When driving down the road, the last thing you expect is for an accident to just suddenly happen; no other cars, just you and a dangerous roadway. In these accidents – and in accidents where more cars are involved, getting damages can be tricky.
First, check your own insurance. You may have coverages that can get at least some of your damages paid quickly while your lawyers see if we can hold someone else responsible. There are multiple parties who could be at fault, from the government responsible for the roadway to its contractors that carry out repairs to other parties that made that roadway dangerous.
In any case, call our Dallas, TX car accident lawyers for a free case review. Contact The Queenan Law Firm at (817) 476-1797 today.
Using Your Own Insurance
Getting you damages is the first priority for your Texas car accident lawyers, and sometimes the fastest way to do that is through your own insurance. We may be able to ultimately hold other parties liable, but your own coverage may help with bills and expenses in the meantime.
At-Fault vs. No-Fault Insurance
Texas uses an at-fault or “tort” insurance system, where the parties at fault for a crash use their insurance to cover the accident. However, you might have coverages on your own policy that can help you out in a pinch.
The most common coverages that might help in this situation are medical payment (“MedPay”) coverage and collision coverage. These pay for medical bills and vehicle damage, respectively, regardless of how the accident happened. These can help with some of your bills while we carry out the rest of your case.
Subrogation
If you do get paid through your insurance, then you sue an at-fault party, your insurance might ask to be paid back for the money they fronted you. This is called subrogation, and your lawyers can talk you through how it works.
Generally, damages you get above and beyond what your insurance covered – especially pain and suffering – will not be subrogated; they can only claim the amounts they actually paid you.
Suing for Crashes Caused by Road Obstructions
Once you get some payment this way, we can still file a lawsuit against at-fault parties.
Filing
You must file your claim within 2 years, though claims against the government have additional filing and notice requirements. When you file a claim, you provide the court and the defendant with a “complaint” that lays out all of the facts, explains how the facts show the defendant was responsible, and lists the damages you are claiming.
Damages
Lawsuits can pay for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering the defendant caused. In some cases, repeated failures to correct a dangerous road condition could actually result in punitive damages.
You cannot sue the government for punitive damages, but you can sue other parties.
Proof of Fault
For someone to be liable for a crash, you must show that they breached a legal duty they owed you, and that that caused the crash. This can be an explicit traffic law or other ordinance, or it may be a failure to act reasonably in a given situation.
Who is At Fault for Objects and Hazards in the Roadway?
Car crashes caused by dangerous road conditions might be blamed on someone else, but they are sometimes just “freak accidents.” We will address the most common potential parties you can sue, but you can also try to use your own insurance if no one was at fault.
Governments
Local, city, state, and federal governments are responsible for road maintenance. Potholes, broken road surfaces, and poor designs (slopes/banks going the wrong way, tight corners, etc.) might be the government’s fault.
However, you cannot sue them just because there was a danger. You have to show they actually had notice of the danger and a reasonable time to fix it first, which can often be shown through records of reports and other evidence in the government’s possession.
Contractors
Often, the government carries out road construction and repairs through contractors. If they were the ones who made mistakes, they could be liable in place of the government.
This often comes down to negligent repairs, steel plates left across the road, and other dangers the contractors create while working on the road.
Other Drivers
If a driver causes a hazard on the road, but leaves it there with no warning, they could be responsible. For example, if a driver scraped against a highway divider and lost their bumper, but just left it there on the road, they could be responsible for a driver later hitting it.
Drivers need to report crashes and road hazards they cause, and they can be liable for secondary crashes. Finding who they were might be as simple as matching the VIN number on a piece of debris to the vehicle it came from, but this is not always possible (e.g., if the debris had no identifiable markings). Instead, we may need to look for security footage of the hazard being created.
Property Owners
Sometimes the owners of the property adjacent to the roadway create the hazard. For example, if a property owner’s tree fell across the roadway, they need to clear it, warn about it, or call the authorities to close the roadway. If they did not, then they could be responsible for crashes it causes.
How Do You Find Out Who is Responsible?
Tracking down the at-fault party can be difficult in some cases. It often depends on what the obstruction was and what proof you have that they caused it.
Responsibility for Road Design
If the problem with the roadway was its unsafe design, we may need to speak with experts to get an assessment that shows how dangerous the roadway was. The government or its contractors are usually responsible for dangerous designs.
This could involve unsafe flooding or drainage, strange embankments, odd narrow stretches, or other issues. It may also be possible that the government had records of complaints at public hearings or meetings in the past and already should have known about this danger.
Responsibility for Road Upkeep
Governments are responsible for upkeep on their roads. If they get a report that the road was unsafe, then they are on notice. If a reasonable time passes without adequate repairs, then they can be liable for the crash.
