After a crash, it is common for each driver to believe the other one caused it, and for an insurance company to suggest that the injured person was partly to blame. Texas has a specific system for sorting that out, called proportionate responsibility, set out in Chapter 33 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. Understanding the basics explains why fault questions come up so often in injury claims, and why small details about a crash can carry weight.
Under Section 33.002, the chapter applies to any cause of action based on tort in which a defendant, settling person or responsible third party is found responsible for a percentage of the harm for which relief is sought. A negligence claim arising from a car or truck crash is a tort claim, so these rules sit at the center of most crash cases. The same section lists claims the chapter does not cover, including an action to collect workers' compensation benefits.
Section 33.003 directs the trier of fact, often a jury, to determine a percentage of responsibility, stated in whole numbers, for each claimant, each defendant, each settling person and each responsible third party who has been designated under Section 33.004. The question is how much each person's conduct caused or contributed to cause the harm.
That means the injured person's own conduct is part of the analysis. If the other side argues that the injured driver was speeding, distracted or changed lanes without enough room, the jury can be asked to assign that driver a share of the responsibility. Section 33.003 adds a safeguard: it does not allow a jury question about anyone's conduct without sufficient evidence to support it.
Section 33.001 contains the rule people most often hear about: a claimant may not recover damages if his or her percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent. Because percentages are stated in whole numbers, an injured person found 50 percent responsible or less can still recover, while one found 51 percent or more responsible cannot recover damages. That is why the Texas system is often called a 51 percent bar.
If the claimant is not barred, Section 33.012 requires the court to reduce the damages by a percentage equal to the claimant's own percentage of responsibility. A person found partly at fault therefore recovers less than the full value of the damages, in proportion to that share. Where the claimant has settled with others, the same section generally requires a further reduction by the sum of the dollar amounts of all settlements; health care liability claims follow a different rule.
Section 33.013 generally makes each liable defendant responsible only for the percentage of the damages equal to its own percentage of responsibility. A defendant found more than 50 percent responsible is, in addition, jointly and severally liable for the damages the claimant can recover, which means that defendant can be held responsible for the whole recoverable amount. This matters in crashes involving several vehicles, or a truck driver and the company behind the driver.
Section 33.004 lets a defendant ask the court for leave to designate a responsible third party, which Section 33.011 defines as a person alleged to have caused or contributed to causing the harm. The motion generally must be filed on or before the 60th day before the trial date, unless the court finds good cause to allow it later, and another party may object. When a designation is allowed, the jury can assign that person a percentage as well, which affects how responsibility is divided among everyone else.
One contrast is worth knowing. Personal injury protection works differently. Texas Insurance Code Section 1952.152 requires it in Texas auto liability policies unless an insured named in the policy turns it down in writing, and under Section 1952.155 its benefits are payable without regard to the fault or nonfault of the named insured or recipient in causing or contributing to the collision. A fault dispute over the liability claim does not, by itself, affect whether those benefits are payable.
Because percentages drive the result, the evidence about how a crash happened needs care from the start: photos, witness names, the officer's report and, where it exists, video. What an injured person tells an insurance adjuster about speed, distance or attention can also surface later in the fault discussion, so it is worth answering only with what you actually know.
Felix Gonzalez Accident and Injury Law Firm notes on its catastrophic injury page that in serious injury cases a lawyer could gather evidence and challenge unfair accusations that could weaken a claim. Fault arguments are decided on evidence, so preserving it early is one of the most useful things an injured person can do.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts; for advice about your situation, speak with a licensed Texas attorney.