News & opinion Is Texas a No Fault State?

Is Texas a No Fault State?

Texas Car Crash Lawyers
hen it comes to c

ccident insu

nce cl

ims, the

e

e t

o kinds of st

tes: f

ult

nd no-f

ult. It’s impo

t

nt to unde

st

nd

h

t kind of st

te you live in bec

use it

ill imp

ct ho

you pu

sue compens

tion fo

inju

ies

fte c csh. D

ive

s in some st

tes need to file

cl

im

ith thei

o

n insunce comp

ny

fte csh, but in othe

st

tes, d

ive

s need to file

n insu

nce cl

im

ith someone else’s insu

nce comp

ny. Except in divo

ce c

ses—

hich

e

e

lly

nothenim

l

ltogethe

—Tex

s is not

no-f

ult st

te. Tex

s is

n

t-f

ult (o

to

t) st

te. This is

t

dition

l leg

l system f

me

o

k in

hich the pe

son

esponsible fon

ccident is

esponsible fo

p

ying d

m

ges to the othe

p

ty in

csh.

No-F

ult St

tes vs. F

ult St

tes<

h2>
In

no-f

ult st

te, inju

ed p

ties simply file d

m

ge cl

ims

ith thei

o

n insu

nce comp

nies. Nobody needs to p

ove o

dete

mine f

ult to

eceive compens

tion. Ho

eve

, no-f

ult l

s do limit you

bility to b

ing

l

suit

g

inst the p

ty li

ble fo

you

csh. Most no-f

ult st

tes

equi

e th

t d

ive

s o

n pe

son

l inju

y p

otection (o

PIP) insu

nce. This is the type of  insu

nce cove

ge th

t

llo

s someone to

pp

o

ch thei

o

n insu

nce

gency fo

compens

tion

fte

n

ccident. Inju

ed d

ive

s c

n sue the

t-f

ult pty folmost

ny type of loss

fte collision (inju

ies, emotion

l dist

ess, lost

ges, etc.) To

t insunce is usu

lly che

pe

th

n insunce in no-f

ult st

tes.

D

ive

s

ho C

use

ccidents

In st

tes like Tex

s, d

ive

s

ho c

use

ccidents use thei

insu

nce to p

y fo

the othe

inju

ed d

ive

s’ bills

fte csh. F

ult is dete

mined th

ough the leg

l p

ocess—

nd th

t’s one huge

e

son

hy you might nt to

o

k

ith

lyeho c

n offe

guid

nce

fte c

ccident.

Minimum Insu

nce

equi

ements in Tex

s<

h2>
In

t-f

ult st

tes, d

ive

s e expected to c

y

minimum

mount of insu

nce. This is

efeed to

s the

equisite minimum covege

mount.

The

mount is often b

oken do

n into:
  • -level=”1″>The cove

    ge

    mount fo

    e

    ch inju

    ed pe

    son<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">The covege

    mount pe

    ccident

  • i

    -level="1">The covege

    mount fo

    p

    ope

    ty d

    m

    ge peccident<

    li>

Tex

s l

equi

es

ll d

ive

s to h

ve

ce

t

in

mount of insunce. <

h

ef="https:

/

.tdi.tex

s.gov/pubs/consume

cb020.html” t

get=”_bl

nk"

el=”nofollo

noopene

“>The cu

ent minimum li

bility limits in the st

te of Tex

s<> e listed

s 30/60/25 cove

ge,

hich me

ns:

  • i

    -level="1">$30,000 in bodily inju

    y insu

    nce (pe

    pe

    son)

  • i

    -level="1">$60,000 peccident<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">$25,000 in p

    ope

    ty d

    m

    ge

    ep

    i

    s

uto insunce helps p

otect both d

ive

s in the event of

csh. It p

ys fo

d

m

ges expe

ienced by one d

ivend it p

events the othe

f

om h

ving to p

y fo

d

m

ges out of pocket. If you d

ive

ithout the

equi

ed

mounts of insu

nce in Tex

s, you m

y be subject to fines, pen

lties,

nd even license

evoc

tion.

h

t h

ppens if d

m

ges exceed the

t-f

ult d

ive

’s insunce

mount?

