A property damage claim in Texas after a Houston wreck

The car is usually the first claim to move after a wreck, and often the first place people lose money they did not need to lose. Here is how a property damage claim in Texas works, from the photos at the scene to the final check for the repair.

This article comes from the Houston office of LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC. The attorney responsible for this site is Jonathan Harris, Board Certified, Personal Injury Trial Law – Texas Board of Legal Specialization, and he practices primarily from our Houston office.

Two separate claims from one wreck

A wreck that hurts you and damages your car creates two claims that move on different tracks. The property damage claim covers the car and other things damaged in the wreck; the injury claim covers medical care, lost pay and the rest. The property side usually resolves first. Settling it does not have to settle your injuries, but read any paperwork closely before signing to make sure it covers only the car.

Sign for the car only. Make sure the paper does not release your injuries.

Whose insurance pays for the car

When the other driver caused the wreck, you can claim against that driver’s liability policy. Texas law requires at least $25,000 in property damage liability coverage for each crash (Transportation Code section 601.072). That is a statutory floor, so a driver may carry more, and a newer vehicle plus other damaged property can run past it.

You can also go through your own policy if you carry collision coverage, usually after paying your deductible. Your insurer may then try to collect from the at-fault driver’s insurer. Which route is faster depends on how the other insurer responds and whether fault is disputed. If the other driver had no insurance, your own uninsured motorist coverage, which comes with Texas policies unless rejected in writing (Insurance Code section 1952.101), may cover property damage depending on your policy terms. See our post on an uninsured driver claim in Houston.

Proving the damage

The adjuster’s appraiser will look at the car, but the photos you take are your own record of what happened. Before the car is moved or repaired, photograph:

• Every damaged panel, from a few steps back and up close.
• The inside of the car, including airbags and seats.
• The other vehicle and its plate.
• The road, the lanes and any debris.

The crash report matters for property too. When an officer investigates a crash with apparent property damage of $1,000 or more, or with injury or death, the CR-3 goes to TxDOT within 10 days (Transportation Code section 550.062). It names the drivers, the insurers and the officer’s view of what happened.

Repair or total loss

The insurer will either pay to repair the car or declare it a total loss and pay its value. With a repair, get a written estimate from a shop you trust and keep every supplement the shop writes when it finds hidden damage. With a total loss, ask how the value was figured and what comparable vehicles were used, and look up your own comparables before you agree.

Ask early about a rental or loss of use, and keep receipts for towing and storage. Storage fees add up by the day, so move the car to a shop or your home as soon as you can.

Diminished value after the repair

A repaired car with a wreck on its history often sells for less than the same car without one. That loss is the subject of a diminished value claim in Texas, brought against the at-fault driver’s insurer. It is a separate request from the repair, and insurers rarely raise it on their own.

Fault still matters for property

Texas comparative fault rules apply to the car as well. You can recover if your share of responsibility is 50 percent or less, and your recovery is reduced by that share (Civil Practice and Remedies Code sections 33.001 and 33.012). If the other insurer says you were partly at fault, ask what the percentage is and what it is based on.

Most people handle a simple property claim on their own. When the wreck also hurt you, our guide on how to file a car accident claim and our page on a car accident claim lawyer in Houston explain where we come in.