What if the other driver gave me fake insurance information?

Transportation Code section 601.053 requires the operator of a vehicle to provide evidence of financial responsibility, such as an insurance card or policy, to a peace officer or to a person involved in a collision with the operator, on request. Operating without the required coverage is an offense under section 601.191. A card that turns out to be expired, cancelled, or invented does not satisfy the law.

You usually discover the problem when the insurer named on the card says there is no policy, or the policy was cancelled before the crash. Ask the police to verify coverage at the scene. Law enforcement can check whether a vehicle has the required coverage through TexasSure, the state’s financial responsibility verification program. The officer’s report should note what proof was shown.

Your own policy is the backstop. Texas insurers must offer uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage with every auto policy, and you have it unless you rejected it in writing under Insurance Code section 1952.101. Personal injury protection, offered under section 1952.152 at a minimum of $2,500 per person, pays medical bills and lost income regardless of fault. Notify your insurer promptly, because the policy sets notice requirements for uninsured motorist claims.

Other coverage may still exist. The vehicle’s owner may carry a valid policy even if the driver produced a fake card, and an employer may be responsible if the driver was working. The license plate and vehicle identification number are the starting point for finding the registered owner.

Sometimes the problem is not fraud but a lapse. A policy cancelled for nonpayment a week before the crash leaves the driver uninsured just the same. The insurer named on the card can usually confirm the cancellation date, and that date decides whether coverage existed at the moment of the crash.

Photograph the card, the driver’s license, the plate, and the vehicle at the scene. Owsley Law Firm traces the coverage, handles the uninsured motorist claim with your insurer, and charges no fee unless it wins.

What to do, step by step

1. Photograph the insurance card, license, and plate.
2. Ask police to verify coverage and note it in the report.
3. Call the insurer on the card to confirm the policy.
4. Notify your own insurer of a possible uninsured motorist claim.
5. Check whether the vehicle owner has separate coverage.

Mistakes that cost people money

• Waiting to tell your insurer about the fake card.
• Settling with anyone without checking your policy’s consent requirements.
• Assuming no coverage exists anywhere.
• Not getting the vehicle’s plate and VIN.

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