If the driver who hit you in Dallas had no insurance, or not enough of it, Texas law lets you turn to your own policy’s uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage instead of chasing a driver who cannot pay. A Dallas uninsured motorist lawyer can help you find out whether that coverage exists on your policy, whether it was ever rejected, and how much time you have left to act.
What happens if the driver who hit you in Dallas has no insurance?
If the driver who hit you has no insurance, you are not left only with a claim against a driver who has nothing to pay a judgment with. Texas law requires most auto policies to include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, which lets you make a claim against your own insurer for the damages the at-fault driver would otherwise owe you. This coverage exists specifically because a judgment against an uninsured driver is often not collectible, so your own policy becomes the practical source of recovery. Whether it actually applies to your crash depends on your policy’s limits, whether that coverage was ever rejected, and the facts of how the crash happened, which is why reviewing your own declarations page matters as much as finding out about the other driver’s insurance status. A Dallas uninsured motorist lawyer can help confirm which situation applies before you file anything.
Does Texas law require uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage?
Yes, Texas law requires an insurer to include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in an auto liability policy sold in this state, in at least the minimum limits set by the Texas Transportation Code, unless the named insured rejects that coverage in writing. Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.101(b) states that an insurer may not deliver or issue an automobile liability policy in Texas, including one issued through the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan Association, unless it provides this coverage in or alongside the policy. That requirement protects insureds who are legally entitled to recover from the owner or operator of an uninsured or underinsured vehicle for injury, death, or property damage. The exception is Section 1952.101(c): the requirement does not apply if any named insured on the policy rejected the coverage in writing, which means the mandate and the rejection have to be read together rather than as separate rules.
What’s the difference between uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage?
Uninsured motorist coverage applies when the at-fault driver has no liability insurance at all or when that driver’s insurer cannot pay because it is insolvent, while underinsured motorist coverage applies when the at-fault driver has insurance but its limits are too low to cover your damages. Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.102(a) says an insured vehicle counts as an uninsured motor vehicle if the liability insurer is unable, because of insolvency, to pay within the policy’s limits. Section 1952.103 defines an underinsured motor vehicle as one with collectible liability coverage whose limits were either originally lower than, or were reduced by paying other claims from the same accident to less than, the limit of your own underinsured motorist coverage. Section 1952.102(b) also lets the insurance commissioner allow policy forms that define ‘uninsured motor vehicle’ to exclude certain vehicles whose operators are, in fact, uninsured, so the exact definition in your own policy can narrow what counts.
Did you reject UM/UIM coverage without realizing it?
You may have rejected uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in writing at some point without remembering it, and under Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.101(c), that rejection does not expire with the policy it was made on. Once a named insured rejects the coverage in writing, the insurer is not required to provide it again on a renewal or reinstated policy, even where the rejection was signed on an earlier policy from the same insurer or an affiliated insurer, unless the named insured requests the coverage in writing. That means a rejection signed years ago, possibly by someone else on the policy, can still be the reason your current declarations page shows no uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage at all. The only way to know is to check your policy and ask your insurer whether a written rejection is on file, and if one is, you can request the coverage in writing going forward.
Did you actually reject this coverage, or did your insurer just skip it?
A rejection you do not remember signing can still be the reason your policy shows no uninsured motorist coverage today.
How many Dallas-area crashes actually involve this problem?
The Texas Department of Transportation counted 24,677 crashes in the city of Dallas in 2025 and 43,946 in Dallas County in 2025, and any one of them could have involved a driver with no insurance or not enough of it. TxDOT’s crash data does not break out how many of those crashes specifically involved an uninsured or underinsured driver, so these counts are a measure of scale, not a count of uninsured-driver crashes. What they show is that a crash with an insurance gap on the other side is not a remote possibility in Dallas; it is one of tens of thousands of crashes recorded in the city and county in a single year. Whether your own crash is one of them depends on the other driver’s coverage, which is something you can usually find out from the crash report or the insurance information exchanged at the scene.
How long do you have to file a UM/UIM claim after a Dallas crash?
Texas law gives you two years from the day your claim accrues to file a personal injury lawsuit. Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003(a) sets that two-year period for your claim against the driver who hit you, running from the day of the crash itself, not from when you first contact your insurer or first learn that the other driver had no insurance. A claim against your own insurer under your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage is different: it is a claim on your policy, which is a contract, and Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.051 sets a four-year period for an action with no express limitations period of its own. Texas courts have also held that an uninsured or underinsured motorist insurer has no contractual duty to pay until a judgment establishes the other driver’s liability and underinsured status, so the claim against your own insurer does not simply accrue on the day of the crash. If your two years from the crash has already passed, that is a reason to have the dates checked, not a reason to assume every claim connected to that crash is closed.
What should you check first if you think you have a UM/UIM claim?
The first thing to check is your own policy’s declarations page, which lists your uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage limits, or shows that you have none at all. Next, check whether your insurer has a written rejection of that coverage on file for you, since that rejection, if one exists, explains why the coverage might be missing entirely. It also helps to gather the police crash report and any insurance information exchanged at the scene, since those documents show whether the at-fault driver had no insurance or limits too low to cover your damages. Once you know what your own policy actually provides, you are in a position to decide whether to make a claim under it, and how quickly you need to move given the deadlines that can apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if I’m hit by an uninsured driver in Texas?
If you are hit by an uninsured driver in Texas, you can make a claim under your own policy’s uninsured motorist coverage instead of relying only on a claim against the at-fault driver. This coverage exists because a judgment against a driver with no insurance and no assets is often impossible to collect. Whether it applies to your crash depends on your policy’s limits and whether that coverage was ever rejected in writing.
Is uninsured motorist coverage required in Texas?
Yes, Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.101(b) requires an insurer to include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in an auto liability policy sold in the state. The one exception is Section 1952.101(c): a named insured can reject the coverage in writing, and that rejection can carry forward to a renewal or reinstated policy without the insurer offering it again. So the coverage is required unless a written rejection is on file for your policy.
Can I sue an uninsured driver in Texas?
Yes, Texas law does not stop you from suing the driver who hit you directly, even if that driver has no insurance. The practical problem is collecting on a judgment against a driver who has no insurance and often few assets, which is why uninsured motorist coverage under your own policy exists as a more realistic path to recovery. The two options, suing the driver directly and making a claim under your own uninsured motorist coverage, are not mutually exclusive, but tell your own insurer before you settle with or release the at-fault driver: under Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.108(a), an insurer that pays you under this coverage is entitled to the proceeds of any settlement or judgment you get from that driver, so signing a release first can affect what is left of the claim on your own policy.
How long do I have to file a claim after a car accident in Texas?
Texas gives you two years from the day of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit against the driver who hit you, under Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.003(a). A claim against your own insurer under your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage is a contract claim, and Civil Practice and Remedies Code Section 16.051 sets four years for an action with no express limitations period, so a passed deadline on the personal injury side is a reason to have it checked rather than a reason to assume the UM/UIM claim is gone.
A Dallas uninsured motorist lawyer can review your policy’s declarations page, check for any written rejection on file, and tell you whether your deadline is still open before you file anything. There is no fee unless we win. Case expenses are advanced by the firm and reimbursed from the recovery, and if there is no recovery you owe no fee and no expenses. Attorney responsible for this page: Thanos Simoudis, licensed in Texas, primary office Los Angeles, California. Case expenses are advanced by the firm and repaid from the recovery, and if there is no recovery, no case costs are charged. Call (214) 269-1184 for a free case review, or send us the details and we will call you back. More on Dallas personal injury claims.
