Uber and Lyft Accident Laws in Texas

You were riding home from a late dinner near South Congress when your Uber driver ran a yellow light and got T-boned. Now, you’re sitting in an emergency room, and no one can tell you whose insurance will pay for your care. The driver says it’s Uber’s problem, but the Uber app says almost nothing useful.

What Texas Law Says About Rideshare Companies

Texas treats Uber and Lyft as Transportation Network Companies, or TNCs, under Texas Occupations Code Chapter 2402. A TNC is a company that uses a digital platform to connect riders with drivers who use their own personal vehicles for payment.

That classification carries real legal weight, placing most compliance duties on the company itself, not on the individual driver.

The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues and renews TNC permits across the state. A company must hold a valid permit before it can legally operate anywhere in Texas. Cities cannot write their own TNC rules, with narrow exceptions for limited fees at airports and cruise ship terminals.

This structure matters when determining whom to hold responsible. Because compliance sits with the company, you may have a claim against Uber or Lyft that goes beyond the driver alone.

Background Check Requirements For Rideshare Drivers

Before a TNC approves any driver, Texas law requires a local, state, and national criminal background check. The criminal history review must look back at least seven years, and the driving record review must cover three years. Active drivers get rechecked every year.

Conviction of a sex offense that places a driver on the national sex offender registry is a permanent disqualification with no time limit. Many other serious convictions (including driving while intoxicated, felonies involving violence or fraud, drug-related offenses, and acts of terrorism) disqualify a driver for seven years under Texas Occupations Code § 2402.107.

When a company approves a driver who carried a disqualifying conviction, you may have a negligent hiring claim. That theory is separate from the standard fault analysis, and it can let you sue the company directly.

Insurance Coverage Requirements By Period

Which policy pays after a rideshare crash depends entirely on what the driver was doing at the moment of impact. Texas Insurance Code Chapter 1954 sets up a tiered structure built around three driver status periods with different rules.

Period 1 (App On, No Ride Accepted)

When the driver is logged in but has not yet accepted a ride, contingent liability coverage applies. The TNC must carry $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident for bodily injury, plus $25,000 for property damage.

This coverage is available during the app-on period regardless of whether the driver’s personal auto policy responds first. Under Texas Insurance Code § 1954.055, the TNC’s coverage is not contingent on the driver’s personal insurer initially denying a claim.

Periods 2 & 3 (Ride Accepted Through Trip Completion)

Once the driver accepts your ride and until the trip ends, the company’s commercial policy becomes the primary one. The TNC must provide at least $1,000,000 in total liability coverage per incident for death, injury, and property damage.

This coverage pays from the first dollar. The driver’s personal policy does not have to respond first during an active trip.

Texas also requires uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection during that active ride window. If you were a passenger, those layers can matter when the at-fault driver carries little or no insurance.

Fault & Filing Deadlines in Texas Rideshare Claims

Texas uses a modified comparative fault rule, which means your own share of fault can reduce or erase your recovery. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 33, you can recover only if you are 50% or less at fault, and your damages drop in proportion to your share.

As a passenger, you rarely carry any fault at all. You weren’t driving and had no control over the decisions that caused the crash, which usually puts you in a strong legal position.

You do have a hard deadline to seek compensation, however. The Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code (CPRC) § 16.003 gives you two years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit. Miss it, and your claim is almost always gone for good.

Claims against Uber or Lyft follow that same two-year window under § 16.003. Waiting to figure out which party to sue doesn’t pause the clock, so knowing what to do after a rideshare accident can help you protect your rights.

Work With a Texas Rideshare Accident Attorney

Rideshare claims layer multiple insurance policies on top of strict filing deadlines, and the right coverage often depends on facts you don’t see in the app. Angel Reyes & Associates has experience with these cases, and we work on a contingency basis, so there is no fee unless we win. We’ve recovered more than $1 billion for clients across Texas.

You can read what our clients say about working with us to see how we approach these cases. When you’re ready, schedule a free consultation and we’ll help you understand your options.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.