Texas Car Accident Laws

Texas's rules are relatively stable — no recent overhaul — but the fault threshold is one of the sharper lines in the country: cross 50%, and a claim goes from reduced to zero.

Being found 50% at fault still lets you recover half your damages. Being found 51% ends the claim entirely. That single percentage point is worth understanding.

Statute of limitations: 2 years

Under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §16.003, you generally have two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. If the accident resulted in death, the two-year clock for a wrongful death claim runs from the date of death, not the accident.

Fault rule: modified comparative negligence, 51% bar

Under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §33.001, you can recover damages only if you're found 50% at fault or less. At 51% or more, you recover nothing at all.

Because that single percentage point is decisive, insurers have a real incentive to push your assigned fault toward 51% rather than just reduce what they owe gradually.

Insurance: at-fault system, 30/60/25 minimum

Texas is an at-fault state — the driver who caused the accident is responsible for the damages through their insurer. Minimum liability limits are 30/60/25 under the Texas Transportation Code: $30,000 per person and $60,000 per accident for bodily injury, plus $25,000 for property damage. Insurers must offer uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage by default — you have to reject it in writing to opt out.

Texas also uniquely allows optional Personal Injury Protection (PIP) or MedPay coverage, which pays medical costs regardless of fault — most states don't offer this alongside an at-fault system.

How this plays out in a real claim

Take an intersection collision where fault is genuinely disputed. If an insurer or court assigns you 40% of the blame, Texas's rule still lets you recover 60% of your damages, and even at exactly 50% you still recover half. But at 51% or more, the claim is barred entirely — not reduced, eliminated. That one-point difference between 50% and 51% is exactly why insurers have a real incentive to push a borderline case just over the line rather than simply discount what they pay.

A mistake worth avoiding in Texas

Because a single percentage point at the 51% threshold can be the entire difference between a reduced payout and nothing at all, careless statements at the scene or to an adjuster carry more weight here than in a pure comparative state. Avoid speculating about fault, even casually, until the full picture — police report, witnesses, any available footage — is in front of you.

If a government vehicle or agency was involved

Claims against a Texas city, county, or state agency follow the Texas Tort Claims Act, and the notice clock is far shorter than the ordinary two-year deadline: written notice is generally required within six months of the incident (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §101.101), but many cities set their own shorter charter deadlines — Houston and San Antonio both use 90 days, and some cities allow as little as 45. Damages against the state or a political subdivision are also capped, generally at $250,000 per person and $500,000 per incident.

If the crash resulted in a death

Texas gives two years from the date of death for a wrongful death claim (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.003(b)) — separate from the ordinary injury deadline, and it matters when a victim survives for a period before dying. Only the surviving spouse, children, and parents can bring the claim (§71.004); siblings have no standing. If none of them files within three months of the death, the estate's executor may bring it instead.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage

Texas doesn't require UM/UIM coverage, but insurers must offer it with every auto policy, and you must reject it in writing (Tex. Ins. Code §1952.101) — if there's no signed rejection on file, Texas courts have consistently held that UM/UIM applies by default at limits matching your liability coverage. One quirk: uninsured motorist property damage (UMPD) carries a mandatory $250 deductible that can't be waived, while uninsured motorist bodily injury (UMBI) doesn't.

Beyond the deadline and the fault rule

The statute of limitations and the fault rule above decide whether you have a claim and how much of it survives — they don't decide what the claim is actually worth, or whether it's worth handling yourself. For that, see our guides on what affects a settlement, who pays your medical bills while a claim is pending, and whether Texas law makes a lawyer worth it for your specific situation.

When it's worth talking to someone

With a hard 51% cutoff, how fault gets assigned in Texas can be the entire outcome of a claim, not just a discount. If fault is disputed at all, a free, no-obligation conversation is worth having.