Hit-and-run accidents are regrettably common in Austin. They can also happen anywhere: you could be driving home along Interstate 35 or MoPac Expressway, finding a spot in a downtown parking garage, or even arriving in your own neighborhood when another motorist crashes into your vehicle and then flees the scene without stopping to render aid first.
When you’ve been seriously injured and can’t find the at-fault driver, it creates insurance complications. Texas is an at-fault state for auto accidents, so who will cover your medical bills, lost wages, and property damage? What if you’ve suffered a traumatic brain injury and need lifelong support and medical care? Are you stuck handling all these costs and limitations on your own?
At the Texas Law Guns, Injury & Accident Lawyers, we fight for those injured by negligent motorists. Our Austin hit and run accident lawyers can thoroughly investigate your case, identify insurance options when the liable driver remains unknown, and fight for the compensation you need to get your life back on track.
Why Hire The Texas Law Guns for Your Austin Hit and Run Accident?
When the at-fault driver has disappeared, you may not even know where to begin with your claim. Our Austin car accident lawyers bring the investigation resources and the legal acumen you need to pursue financial compensation, so you’re not stuck worrying about your future. When you hire the Texas Law Guns, Injury & Accident Lawyers, we bring the following advantages to your personal injury case.
- Dedicated Personal Injury Focus: We handle only personal injury cases, which means every attorney on our team has dedicated their career to this area of law. You won’t work with a general practitioner who splits time between real estate closings and criminal defense. Our entire practice revolves around getting injured people the money they need to recover.
- Team-Based Investigation: Each hit-and-run case is handled by a dedicated team. This team reviews police reports, canvasses businesses for surveillance footage, interviews witnesses, and works with auto accident reconstruction experts to piece together what happened.
- Proven Track Record: We’ve secured more than $500 million in verdicts and settlements for our clients, with a 99% case success rate. These numbers reflect our extensive trial preparation and negotiation experience. Insurance companies know our reputation, which gives us leverage when we’re demanding fair compensation on your behalf.
- No Upfront Costs: Our Austin car accident lawyers handle all hit and run cases on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing until we recover money for you, and if we don’t win your case, you owe us nothing. This arrangement lets you pursue justice without worrying about hourly legal bills at an already-difficult time.
- Strong Negotiation Skills: Insurance companies routinely deny, delay, and lowball hit-and-run claims because they know victims feel powerless. Our Austin hit and run attorneys know how to document your injuries, calculate your full damages, and push back when an adjuster offers a settlement that doesn’t cover your needs.
You shouldn’t have to deal with a hit-and-run claim on top of everything else while you’re recovering from severe injuries. Our Austin car accident attorneys take over communications with insurance companies, coordinate with law enforcement, and build your case while you receive medical care. We’ve helped hundreds of Austin residents recover compensation after hit-and-run crashes, and we’re ready to do the same for you.
What Is a Hit and Run Under Texas Law?
A hit and run occurs when a driver leaves the scene of a collision without stopping to exchange information and render aid. Under Texas Transportation Code Chapter 550, drivers in this state have a duty to stop after any accident involving another vehicle, a fixture, or a structure. This means that you must immediately stop at the accident scene (or as close to it as safely possible) or return to it if you didn’t stop there initially. You also have to:
- Provide your name, address, vehicle registration number, and car insurance information to the other driver.
- Show your driver’s license if requested and
- If someone is injured, provide reasonable assistance, which includes calling 911 or arranging transportation to a hospital.
While leaving the scene is a criminal offense, our focus here is on your right to compensation as an injury victim. You can pursue a personal injury claim to recover damages for your medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering, regardless of what criminal charges the fleeing driver faces.
Immediate Steps to Take After a Hit and Run in Austin
When you’ve been struck by a negligent motorist, your immediate priority is safety. If you can do so without causing further injury, move yourself and your passengers to a safe location away from traffic and call 911 right away. Even if you feel fine, adrenaline can mask injuries like concussions, internal bleeding, or soft tissue damage that show up hours later, so make medical attention a priority. If you decline ambulance transport, see a doctor within 24 hours.
Other recommended steps include:
- Preserve Information at the Scene: Note everything you can remember about the fleeing vehicle. Write down the color, make, model, any partial license plate numbers, the direction the driver headed in, and any visible damage to their car. Take photos and videos of your vehicle, the roadway, skid marks, debris, and any visible injuries you or your passengers have sustained.
- Look for Surveillance Footage: Scan the area for nearby businesses, homes, or traffic cameras that might have captured the collision. Gas stations, restaurants, apartment buildings, and traffic signals often have cameras pointed at the street. Make note of these locations so your attorney can request camera and CCTV footage before it’s deleted or recorded over.
