Houston Car Accident Lawyer

Car Accident Lawyer.

The first day after a crash is when the other side moves fastest. The tow truck arrives, the adjuster calls, a statement gets asked for, and the case starts being decided in hours. A lawyer on the line is what evens the field.

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If you searched for a Houston car accident lawyer, the crash was serious enough to call about. An injury, pain that has not gone away, a car that is gone, or a family member who did not come home. The insurance company on the other side is already working its file, with its adjuster and its lawyers. You deserve the same.

I am Orlando Rodriguez, a trial lawyer in Houston. I take serious car accident cases: crashes with significant injuries, drunk and impaired drivers, hit-and-run, deaths on the road, and crashes with uninsured or underinsured drivers. I write my own letters, I take my own depositions, and when the case goes to trial, I am the one in the courtroom.

Free consultation

Call (713) 239-2300 or tell me what happened. No fees unless we win.

The first things to do

Medical care, always. The injuries that hurt worst a week later are often the ones you did not feel that day: whiplash, herniated discs, concussions. Going to the doctor is for your health first, and the medical records are also half of the case.

A police report, always, even if the other driver asks to work it out directly. A report with a case number puts the facts in writing before the stories change. And do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company. The questions sound harmless; their purpose is not.

Keep everything. Photos of the cars, the scene, and your injuries. Text messages between the drivers. The names and numbers of witnesses. Photos of the signs and the signal if they were involved. And if you think the other driver was on a phone, say so early, because that record does not keep itself, which is what The Phone is about.

The insurance math

Texas requires a driver to carry only thirty thousand dollars of liability coverage for each person injured, and sixty thousand for everyone hurt in the same crash (Transportation Code Section 601.072). In a serious crash, the other driver’s policy is often the smallest number in the case.

That is why your own policy matters. A Texas insurer must include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in an auto policy unless it was rejected in writing (Insurance Code Section 1952.101), and that coverage is often what pays when the driver who caused the crash has too little insurance, none, or drove away. And Texas divides fault rather than ending the case over it: if the other side says you were partly responsible, your recovery is reduced by your share, and only a share above fifty percent bars it, which is what Comparative Fault is about.

The car cases I take

Crashes with serious injuries

Whiplash, herniated discs, brain injury, fractures. Cases where the harm does not go away after one visit to the doctor.

Drunk and impaired drivers

Exemplary damages can come into the case when gross negligence is proven by clear and convincing evidence, and so can the bar or restaurant that kept serving a driver who was obviously intoxicated.

Hit-and-run

The other driver left. The uninsured motorist coverage on your own policy is often the path, with its own notice and proof rules.

Wrong-way crashes

Head-on at highway speed. The first questions are where the driver had been and who let them get behind the wheel.

Pedestrians

Chapter 552 of the Transportation Code sets out when a driver must yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, and it requires every driver, in every case, to exercise due care to avoid a person on the roadway.

Deaths on the road

Wrongful death and survival under Chapter 71: two claims, one family, one lawyer on the file. See the Texas wrongful death lawyer page.

Why hire me

I am a bilingual trial lawyer who talks to you directly. I write my own motions. I prepare my own depositions. And when your case reaches trial, I am the one there, not an associate who just opened the file. I know car cases in Houston because I work them every day: the Sam Houston Tollway, I-45, the 610 Loop, U.S. 59, and the neighborhood streets where a family car ended up against a pole.

The other side is going to say you were speeding, that you did not see the sign, that you were not wearing your belt, or that the injury was old. The answer is evidence: photos of the scene, the police report, witnesses, medical records, and sometimes a crash reconstruction by an expert. That is the work, and it is the work I do.

Common Questions
What should I do after a car accident in Houston?
First, medical care and a police report. Second, do not sign anything from the other driver's insurance company or give it a recorded statement. Third, keep everything: photos, text messages, witnesses, and the report number. And call a lawyer before the adjuster calls a second time.
How long do I have to file?
Generally two years from the date of the crash under Section 16.003 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. Against a governmental unit, written notice is usually due within six months of the incident, and a city's charter can require it sooner.
What if the other driver left the scene or had no insurance?
Report the crash to the police, and check your own policy for uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. Texas insurers must include it unless it was rejected in writing, and it is often what pays when the driver who caused the crash has too little coverage, none, or is never found.
How much does a Houston car accident lawyer cost?
Free consultation. No fees unless we win. The fee is a percentage of the result, agreed in writing at the start.

Tell me what happened.

Free consultation. No fees unless we win. Speak with me directly, not a screener.

Contact Orlando Rodriguez

(713) 239-2300