Car Accidents 8 min read
If you were just in a car accident in Houston, the next few hours will shape everything that follows: your medical recovery, your insurance claim, and the size of any settlement you eventually receive. Insurance adjusters in Texas are trained to start building a defense against you within the first 24 hours. This guide, written by Houston personal injury attorneys, walks you through exactly what to do at the scene, in the days after, and before you ever speak to an insurance company.
Texas law (Transportation Code §550.021) requires every driver involved in a crash with injury, death, or vehicle damage to stop, render aid, and exchange information. Failing to do so is a felony if anyone is hurt. Before anything else, check yourself and your passengers for injuries, then move to a safe location if your vehicle can still drive.
Call 911 immediately, even if the crash seems minor. A Houston Police Department or Texas DPS officer at the scene creates an official CR-3 crash report, which becomes the foundation of your insurance claim. If officers do not respond (common for minor wrecks inside the city), you must file a Driver's Crash Report (CR-2) with TxDOT within 10 days.
Adrenaline masks pain. Soft-tissue injuries, concussions, and internal bleeding often do not present symptoms for hours or days. The single most damaging mistake we see Houston accident victims make is waiting a week to see a doctor because they 'felt okay.'
From a legal standpoint, any gap longer than 72 hours between your accident and your first medical visit gives the insurance company an argument that your injuries were caused by something else. From a medical standpoint, conditions like traumatic brain injury, whiplash, herniated discs, and abdominal trauma can deteriorate rapidly without treatment.
Go to an emergency room, urgent care, or your primary care physician the same day if possible. Tell every provider that you were in a motor vehicle accident, describe every symptom (even minor ones), and follow up on every referral.
Your own auto policy almost certainly requires you to report the accident promptly. Do that within 24 to 48 hours. Stick to the basic facts: date, time, location, vehicles involved, and that you are seeking medical evaluation.
Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurance company. You are under no legal obligation to speak with them, and Texas adjusters are trained to ask leading questions designed to lock you into statements that minimize your injuries or shift blame onto you. If they call, take their name and number, then politely tell them your attorney will be in touch.
Surveillance footage from gas stations, businesses, and METRO buses is typically overwritten within 7 to 30 days. Vehicle 'black box' (Event Data Recorder) information can be wiped when a car is repaired or scrapped. Witness memories fade. Skid marks wash away with the next Houston rainstorm.
If your case has any complexity at all, a Houston personal injury attorney can send formal preservation letters within 24 hours, demanding that businesses, trucking companies, and government agencies retain footage and records. This is one of the most time-sensitive parts of any serious claim.
Settlements are built on documentation. Start a notebook or a notes app the day of the accident and record, every single day:
Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §16.003 gives you exactly two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. Miss it, and your claim is gone forever, regardless of how serious your injuries are.
Two years sounds like a long time. It is not. Investigation, medical treatment, expert reports, and settlement negotiations routinely take a year or more. If a government vehicle was involved (Metro bus, city truck, school bus), the deadline can be as short as 6 months under the Texas Tort Claims Act notice requirements.
Insurance companies almost always offer a quick, lowball settlement within the first few weeks. They are betting that you do not yet know the full extent of your injuries, that you have not seen specialists, and that you are stressed about bills. Once you sign a release, your case is closed forever.
Houston personal injury attorneys work on contingency, meaning you pay nothing unless we win. There is no financial risk to having a lawyer evaluate your case. At Mehdipour & Mehdipour, our consultations are free, confidential, and available 24/7. We have recovered millions for clients across Houston, Sugar Land, Katy, Pearland, The Woodlands, and the entire Greater Houston area.
Two years from the date of the accident under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code §16.003. Claims involving government vehicles can have notice deadlines as short as 6 months under the Texas Tort Claims Act.
No. You are not legally required to give a recorded statement to the at-fault driver's insurer, and doing so almost always hurts your claim. Refer them to your attorney.
Texas follows a modified comparative negligence rule. As long as you are 50% or less at fault, you can still recover damages, reduced by your percentage of fault. If you are 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing.
If you have any injury, missed work, or significant vehicle damage, yes. Studies consistently show that represented claimants recover 3 to 4 times more on average than those who negotiate alone, even after attorney fees.
Mehdipour & Mehdipour work on a contingency fee basis. You pay $0 upfront and $0 unless we win your case. Your initial consultation is always free.