- File a Police Report: Call the Austin Police Department and file a crash report immediately. Texas law requires you to report any car accident involving injury, death, or property damage over $1,000. A police report, which creates an official record of the incident, can be critical evidence when you file an insurance claim or pursue civil litigation.
- Contact an Attorney Quickly: An Austin hit and run attorney can begin working on your case while evidence is still available. We coordinate with law enforcement to track down the fleeing driver, locate additional surveillance footage, interview witnesses, and handle all communications with insurance companies from day one, so that you can concentrate on getting proper medical treatment.
Insurance Coverage Options After an Austin Hit and Run
When the at-fault driver has fled the scene and can’t be identified, you don’t automatically lose your right to financial compensation: there are actually different avenues for recovering damages in this situation. An experienced attorney reviews every applicable policy to find all available sources of compensation.
- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage: UM/UIM insurance coverage, which protects you when the at-fault driver has no liability insurance, also applies if the car accident is a hit-and-run. Insurance companies must offer uninsured motorist coverage when you buy auto insurance, and if you don’t want it, you have to turn it down in writing. In a hit-and-run case, the fleeing driver is treated as uninsured, which triggers your UM/UIM coverage.
- Personal Injury Protection: Texas insurance companies must provide $2,500 per person in PIP coverage unless it is rejected in writing. PIP pays for reasonable accident-related medical and funeral expenses as well as 80 percent of lost wages. PIP coverage becomes particularly valuable in hit-and-run cases because it pays immediately while the investigation continues.
- Medical Payments Coverage: If you have it, MedPay covers reasonable accident-related medical and funeral expenses, but no lost wages. Unlike PIP, if you recover from a third party, MedPay must be paid back to your insurance provider. This subrogation requirement makes PIP a better option when you have a choice between the two.
- Collision Coverage: Your collision coverage pays for vehicle repairs or total loss in a hit and run, subject to your deductible. This coverage applies regardless of who caused the car accident or whether the other driver is ever identified. If your vehicle is totaled, collision coverage pays the actual cash value minus your deductible.
Your Austin hit and run attorney can examine all available options to maximize your recovery. This includes your own auto policy, those belonging to relatives you live with, and employer-provided policies if you were injured while using a company vehicle. Our attorneys handle hit and run cases regularly and know where to look for coverage and as well as how to stack multiple policies when Texas law allows it.
Recoverable Compensation in a Hit and Run Injury Case
Hit and run victims can recover both economic and non-economic damages. They include:
- Past and Future Medical Expenses: You can recover the full cost of medical treatment related to your injuries. This includes future medical expenses if you need ongoing treatment, additional surgeries, or long-term care. Your attorney works with medical experts to document the treatment you’ll require and calculate the cost of that care over your lifetime.
- Lost Wages and Loss of Earning Capacity: If your injuries prevented you from working, you can recover the income you lost during your recovery. If you can’t return to your previous job or work at the same capacity you did before the accident, you can recover damages for loss of earning capacity.
- Property Damage: You can recover the cost to repair or replace your vehicle, along with the diminished value if your car is worth less after repairs than it was before the collision. You’re also entitled to recover rental car expenses while your vehicle is being repaired, as well as towing and storage fees.
- Pain and Suffering: Physical pain from your injuries, mental anguish, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbances all qualify as compensable damages.
- Loss of Enjoyment of Life: If your injuries prevent you from participating in activities you enjoyed before the accident, you can recover damages for loss of enjoyment of life.
- Wrongful Death Damages: When a hit-and-run crash is fatal, surviving family members can file a wrongful death claim.
Every hit and run case is different, which is why there are no ‘standard’ settlement offers. A broken bone that heals completely in three months creates a different claim than a traumatic brain injury that needs lifelong care. An experienced personal injury makes sure all your losses are documented, valued, and included in your demand for compensation.
Deadlines and Texas Statute of Limitations
Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003 establishes a two-year statute of limitations for most personal injury claims, including car accidents. This means you have exactly two years from the date of your injury to file a lawsuit in court, and the clock starts ticking on the date of accrual, when your injury occurs. After two years pass, courts will usually dismiss your case, so it’s important to speak to a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible.
Get a Free Consultation From an Austin Hit and Run Accident Attorney
Being struck by a driver who then flees the scene is devastating. If it happens to you, contact Texas Law Guns, Injury & Accident Lawyers today for a free consultation. You can call us at 866-387-2113 or reach out through our website to speak with an attorney who can evaluate your case, explain your options, and begin fighting for the compensation you need to move forward with your life. Early action makes a real difference in hit-and-run cases, and we’re ready to get started today.
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