Car accidents · Subcategory
Uninsured Motorist Claims Lawyer in Texas
Uninsured and underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage is the part of your own auto policy that protects you when the driver who caused the crash either has no insurance or carries less than your damages require. Texas Insurance Code Chapter 1952, Subchapter A, requires every auto insurer to offer this coverage on every policy issued in the state, and the coverage applies automatically unless the named insured rejected it in writing. The mechanics of UM/UIM are different from a normal third-party claim, and the difference is where most clients lose money when they handle these claims alone.
How UM differs from UIM, and why it matters
UM (uninsured motorist) coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no liability insurance: either they were uninsured outright, the policy lapsed, or they fled the scene unidentified. UIM (underinsured motorist) coverage applies when the at-fault driver has insurance but their policy limit is less than the damages. UIM is the more common scenario in practice because Texas minimum liability is $30,000 per person, a figure that disappears the moment a hospital admission or surgery is on the table. Most Texas auto policies bundle UM and UIM together under a single coverage selection. The functional difference shows up in the settlement mechanics: you have to exhaust the at-fault driver's limits (or get carrier consent to settle below limits) before UIM coverage opens up.
The written-waiver requirement and why so many policies have UM/UIM even when the client doesn't know it
Texas Insurance Code § 1952.101 requires UM/UIM coverage to be included in every auto policy in the state unless the named insured rejects the coverage in writing. The rejection has to be on a specific form, signed by the insured. The practical result is that a large share of Texas drivers carry UM/UIM coverage they have forgotten about, or that was added by the agent at the time of binding without much explanation. We pull the policy declarations page on every car-accident file we open, and we have surfaced UM/UIM coverage clients did not know they had on a routine basis. When the at-fault driver carries minimum limits, that overlooked UM/UIM is often the most valuable layer on the file.
Stacking household policies and the Brainard consent rule
Texas allows UM/UIM coverage to apply across household policies in many situations: an injured passenger may have access to UM/UIM coverage from their own policy, the driver's policy, and resident family members' policies all on the same claim, depending on policy language. The Texas Supreme Court's decision in Brainard v. Trinity Universal Insurance Co. established that a UIM carrier has no contractual duty to pay until the insured establishes the at-fault driver's liability and damages, meaning a UIM carrier can wait until a judgment is entered against the underinsured driver before paying. The practical effect is that UIM claims often require litigation and either a settlement with carrier consent or a judgment that fixes liability. We plan for that procedural posture on every UIM file rather than treating it like a normal liability claim.
The carrier's adversarial posture in your own UM/UIM claim
The hardest thing for clients to accept is that a UM/UIM claim is not friendly; it is adversarial in everything but name. Your own carrier defends a UM/UIM claim the same way a third-party carrier defends a liability claim: they investigate fault, they argue comparative fault, they dispute medical causation, they make low offers. The bad-faith and Insurance Code remedies under Tex. Ins. Code Chapter 541 and Chapter 542 apply to a carrier's handling of a first-party UM/UIM claim, and we use them when the carrier's conduct crosses the line. The lesson is to treat the UM/UIM claim with the same discipline as any third-party claim: full medical workup, documented damages, formal demand, and willingness to file.
Frequently asked
Questions Texas accident victims ask us
- Probably yes, unless you specifically rejected it in writing when you bought the policy. Texas Insurance Code § 1952.101 requires every auto carrier to include UM/UIM coverage on every policy unless the named insured signs a specific waiver form rejecting it. A large share of Texas drivers carry UM/UIM coverage without remembering they have it. Check your declarations page; it will be a line item labeled UM, UIM, or UM/UIM with per-person and per-accident limits.
- UM coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no liability insurance at all (uninsured, lapsed policy, or unidentified hit-and-run driver). UIM coverage applies when the at-fault driver has insurance but the policy limits are less than the damages, so for a serious case against a driver carrying only Texas minimum coverage of $30,000, UIM picks up where the at-fault policy ends. Most Texas policies bundle UM and UIM together under a single coverage line.
- Yes, but you usually need your UIM carrier's written consent before accepting the settlement. Most UIM policies include a consent-to-settle clause; settling without consent can void your UIM coverage. The procedure under the Texas Supreme Court's framework requires you to notify the UIM carrier, give them the opportunity to match the third-party offer (substituting their payment for the third party's release), and obtain their consent or follow the policy's procedure before signing the third-party release.
- Because under Texas law a UM/UIM claim is structured as if the insured were suing the at-fault driver, the insurance carrier essentially defends the absent at-fault driver's liability. The Texas Supreme Court's Brainard decision established that the UIM carrier has no contractual duty to pay until the insured proves the at-fault driver's negligence and damages. The practical posture is adversarial: your carrier investigates fault, disputes causation, and negotiates exactly like any third-party liability carrier.
- Tex. Ins. Code Chapter 542 (the prompt-payment provisions) and Chapter 541 (unfair claim-settlement practices) apply to your carrier's handling of a UM/UIM claim. Carriers face statutory penalties and attorney's fees for unreasonable delay or denial. We use these provisions to push carrier conduct on files where the delay or low-ball is unreasonable, and the leverage is real. Insurance Code violations come with their own remedies separate from the underlying coverage.
- Sometimes, depending on policy language and the relationship of the insured to each policy. A passenger may have access to UM/UIM coverage from their own policy, the driver's policy, and resident family members' policies on the same claim. Stacking analysis turns on policy definitions: who is a 'covered person,' what counts as a 'covered vehicle,' and how the other-insurance and anti-stacking provisions are written. The analysis is policy-specific, and we run it on every UM/UIM file because overlooked stacking is one of the most common ways money is left on the table.
- Often yes. UM/UIM coverage in Texas typically extends to the named insured and resident family members regardless of whether they were in a vehicle at the time of injury, meaning you may be covered as a pedestrian or cyclist, or as a passenger in a friend's car. The exact scope depends on the policy's definition of covered persons, but the protection is usually broader than people assume.
- Longer than a comparable third-party liability case. The carrier's required claim-handling procedure, the consent-to-settle steps if there is a third-party tortfeasor, and the Brainard rule's requirement of proven liability and damages all extend the timeline. A clean UM claim with full coverage and a cooperative carrier can resolve in six to twelve months. A contested UIM claim with surgical injury and an adversarial carrier often takes eighteen to thirty months and frequently requires filing suit to force the procedural posture forward.
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