In Texas, the at-fault driver's liability insurance pays for your injuries and property damage. Your own policy can also pay right away through Personal Injury Protection, collision coverage, and uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, depending on what you carry.
Texas is an at-fault state. The driver who caused the crash, through their liability insurer, is responsible for the other people's medical expenses, lost wages, pain, and vehicle damage. Every Texas driver must carry at least 30/60/25 in liability coverage under Transportation Code section 601.072: $30,000 per injured person, $60,000 per crash, and $25,000 for property damage.
The other driver's insurer pays only after it accepts fault, and it does not owe you the prompt payment deadlines that apply to your own insurer. That is why your own coverage often pays first. Personal Injury Protection pays medical bills and a share of lost income regardless of fault, at least $2,500 per person, unless you rejected it in writing under Insurance Code section 1952.152.
Your collision coverage can repair your car now, and your insurer then pursues the at-fault driver's insurer for repayment, often including your deductible. If the at-fault driver has no insurance or too little, your uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage under Insurance Code section 1952.101 steps in, if you did not reject it in writing.
Using your own PIP for a crash you did not cause does not usually come back out of your injury settlement. Under the Insurance Code, the PIP insurer generally has no right of subrogation against the at-fault driver unless that driver lacked the required financial responsibility.
Report the crash to your own insurer promptly, keep every bill and receipt, and do not give the other driver's insurer a recorded statement before you have advice. Owsley Law Firm coordinates every policy in play and charges no fee unless it wins.
What to do, step by step
- Get the other driver's insurance information at the scene.
- Report the crash to your own insurer promptly.
- Use PIP for early medical bills if you have it.
- Open a claim with the at-fault driver's insurer, but avoid a recorded statement until you have advice.
If the other insurer delays accepting fault, using your own collision coverage gets your car fixed now. Your insurer then seeks repayment from the at-fault driver's insurer.
When the at-fault driver's limits are too low, your underinsured motorist coverage can pay the difference up to your own limits.
Mistakes that cost people money
- Assuming you cannot use your own coverage because you were not at fault.
- Letting the other insurer pressure you into a quick release.
- Not checking whether you carry PIP and UM/UIM.
Related questions
Is Texas a no-fault state?
No. Texas is an at-fault state; the driver who caused the crash is responsible.
Will my rates go up if I use my own coverage?
Rating rules vary by insurer; ask your agent, and remember the at-fault driver remains responsible.
What if the at-fault driver has no insurance?
Your uninsured motorist coverage can pay, if you did not reject it in writing.
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