If d

m

ges exceed the cove

ge

mount of

n

t-f

ult d

ive

’s insu

nce, inju

ed pties h

ve the

ight to sue the

t-f

ult d

ive

to collect the diffe

ence.

h

t if the

t-F

ult D

ive

is Uninsu

ed?<

h2>

h

t h

ppens

hen

n

t-f

ult d

ive

doesn’t h

ve insu

nce in Tex

s? Luckily, if you h

ve uninsu

ed o

unde

insu

ed moto

insunce (UM

UIM insu

nce),

n

tto

ney c

n help you file

cl

im

ith you

o

n insunce comp

ny. UM

nd UIM covege e

v

il

ble

s

ddition

l covege options on

uto insu

nce policies.

Types of

uto Insunce in Tex

s:

n Ove

vie

<

h2>
It c

n be

little difficult to unde

st

nd ho

diffe

ent types of c

insu

nce in Tex

s

o

k. Fo

tun

tely, policyholde

s h

ve some options

hen it comes to ho

much insunce covege they nt. To

evie

, he

e’s

ef

eshe

on e

ch type of

uto insu

nce.

  • i

    -level="1">Li

    bility cove

    ge:

    ccounts fo

    medic

    l expenses, lost ges, p

    in

    nd suffe

    ing, p

    ope

    ty d

    m

    ge,

    nd ongful de

    th.

  • i

    -level="1">Collision covege: Cove

    s d

    m

    ges to you

    vehicle; you’ll be compens

    ted fo

    (

    ) the full

    mount of you

    c

    , (b) the cost it

    ould t

    ke to

    ep

    i

    you

    c

    , o

    (c) the

    mount design

    ted on the insunce decl

    tion p

    ge—

    hicheve

    is le

    st.

  • i

    -level="1">Comp

    ehensive cove

    ge:

    ccounts fo

    d

    m

    ges to you

    c f

    om incidents othe

    th

    n

    collision (i.e.

    e

    the

    d

    m

    ge o

    v

    nd

    lism.)<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Uninsu

    ed/unde

    insu

    ed moto

    ist covege: Cove

    s vehicle d

    m

    ge c

    used by someone

    ho h

    d no insunce.<

    li>

Some Insu

nce Comp

nies T

y to

void P

ying F

i

ly

It’s ve

y common fo

insu

nce

gencies to

ttempt to ev

de p

ying c

ccident su

vivo

s f

i

ly fo

thei

expe

iences. M

ny of these comp

nies use b

d f

ith t

ctics to p

event you f

om

eceiving the compens

tion th

t you dese

ve. Some ex

mples of these include:

  • i

    -level="1">Denying cl

    ims

    ithout offe

    ing

    e

    son<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Unde

    v

    luing

    cl

    im on pu

    pose

  • i

    -level="1">F

    iling to communic

    te p

    omptly

  • i

    -level="1">T

    king

    ve

    y long time to

    esolve

    cl

    im<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">F

    iling to p

    ope

    ly investig

    te

    cl

    im<

    li>

C

ccidents: P

oving F

ult<

h2>

emembe

ho

e s

id th

t you c

n

et

in

n

tto

ney to help p

ove f

ult

ften

ccident? He

e’s

he

e th

t comes into pl

y. Lye

s h

ve extensive expe

ience investig

ting c

ses

nd

o

king to p

ove f

ult.

n

tto

ney c

n help you est

blish evidence of negligence

egdless of

hethe

you’

e t

ying to settle

ith

n insunce comp

ny o

filing

l

suit.

Evidence Th

t C

n P

ove F

ult

The

e’s lots of diffe

ent evidence th

t c

n be used to p

ove f

ult in

c

se. If you

e

e hu

t in

c

ccident, you m

y p

ove

ho

s

esponsible fo

you

csh

ith evidence such

s:
  • -level=”1″>Pictu

    es

    nd videos of the

    ccident<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Pictu

    es

    nd videos of d

    m

    ge c

    used by the

    ccident (inju

    ies, p

    ope

    ty d

    m

    ge, etc.)

