Accident lawyer in Dallas: car, truck, motorcycle and pedestrian crashes

Dallas County recorded 46,257 crashes in 2024, according to TxDOT. Behind each one is a set of questions: who caused it, whose insurance applies and what the people who were hurt can do. This page covers the crashes we handle and the Texas rules that apply to them.

This page is from LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC, the firm behind Injury Claim Lawyer Dallas. Our Dallas office is on Spring Valley Road near the Dallas North Tollway, and our attorneys handle accident claims across Dallas County and the towns around it. The attorney responsible for this site is Michael Uvalle.

Dallas crashes by the numbers

TxDOT’s 2024 county table counts 46,257 crashes in Dallas County, including 305 fatal crashes in which 331 people died, and 1,389 crashes with a suspected serious injury in which 1,648 people were seriously hurt. Statewide, TxDOT counted 4,159 traffic deaths in 2024.

Traffic itself plays a part. The Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s 2025 list of the most congested road segments in Texas ranks Woodall Rodgers Freeway third, R.L. Thornton Freeway (I-30) near downtown 11th, Stemmons Freeway (I-35E) 12th, LBJ Freeway (I-635) between I-35E and US 75 14th and Central Expressway (US 75) between LBJ and Northwest Highway 16th. Congestion is not a crash statistic, but stop-and-go traffic is where many rear-end and merge crashes begin.

The crashes we handle

Car wrecks

Rear-end crashes, intersection crashes, merges and lane changes, wrong-way and red-light crashes. Most car wreck claims turn on fault, so the crash report, photos, witnesses and any video are the first things we gather. Texas also makes it an offense to read, write or send a message on a portable device while the vehicle is moving (Transportation Code section 545.4251), and phone use can be part of the fault picture.

Truck and 18-wheeler crashes

Commercial trucks follow federal safety rules that Texas adopts (Transportation Code section 644.051). Drivers hauling property generally may drive at most 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, may not drive after the 14th hour on duty and need a 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving (49 CFR 395.3). Carriers must keep driving records and supporting documents for at least six months (49 CFR 395.8), must inspect, repair and maintain their vehicles (49 CFR 396.3) and must secure cargo (49 CFR 393.100). Those records are often the heart of a truck claim, which is why we ask for them to be kept right away.

Motorcycle crashes

Riders are hurt badly even in crashes a car would walk away from. TxDOT counted 585 motorcyclists killed statewide in 2024. Texas lets a rider at least 21 years old ride without a helmet if they completed an approved safety course or are covered by health insurance for motorcycle crash injuries (Transportation Code section 661.003). Not wearing a helmet does not by itself bar a claim, though an insurer may raise it under the fault rule.

Pedestrian and bicycle crashes

People on foot and on bicycles have no protection in a crash, and their injuries tend to be serious. These claims depend on the scene: crosswalks, signals, lighting, sight lines and the driver’s speed and attention. Photographs and witness names taken in the first days are especially important. If a store, a bus stop or a building nearby has a camera, its video may have caught the crash, but many systems record over old footage, so we ask for it quickly.

Rideshare crashes

When a rideshare driver is involved, more than one insurance policy may be in play, and which one applies can depend on what the driver was doing at the moment of the crash. We find out which policies cover your crash and deal with each insurer. If you were the passenger, keep the trip receipt from the app; it shows the time, the route and the driver.

Crashes with government vehicles

A city bus, a county truck or a police car changes the deadlines. Written notice generally has to reach the government unit within six months (Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 101.101), a city charter may require it sooner, and the Tort Claims Act caps what can be recovered (section 101.023). Tell us on the first call if a public vehicle was involved.

Who may be responsible besides the driver

A crash claim is not always against one driver. When a driver was working, the employer may share responsibility; in truck cases the motor carrier is usually part of the claim, and Texas has special trial rules for those cases (Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 72). A vehicle owner who let an unsafe driver use a car, a company that loaded cargo badly or a shop that left a repair undone can also be part of the picture.

Defendants often try to point at someone else. A defendant may ask the court to designate a responsible third party, generally at least 60 days before trial (section 33.004), so the jury can assign that person a share of the blame. Finding every party who may be responsible, early, protects the claim against that argument and can bring more insurance coverage into the case.

We look at who owned each vehicle, who employed each driver, what the drivers were doing and what the vehicles were carrying. The answers decide which insurers we put on notice.

What Texas law requires at the scene

• A driver in a crash that injures or kills someone must stop, return if needed, check whether anyone needs aid and remain to exchange information (Transportation Code section 550.021). Leaving is a felony when someone is killed or seriously hurt.
• Drivers must give their name, address, vehicle registration number and liability insurer, show a driver’s license if asked and give reasonable help to anyone hurt (section 550.023).
• A crash with an injury, a death or a vehicle that cannot be driven must be reported to the police in a city or the sheriff elsewhere (section 550.026).

Getting the Texas crash report

When an officer investigates a crash with an injury, a death or apparent property damage of 1,000 dollars or more, the officer must file the Texas Peace Officer’s Crash Report with TxDOT within ten days (section 550.062). The people involved, their authorized representatives, the vehicle owners and the insurers can get the full report (section 550.065), and copies are bought through TxDOT’s online Crash Report Online Purchase System for a small fee. We request it for our clients. Read more in our article on how to get a Dallas crash report.

Fault and the insurer’s first moves

Texas reduces a recovery by your share of responsibility and bars it above 50 percent (Civil Practice and Remedies Code sections 33.001 and 33.012). After a crash the other driver’s insurer will often call quickly, ask for a recorded statement and look for a reason to assign you part of the blame. You do not have to give that statement. Our insurance tactics page explains how adjusters approach a crash claim and how our attorneys, five of seven of whom came from the insurance side, answer them.

After the crash: a short list

1. Call 911 if anyone is hurt, and get medical care.
2. Photograph the vehicles, the road, the signals and your injuries.
3. Get names and numbers of witnesses and the responding officer.
4. Notify your own insurer, but do not give the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement before talking with a lawyer.
5. Keep repair estimates, towing bills, medical bills and pay records.
6. Call us. The consultation is free.

No Fees or Costs Unless We Win: the firm advances case costs, and you owe no attorney’s fee and no case costs unless money is recovered for you.

For the rest of the claim, see our pages on a personal injury lawyer in Dallas, an injury lawyer in Dallas and other case types, including work injuries and dog bites.