In Houston, a person hurt in a car accident caused by someone else can recover medical costs, lost income, and pain under Texas law. Owsley Law Firm handles Houston car accidents from its Houston offices, comes to you, and charges no fee unless it wins. Call before you speak with any insurer.
Car Accidents in Houston
Where do Houston car accidents happen?
Houston car crashes cluster where freeways meet: the Loop interchanges, the Beltway merges, and the frontage-road intersections where drivers exit at speed. Most of the firm’s Houston car cases start on one of six corridors.
Houston car crashes are freeway crashes first. The Katy Freeway’s managed lanes empty into main lanes moving forty miles an hour slower, and the Gulf Freeway’s exits at Broadway and the 610 Loop back up onto the main lanes every evening, so a common Houston crash is a rear-end collision at highway speed against stopped traffic. The second is the frontage-road intersection crash: drivers leave the freeway at speed, meet a red light at Westheimer or Bellaire, and run it. Uninsured drivers are a real risk on Houston roads, which is why the firm reviews the injured client’s own policy at the first meeting.
Corridors where Houston car accidents cluster
- I-45 Gulf Freeway at the 610 South Loop and Broadway
- I-10 Katy Freeway between Beltway 8 and the 610 West Loop
- US-59 Southwest Freeway through the 610 interchange and Westpark
- I-45 North Freeway at Beltway 8 and the Hardy Toll Road merge
- US-290 Northwest Freeway at 34th Street and the 610 interchange
- Westheimer Road from Kirby to Beltway 8, one of the county’s busiest surface streets
Cases from Houston
What does a Houston car accident case look like?
A commuter stopped in Katy Freeway congestion is rear-ended by a pickup that never braked, and the injury is a herniated disc that needs injections and, eventually, surgery.
What to do now
What should you do after a car accident in Houston?
- Get examined the same day. Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center (Level I trauma) and Ben Taub Hospital (Level I trauma) handle the serious car accident injuries from Houston; an urgent care visit the same day is enough to start the record if you are not transported.
- Photograph the vehicles, the road, and your injuries where it happened, especially on I-10 (Katy Freeway and East Freeway) and I-45 (Gulf Freeway and North Freeway), where scenes are cleared within minutes.
- Get the Houston crash report. Houston Police Department crash reports (Texas form CR-3) are available through the TxDOT Crash Report Online Purchase System about 10 days after the crash, and HPD Records Division also provides them. The firm obtains it for clients at no charge.
- Report the crash to your own insurer, but give no recorded statement to the other driver’s carrier until you have counsel.
- Know where the case goes. Houston car accidents suits are filed in the Harris County Civil District Courts, 201 Caroline St.
- Call the firm. Both Houston offices are minutes from the courthouse, and the consultation is free.
Go deeper
More on car accident claims in Houston and Texas.
Common questions
Houston car accident questions
Which Houston intersections have the most car crashes?
The frontage-road intersections along the Katy, Gulf, and Southwest Freeways, and Westheimer Road between Kirby and Beltway 8. TxDOT’s crash records, available through its online system, list them by count each year.
Where is a Houston car accident case filed?
In the Harris County Civil District Courts at 201 Caroline Street downtown, unless the crash happened across the county line in Fort Bend or Montgomery County.
Can I bring a claim if a METRO bus hit my car in Houston?
Yes. METRO is a government transit authority, so the Texas Tort Claims Act controls the claim instead of ordinary negligence rules. Written notice is generally due within six months of the crash, and the damages a government body pays are capped. Any other driver who shared fault can be pursued without a cap. Write down the bus number, route, and time while you still remember them.
Does a hospital lien come out of my Houston car accident settlement?
It can. Texas Property Code chapter 55 lets a hospital that treated you after the crash, such as Ben Taub or Memorial Hermann Texas Medical Center, file a lien against your injury claim. The lien is paid from the settlement, but it is limited to reasonable charges, and it can often be reduced through negotiation before any money is distributed.