What Is a Recorded Statement and Should I Give One After a Texas Car Accident?
Quick Answer A recorded statement is an audio-recorded interview in which an insurance adjuster asks about a crash, fault, injuries, treatment, and damages. You generally should not give a broad recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer before getting legal advice. Your own insurer is different because your policy may require cooperation, but you can […]
Why the Insurance Adjuster Is Not on Your Side After a Texas Car Accident
Quick Answer The insurance adjuster is not on your side because the adjuster works for the insurance company and evaluates what, if anything, the company should pay. The Texas Office of Public Insurance Counsel expressly warns that, in a third-party claim, the other driver’s insurance company is on its driver’s side. You can report the claim […]
Medical Liens, Subrogation, and Your Personal Injury Settlement in Texas: What Gets Paid First?
Quick Answer: A Texas personal injury settlement does not follow one universal rule saying attorney fees or medical liens are always paid first. The settlement normally enters a trust account, then attorney fees, case expenses, and valid third-party claims are calculated under the fee agreement and the law governing each claim. Texas Rule 1.15 requires disputed […]
Do I Pay My Lawyer If We Lose a Personal Injury Case in Texas?
By Ryan Orsatti, Texas personal injury attorney, Ryan Orsatti Law, San Antonio. Quick Answer In many Texas personal injury cases, you do not pay your lawyer an attorney fee if there is no recovery, but the written contingency fee agreement controls. Texas law requires a contingent fee contract for legal services to be in writing […]
How Long Does a Car Accident Case Actually Take in Texas?
By Ryan Orsatti, Texas personal injury attorney, Ryan Orsatti Law, San Antonio. Quick Answer: A Texas car accident case can take a few months for a clear-liability, short-treatment claim, 6 to 18 months for many injury claims, and one to three years or longer if a lawsuit, serious injury, disputed fault, multiple insurance layers, or trial […]
PIP and MedPay in Texas: What They Cover and How to Use Them After a Car Accident
By Ryan Orsatti, Texas personal injury attorney, Ryan Orsatti Law, San Antonio. Quick Answer PIP and MedPay in Texas are coverages on your own auto policy that can help pay accident-related bills after a car accident, regardless of who caused the crash. Texas insurers must include PIP unless it is rejected in writing, while MedPay […]
What Is a Spoliation Letter and Why Your Truck Accident Lawyer Should Send One Immediately
Quick Answer A spoliation letter is a written evidence-preservation notice sent to a trucking company, driver, insurer, broker, maintenance company, or other party after a truck accident. It tells them to preserve evidence that may be relevant to an injury claim or lawsuit. In a Texas truck accident case, this letter should be sent as soon as possible because […]
Who Is Liable When a Semi-Truck Causes a Wreck in Texas? Driver vs. Company vs. Broker
Quick Answer When a semi-truck causes a wreck in Texas, liability may fall on more than one party: the truck driver, the trucking company or motor carrier, the owner of the tractor or trailer, a maintenance company, a cargo loader, a shipper, or sometimes a freight broker. The driver may be liable for unsafe driving, […]
Evidence Preservation in Texas Truck Accident Cases: Why the First 72 Hours Matter
Quick Answer After a serious 18-wheeler or commercial truck wreck in Texas, the most important evidence is often electronic, time-sensitive, and entirely in the trucking company’s control. Within days — sometimes hours — the following can disappear: the truck’s Electronic Control Module (“black box”) data, dashcam footage, telematics, driver text messages, dispatch logs, and the […]
Why Truck Accident Cases Are Different From Regular Car Wrecks in Texas
Quick Answer Truck accident cases are different from regular car wrecks because they usually involve heavier vehicles, more serious injuries, federal trucking regulations, commercial insurance policies, and multiple potentially responsible parties. In a typical car crash, the main question may be whether one driver was negligent. In an 18-wheeler or commercial truck case, the investigation […]