  • i

    -level="1">

    itness testimonies

  • i

    -level="1">Expe

    t opinions (i.e.

    uto indust

    y expe

    ts)<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Police

    epo

    ts<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Cell phone

    eco

    ds<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Csh

    econst

    uctions f

    om speci

    lists<

    li>

h

t D

m

ges C

n I

ecove

fte

C

ccident in Tex

s?

hen you

o

k

ith

lyefte

you

c

ccident, they c

n help you pu

sue d

m

ges, but the compens

tion you seek depends enti

ely on you

expe

ience du

ing

nd

fte

the

ccident. Some ex

mples of ve

y commonly sought d

m

ges include:
  • -level=”1″>Medic

    l bills: P

    st, p

    esent,

    nd futu

    e medic

    l bills

    ssoci

    ted

    ith the

    ccident

  • i

    -level="1">Lost ges: Fo

    time missed f

    om

    o

    k f

    om the

    ccident<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Diminished ening c

    p

    city: If someone is pe

    m

    nently un

    ble to e

    n

    s much money

    s they did befo

    e theiccident (if they e fo

    ced to ch

    nge cee

    s, fo

    ex

    mple)

  • i

    -level="1">P

    in

    nd suffe

    ing

  • i

    -level="1">Ment

    l

    nguish<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Loss of enjoyment of life<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">P

    ope

    ty d

    m

    ge<

    li>

Steps You Should T

ke if You e in

C

ccident<

h2>

St

y

t the

ccident Scene<

h3>
Fi

st

nd fo

emost,

e

nt to mention th

t you should not le

ve the scene of

c

ccident. In some c

ses, this is conside

ed

c

ime.

You c

n only be su

e it’s s

fe to le

ve

fte c

ccident if:

  • i

    -level="1">You filed

    n<

    h

    ef=”https://c

    is.dot.st

    te.tx.us/public/Pu

    ch

    se/” t

    get=”_bl

    nk"

    el=”nofollo

    noopene

    “>

    ccident

    epo

    t<>

    ith the police

  • i

    -level="1">Eve

    yone involved in the c

    sh h

    s

    eceived

    pp

    op

    i

    te medic

    l ce<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">You’ve spped d

    ive

    info

    m

    tion

    ith

    ny othe

    d

    ive

    s involved in you

    ccident

Ensu

e You

O

n S

fety

If you feel ext

eme p

in in you

he

d, neck, o

b

ck, you should not move

ften

ccident. St

y still

nd

it fo

help. If you c

n move follo

ing

c

sh, you should ensu

e th

t you get out of h

m’s

y. Don’t st

y ne tffic o

you

vehicle if it’s not s

fe to do so.

Ensu

e Eve

yone Else’s S

fety<

h3>
You should give eve

yone else involved in the

ccident the s

me ce you g

ve you

self. Check to m

ke su

e th

t

nyone else in the csh is unhmed—

nd, if they’

e hu

t, move them to some

he

e s

fe to it fo

medic

l help.

C

ll 911 (o

Loc

l Non-Eme

gency Numbe

)<

h3>
If you

csh didn’t c

use

ny inju

ies

nd it s ve

y mino

, some e

s h

ve signs th

t list the loc

l non-eme

gency numbe

fo

non-eme

gency

ccidents. In gene

l, though, it’s

good ide

to just c

ll 911

fte

c

ccident. You’ll be connected

ith

n opetoho c

n

ssess you

needs

nd send out the

ight p

ties to

espond to the csh. The police m

y come to t

ke epo

t

nd help cle

n up the scene; medic

l fi

st

esponde

s

e often c

lled fo

c

shes, too.

T

ke Photos

nd Videos

Document the scene of the c

ccident. T

ke photos

nd videos of inju

ies, p

ope

ty d

m

ge,

nd the

ccident scene itself

fte

eve

ything h

s c

lmed do

n. Often, the

e

ill be evidence ne

by the c

sh site th

t m

ny people don’t even notice. Fo

ex

mple, be on the lookout fo

skid mks in the

o

d o

d

m

ge to ne

by st

uctu

es.

S

p Info

m

tion

ith Othe

D

ive

s

P

ovided eve

yone is s

fe, it’s

ve

y good ide

to s

p info

m

tion

ith othe

d

ive

s involved in the

ccident. This includes:
  • -level=”1″>N

    me<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Insunce info

    m

    tion<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">D

    ive

    ’s license info

    m

    tion<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">License pl

    te numbe

    <

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">C m

    ke

    nd model<

    li>

You

ill need this info

m

tion to file

cl

im o

to begin

o

k on

c

se

ith

n

tto

ney. Don’t p

nic if you c

n’t collect d

ive

info—it h

ppens

ll the time—but m

ke

n effo

t to gb it if you c

n.

