You receive a confirmation email from your insurance company, review the coverage summary, and see numbers you may not fully understand: 30/60/25. Because those are Texas’s minimum liability limits, you may assume they are enough. However, a serious crash can produce medical expenses, property damage, and other losses that exceed those limits, potentially creating financial exposure for both the at-fault driver and the injured person.
The Karam Law Office represents injured drivers throughout Sugar Land, and we see firsthand how often minimum coverage falls short after a serious wreck. Call us today at (281) 302-5272 to talk through your situation.
What Is Liability Insurance in Texas?
Liability insurance generally pays for injuries and property damage you cause to others in a covered crash. It typically does not pay for your own injuries or damage to your own vehicle when you are at fault.
When you are at fault for a covered crash, liability coverage may pay for the other driver’s vehicle damage, medical bills, and certain other covered losses. Texas law generally requires drivers to establish financial responsibility for accidents they cause, most commonly by carrying auto liability insurance.
What Are the Texas Minimum Liability Insurance Requirements?
Texas drivers who satisfy the financial-responsibility requirement through auto insurance must carry at least $30,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per person, $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 for property damage. These limits are commonly called 30/60/25 coverage.
What Does "30/60/25" Mean?
Each number in "30/60/25" represents a different coverage limit, expressed in thousands of dollars. Here’s how it’s broken down:
- The first number, $30,000, is the bodily injury liability limit for one person injured in a crash you cause.
- The second number, $60,000, is the total bodily injury liability limit available for all people injured in the same crash.
- The third number, $25,000, is the property damage liability limit, which may apply to the other driver’s vehicle and other damaged property.
If damages exceed your policy limits, you could be personally responsible for amounts not covered by insurance
Is Liability-Only Insurance Enough in Texas?
The minimum limits may not be enough after a serious collision. Medical expenses, lost income, vehicle damage, and other losses can exceed the available liability limits, especially when multiple people are injured.
Liability coverage generally does not pay for your own injuries or damage to your own vehicle when you are at fault. As a result, minimum liability coverage can leave important gaps in protection after a serious crash.
Liability-only coverage is not the same as ‘full coverage.’ That phrase does not have a standardized insurance definition, but it commonly refers to a policy that includes liability, collision, and comprehensive coverage.
Additional Auto Insurance Coverage Texas Drivers Should Consider
Beyond the state minimum, Texas drivers can purchase additional protections that fill in some of the gaps liability-only coverage leaves open, including:
- Personal Injury Protection (PIP) which may help pay medical expenses, a portion of lost income, and certain other nonmedical expenses regardless of fault, subject to the policy’s limits.
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM) which may help cover certain losses when an at-fault driver has no insurance or does not have enough insurance. Coverage depends on the policy’s terms, limits, and any applicable deductible.
These coverages may be worth considering based on your vehicle, financial circumstances, health coverage, driving habits, and ability to pay out of pocket after a crash.
What Happens if You Drive Without Insurance in Texas?
Driving without the financial responsibility required by Texas law can result in fines and other consequences. Penalties may become more serious after subsequent violations or after an uninsured driver causes a crash.
An uninsured driver who causes a crash may also face personal financial liability for the injuries and property damage they cause. The injured party may seek compensation directly from the at-fault driver.
What Should You Do if an Uninsured Driver Hits You?
If an uninsured driver hits you, take the following steps to protect your health, preserve evidence, and support a potential insurance claim:
- Seek medical attention as soon as possible, even if you do not feel seriously hurt at the scene.
- Call the police and request an accident report. A police report can document the collision, identify the other driver, and support your claim.
- Document the accident scene by taking photos or videos of vehicle damage, road conditions, traffic signals, visible injuries, and the other driver’s information.
- Collect witness information, including names and contact details, before witnesses leave the scene.
- Notify your insurer promptly and ask whether uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, PIP, medical payments coverage, or another part of your policy may apply.
- Keep records of medical care, bills, repair estimates, lost income, insurance communications, and other crash-related expenses.
- Talk to a Texas car accident lawyer before accepting a settlement or pursuing the uninsured driver directly.
If you have UM/UIM coverage, it may be an important potential source of compensation after a crash with an uninsured driver. If the uninsured driver is at fault, recovery directly from that person may depend on whether they have assets or income available to satisfy a judgment.
How Can a Car Accident Lawyer Help With an Insurance Claim?
An experienced car accident lawyer can help establish fault through a range of evidence, including crash reports, witness statements, photographs of the vehicle damage and accident scene, medical records, and, when appropriate, expert analysis reconstructing how the crash occurred.
Evidence of fault is often central to a liability claim, particularly when the parties or insurers dispute responsibility for the crash. A driver’s uninsured status alone does not establish fault. An attorney can evaluate potentially available insurance coverage, communicate and negotiate with insurers, and, when appropriate, pursue a lawsuit if a fair resolution cannot be reached.
Speak With a Sugar Land Car Accident Lawyer
The Karam Law Office is available 24/7 to talk through what happened and help you understand what coverage may actually apply to your situation. Our car accident lawyers both bring the same thorough, trial-ready preparation to every case, whether that means negotiating directly with an insurance company or taking a case to court when necessary.
If you have been injured in a car accident in Sugar Land, contact us at (281) 302-5272 for a consultation.
