Recovering Damages Beyond Insurance Policy Limits in Texas

If you were hurt in an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you may have the right to recover compensation for your losses. Often, filing an insurance claim is the path you take to achieve this. However, in some cases, your damages might exceed your losses. In this situation, you may need to consider other options to recover compensation for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages. An experienced San Antonio personal injury lawyer from The Aguirre Law Firm, PLLC can review your situation and determine what legal options are available to you.

What Are Insurance Policy Limits?

Many people purchase insurance policies to protect them in case something goes wrong or they are legally liable for someone else’s damages. The amount of their premium depends on various factors, but one of the most important is the policy limit, which is the maximum amount the insurance company will pay on a claim. In some situations, the damages an accident victim sustains exceed the policy limit.

What Are Texas’ Minimum Auto Liability Insurance Amounts?

In Texas, all motorists are required to maintain liability insurance that pays for the damages they cause through their negligent driving in the following amounts:

• $30,000 bodily injury for one person injured in an accident
• $60,000 bodily injury for more than one person injured in an accident
• $25,000 property damage per accident

Additionally, Texas requires insurance companies to automatically apply uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to their auto liability policies unless the policyholder rejects it in writing. This insurance can be purchased in $5,000 increments.

These are only the minimum amounts required by law. Motorists may purchase additional insurance to protect them. Many choose to do so since they would be personally responsible for damages that exceed their coverage amounts.

Types of Insurance Claims You May Be Able to Make

If you were injured in an accident that was not your fault, there are various types of insurance claims you may be able to make, whether that was a car accident, truck accident, or other type of accident. Each has its own unique process and can affect your legal rights and different ways, so be sure you discuss these with your San Antonio accident lawyer. Some options may be:

• Filing a claim with an at-fault driver’s liability insurance
• Filing a claim with a trucking company’s liability policy
• Filing a claim with your uninsured motorist coverage if the at-fault driver had no insurance
• Filing a claim with your underinsured motorist coverage if the at-fault driver had too little coverage
• Filing a claim with your insurer’s Personal Injury Protection (PIP) or Medical Payments coverage to cover medical bills and other accident-related losses
• Filing a claim with your insurer’s collision coverage for property damage you sustained
• Filing a claim with your health insurance to cover medical bills
• Filing a claim with your short-term or long-term disability coverage to cover lost wages and other covered losses
• Filing a claim under an umbrella policy in place

Filing a Personal Injury Claim for Damages That Exceed Policy Limits

If you have exhausted all of your insurance options, you may have two options remaining: find other defendants who may have insurance policies in place and file claims with those or file a personal injury lawsuit against the negligent party. An experienced attorney can walk you through this process.

Contact Us for Immediate Legal Assistance

If you’ve been seriously injured, you deserve to be fairly compensated and to know what your legal options are for being made whole again. An experienced personal injury lawyer from The Aguirre Law Firm, PLLC can help. Schedule a free consultation online.