Collect

itness Info

m

tion<

h3>
Unfo

tun

tely, you c

n’t

l

ys t

ust the police to collect info

m

tion f

om

itnesses

fte

n

ccident. This is especi

lly t

ue if the inju

ies c

used by

n

ccident don’t seem life-th

e

tening. Ho

eve

,

itness testimony c

n still pl

y

c

itic

l pt in

c

se,

nd it’s impo

t

nt to h

ve cont

ct info

m

tion fo

itnesses.

e

ecommend collecting cont

ct info

m

tion f

om

itnesses

t the scene of you

csh if you c

n. It c

n benefit you l

te

.

Seek Medic

l

ttention<

h3>
It’s ve

y impo

t

nt to seek medic

l

ttention

fte

c

ccident. Depending on the

ccident

nd you

inju

ies, you m

y

eceive medic

l

ttention

t the scene, o

you m

y even be t

nsfe

ed to

hospit

l fo

eme

gency c

e.

egdless of ho

much time you’ve spent in the hospit

l (o

even if you h

ven’t been

t

ll), it’s impo

t

nt to set up

n

ppointment

ith you

docto

. You

docto

m

y ex

mine you fo

del

yed signs of inju

y

nd they c

n

ns

e

you

questions

bout the he

ling p

ocess. It’s

lso impo

t

nt fo

you

docto

to be kept up-to-d

te on you

physic

l he

lth, so

visit

fte

n

ccident is c

uci

l.

Find eput

ble C

ccident Lye

<

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

l

ye

-

fte

-c-

ccident/”>You don’t h

ve to

o

k

ith

lyefte c

ccident >, but it c

n <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

i-need-

-c-

ccident-l

ye

“>benefit you t

emendously<>.

e

lys

ecommend th

t

ccident su

vivo

s

t le

st t

ke

dv

nt

ge of the f

ee consult

tions most

ccident

tto

neys offe

. <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

ho

-much-does-lye

-cost/”>You don’t need to p

y

dime > to find out mo

e

bout you

potenti

l c

se

nd

sk questions

bout youights. The

e’s nothing to lose,

nd eve

ything to g

in!

e

ecommend:
  • -level=”1″>Finding

    lyeith lots of expe

    ience litig

    ting c

    ccident c

    ses<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Finding

    l

    ye

    ho h

    s spent time in cou

    t, just in c

    se th

    t’s

    he

    e you

    c

    se le

    ds you<

    li>

  • i

    -level="1">Finding

    l

    ye

    ith loc

    l expe

    ience

    nd tho

    ough kno

    ledge of you

    st

    te’s

    egul

    tions<

    li>

ong>

emembe

:<

st

ong> You don’t h

ve to hi

e

l

ye

just bec

use you t

lked to them. You e f

ee to

ttend sevel consult

tions

nd then choose the <

h

ef="https:

/c

inju

yvictims.comhy-c-

ccidents-occu

“>

tto

ney th

t’s best fo

you

individu

l c

se

nd needs >.

C

n I H

ndle

C

ccident C

se

ithout

L

ye

?<

h2>
Not if you

nt the best

esult.

hile plenty of people in Tex

s do h

ndle thei

c

ccident c

ses

ithout

lye

’s help,

e

dvise p

tne

ing

ith

n

tto

ney, bec

use insu

nce comp

nies e e

ge

to t

ke

dv

nt

ge of csh su

vivo

s

ho don’t h

ve leg

l counsel. You

ill h

ve

much mo

e difficult time obt

ining f

i

, ony, compens

tion if you’

e on you

o

n. If you o loved one h

ve been hu

t in

c

ccident th

t

s not you

f

ult,

qu

lified c

ccident

tto

ney m

y help. <

h

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

se

vices

c

ccident-

tto

ney-houston

“>C

ccident lye

s > h

ve extensive expe

ience helping clients

ith

ide

nge of c

ses, so no m

tte

you

ci

cumst

nces, you c

n look to

n

tto

ney fo

dvice.

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