Recovering After an Uninsured Hit-and-Run Driver

Attorney Answer

You were told wrong on both halves. Nobody "presses charges" in Texas — that decision belongs to the prosecutor, and the arrest shows it is already in motion. And the fact that the driver has no insurance does not close the civil door; it changes which door you use.

Start with what he was required to do. Tex. Transp. Code § 550.021(a) requires the operator of a vehicle in a collision that results or is reasonably likely to result in injury to or death of a person to stop at the scene or as close to it as possible, to return immediately if the vehicle was not stopped there, to determine whether anyone involved needs aid, and to remain until the requirements of § 550.023 are met. Section 550.022(a) sets a parallel stop, return and remain duty where the only damage is to a vehicle driven or attended by a person. Section 550.023 is the exchange duty — the operator's name and address, the registration number of the vehicle, and the name of the operator's liability insurer, a license shown on request, and reasonable assistance to anyone injured, including arranging transport for treatment where it is apparently necessary or requested. Leaving instead is what the arrest is about.

Your recovery does not depend on that prosecution. The three practical routes are these.

Your own uninsured motorist coverage is usually the first and the best. Tex. Ins. Code § 1952.101(b) provides that an insurer may not deliver or issue for delivery in this state an automobile liability policy unless it provides uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage in or supplemental to the policy, and § 1952.101(c) provides that the required coverage does not apply if an insured named in the policy rejects it in writing. So unless someone signed a written rejection, that coverage should be on your policy. A driver who has no insurance is exactly what it is for, and here the driver is identified, which avoids the harder problem that arises when a hit-and-run driver is never found.

Personal injury protection is the second. Under Tex. Ins. Code § 1952.152 PIP must be provided unless it is rejected in writing, and § 1952.155(a) makes those benefits payable without regard to the fault or nonfault of the named insured and without regard to any collateral source. It pays medical bills and some lost income early, while everything else is still unresolved.

Third, you can sue the driver personally. He is liable for what he did whether or not he is insured and whether or not he is convicted. Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 33.013(a) a liable defendant owes only its own percentage of responsibility, and § 33.001 bars a claimant whose own responsibility exceeds 50 percent. The honest limit is collection: a judgment against someone with no insurance, no license and no assets may be worth very little in practice, which is why the coverage routes come first. Restitution through the criminal case is sometimes available as well, and that is a question for the prosecutor's office.

What you can do

1. Get medical care for everyone in the vehicle and keep going to it. Records made now are the case later.

2. Find your own auto policy and look at the declarations page for uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and for PIP. Report the claim to your own insurer promptly — most policies require it — and stick to the facts of the crash.

3. Request the crash report from the state's crash-report system, and ask the arresting agency's records division for the incident report number. Both are ordinary records requests.

4. Keep what already exists: photographs of the damage and the scene, the paper plate if you photographed it, repair estimates, and any bond or court paperwork you were given.

5. Ask the prosecutor's victim assistance coordinator about restitution and about being notified of court settings. That office exists for this.

6. Do not contact the driver, and do not give a recorded statement to anyone representing him.

*Most lawyers offer a brief initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts — starting with what your own policy actually covers — is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.*

⏱ Time limits apply. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003(a) generally gives two years from the day the claim accrues for personal injury and for property damage. Uninsured motorist and PIP claims also carry notice and cooperation deadlines set by your own policy, which are often much shorter. When each clock started depends on your facts — have a Texas attorney review the dates and your policy now.