dispatch records, the truck's lease or title, pay records and any rules the company set. Truck drivers in long-haul and delivery work face a similar question, covered in our truck driver injury guide.

How dangerous is roadside work for tow operators?

Very. In two 2023 tow operator deaths that the California Department of Public Health investigated, a passing car struck the operator while he loaded a disabled vehicle.

In the first (report 23CA004), a 41-year-old operator was loading a car on a gore area next to an interstate on-ramp at about 11 p.m. in May 2023. He was standing in the next traffic lane when a car going 65 to 70 miles per hour hit him. No cones were set out, and no one had called law enforcement to secure the scene. In the second (report 23CA007), a 64-year-old operator with 13 years at his company was finishing a load on the shoulder at about 8 p.m. on December 31, 2023. His amber lights were on. A car going about 70 miles per hour stayed in the next lane without slowing, struck the truck and then him.

Both reports named a lack of awareness of California's Move Over law and no call to law enforcement to secure the work area before loading. Each also named a failure to see an unsafe spot: the gore area in the first case, and working too close to the highway lane in the second. Both recommended safety training that teaches tow operators to spot and respond to approaching traffic. The traffic flagger injury guide covers the same struck-by danger for road crews.

What does California's Move Over law require of other drivers?

A driver coming up on a stopped tow truck with flashing amber lights must move out of the lane next to it when that is safe and practical, or slow down if it is not.

The rule is Vehicle Code 21809. The current version, as amended effective January 1, 2026, also covers any stopped vehicle showing hazard lights or warning devices such as cones or flares. The driver must approach with due caution. If an open lane that is not next to the tow truck is available, and the change is practical, safe and allowed, the driver must move into it.

If the maneuver described in paragraph (1) would be unsafe or impracticable, slow to a reasonable and prudent speed that is safe for existing weather, road, and vehicular or pedestrian traffic conditions.

A violation is an infraction. For you, the point is that a driver who ignored the rule may be at fault, and that matters for the separate claim against that driver. The rule does not apply when the stopped vehicle is not next to the highway or sits behind a protective barrier.

Can I bring a claim against the driver who hit me?

Usually, yes. When a passing driver who does not work for your employer hits you, Labor Code 3852 lets you bring a civil claim against that driver while your workers' comp claim goes forward.

The two claims do different jobs. Workers' comp pays medical care and part of your wages no matter who was at fault. The civil claim asks the at-fault driver for losses workers' comp does not pay, such as pain and suffering; see how workers' comp and a personal injury claim differ. The civil claim has its own deadlines, separate from the workers' comp ones.

If you recover money from the driver, the court first pays litigation costs and fees, and then your employer or its insurer can be reimbursed for what it spent on your benefits (Labor Code 3856). Under Labor Code 3858 and Labor Code 3861, the rest can also be credited against future workers' comp benefits. That is why the two cases should be handled together. Ask for the collision report number, and keep the call ticket, the other driver's details, witness names and any footage from the truck's cameras.

What benefits can an injured tow truck driver receive?

Benefits include paid medical treatment, wage checks while you cannot work, money for any lasting disability and, after a fatal crash, support for dependents.

Benefit	What it pays in 2026
Temporary disability	Two-thirds of your wage, $264.61 to $1,764.11 per week, up to 104 weeks (Labor Code 4656)
Permanent disability	Two-thirds of your wage, $160 to $290 per week, set by your rating (Labor Code 4658)
Medical care	100 percent of approved care, no copay (Labor Code 4600)
Medical mileage	76 cents per mile to your appointments for trips on or after July 1, 2026 (72.5 cents earlier in 2026)
Job retraining voucher	$6,000 if you cannot return to your old job (Labor Code 4658.7)
Death benefits	$250,000 to $320,000 for total dependents (Labor Code 4702), plus up to $10,000 for burial (Labor Code 4701)

Tell the towing company about the injury in writing within 30 days (Labor Code 5400). The deadline to open a case for benefits is generally one year, counted from the injury or from the last benefit you received (Labor Code 5405). A psychiatric claim after a roadside crash has an added rule. Labor Code 3208.3 generally requires six months on the job with that employer, but not when the injury came from a sudden and extraordinary event at work.

How does Yazdchi Law help injured tow truck drivers?

Yazdchi Law P.C. works for injured tow operators statewide from its single office in Palmdale. Every case gets an individual review before the firm agrees to handle it.

A lawyer helps most when the company says you were an owner-operator, when the claim is denied or delayed, or when a claim against the at-fault driver has to be lined up with workers' comp. Call (661) 273-1780 or use the contact form to set up a free consultation. Helpful details include the towing company's name, any motor club, who owns the truck, the collision report number and when you reported the injury. The fee request is usually 15% to 18%, a workers' comp judge must approve it, and Labor Code 4906 governs it; see workers' comp lawyer fees.