That means you need to prove that they had notice and that a reasonable time passed. Their records of calls and reports can be used to show notice.
Evidence in the Debris
Depending on what was left in the roadway, we may be able to use that to find who was responsible. For example, if you hit an auto part that had the vehicle’s VIN number on it, we can potentially track down the owner that way. The same is true for products or cargo that fell off another vehicle if they have identifying information.
Video and Testimony
If others saw the debris or dangers fall or begin, they might have reported it. Additionally, nearby stores and buildings might have security footage of the accident or situation that caused the danger.
For example, if a tree fell on the road, a property owner’s own security camera might show that it was there for hours before they cleared or reported it.
What Should I Do if I Find a Hazard on the Road?
Whether you actually hit it or not, you should report any hazards to hopefully prevent future crashes. If someone else took these kinds of steps, it may function as the “notice” you need to show that the government had so you can hold them responsible.
Reporting to the Government
TxDOT (the Texas Department of Transportation) has a reporting form for dangers in the roadway. This is only for TxDOT roads, but individual cities, towns, and counties might have offices or reporting forms for their roads. The TxDOT is also responsible for reports of things like a deer on the roadway, as per this article from the Texas Parks & Wildlife Service.
You can also report dangers to TxDOT at (800) 558-9368.
Reporting to Police
If the danger is serious, and you think it needs to be cleared immediately, you can report it to the police. Call 911 and let them know where it is, what it is, and how dangerous it is so they can take appropriate steps to stop traffic, close roads, clear it themselves, or pass it along to TxDOT.
Other Reports
If you use an app like Waze, you can report hazards without skipping a beat in your driving. These are helpful for letting other drivers know about dangers and helping them avoid hitting them.
Clearing the Danger Yourself
If the road isn’t busy and you can safely clear a danger yourself, feel free to do so. For example, stopping your neighbor’s garbage can from rolling around in the street can help keep your neighborhood safe.
However, never stop on highways or other dangerous roads.
FAQs for Crashes from Dangerous Roadways in Texas
Can I Sue for a Crash in Bad Weather?
Sometimes sudden bad weather is enough to cause crashes even when everyone is driving as safely as they can. However, just because the roads are dangerous doesn’t absolve anyone of fault. If they were driving too fast for a flash flood or random snowstorm, the crash could still be their fault, for example.
What if I Caused a Crash Trying to Avoid a Danger on the Road?
Sometimes we do our best to drive safely despite dangers, and it actually causes a crash. If you were acting reasonably when you swerved to avoid a pothole or branch in the road, for example, the crash might not be your fault.
Drivers and other parties can only be held responsible if they did something wrong, and doing the best you can to avoid a crash might be legally acceptable. This could still let you sue the party that caused the danger or obstruction.
What Road Hazards Can You Sue For?
Whether you can sue for any particular hazard depends heavily on the situation and what caused the crash. However, many crashes are caused by
- Downed power lines
- Downed trees or branches
- Flooding
- Uncleared snow
- Debris from a prior crash
- Debris that fell off other vehicles
- Shredded truck tires
- Disabled vehicles left obstructing the roadway
- Trash cans
- Potholes
- Dangerous road designs
- Dangerous unmarked or unpainted speed bumps/speed humps
- Unmarked road construction
- Steel plates covering construction without proper warnings or safety precautions
- Roadside construction materials left in the roadway
Can You Sue for Hazardous Materials on the Road?
If a trucking company or other company left hazardous materials (HAZMATs) in the roadway, they could be liable. Many state and federal regulations deal with how to transport HAZMATs and what to do if they leak or cause a crash. If improper steps were taken, they could be liable for your later crash.
What if You Could Not See the Dangerous Conditions at Night?
As long as your headlights were working and you were driving safely, the fact that there was a danger in the roadway could be enough to hold someone responsible for the danger. Improper lighting on a roadway could also be part of that danger if there were street lights blown out or disabled.
The fact that you would have avoided the crash just fine in the daytime isn’t enough to pin the crash on you just because you happened to be there at night.
How Long is “Reasonable” for Clearing or Repairing a Dangerous Roadway?
When things like downed trees and power lines fall on the roadway, governments often act quickly to at least warn of the danger. How long is a “reasonable” time to clear the hazard will depend on when the accident happened (nighttime, holidays), how serious the danger is, and what kind of resources are available to fix it (e.g., during regional emergencies, government resources might be taxed).
Otherwise, there doesn’t necessarily need to be an immediate solution or fix; the government might just need to get out there and put up warning signs or close the road to prevent injury. An actual repair may come later and still be “reasonable.”
Call Our Texas Car Accident Attorneys Today
Call (817) 476-1797 for a free case evaluation with The Queenan Law Firm’s Bedford, TX car accident attorneys.