What to Do After a Waymo or Robotaxi Crash in Texas

You just pulled off Congress Avenue in Austin, shaken after a Waymo with no one in the driver’s seat clipped your rear quarter panel. Your neck feels tight. A company representative is already on the phone asking questions, and you’re not sure what to say or who is even responsible when the car was driving itself.

Autonomous rideshare crashes raise questions ordinary fender-benders don’t. Here is what to do next, what Texas law says about fault, and how to protect your claim before key evidence disappears.

First Priorities at the Scene

The actions you take after a car accident are critical for not just your own safety and health but any potential claim you might file. Safety always comes first. Move to a safe location if you can, check yourself and passengers for injuries, and call 911. Ask for police and EMS if anyone is hurt.

If it’s safe, photograph everything before vehicles move. Capture final resting positions, lane markings, traffic signals, debris, skid marks, and weather conditions.

Identify the robotaxi specifically. Note the vehicle number, license plate, any visible markings, and whether the car appeared to be in autonomous mode (no human in the driver’s seat, visible sensor array, dashboard indicators).

Get witness names and phone numbers. Ask each witness to text or email you a short summary of what they saw so you have a time-stamped account.

What to Say (And Not Say) at the Scene

Stick to facts with police and anyone else at the scene. Avoid guessing about software, sensors, speeds, or blame.

Don’t apologize or argue. Casual comments can be used later to shift responsibility toward you.

If a company representative or insurer calls quickly, you can decline a recorded statement until you’ve spoken with a lawyer. You are not required to give one on the spot.

Get Medical Care and Create a Clean Record

Medical documentation is the backbone of most injury claims. Accept EMS evaluation if offered, and go to urgent care or the ER if you have head, neck, or back pain, dizziness, numbness, or symptoms that worsen overnight.

Ask your doctors to take notes on every bodily area affected. Follow up consistently, and keep every discharge note and imaging report.

Track your out-of-pocket costs and missed work starting day one. Save receipts, note mileage to appointments, and keep any written work restrictions from your doctor.

Report the Crash & Secure the Right Documents

Get the responding agency’s name and the crash report number, and request the report when it becomes available through the Texas Department of Transportation’s C.R.I.S. system.

If you were a Waymo or Robotaxi passenger, preserve every trip detail you can: pickup and dropoff locations, timestamps, route, and the trip receipt in the app. Screenshot it before anything changes.

Notify your own insurer promptly, even if you believe you weren’t at fault. Ask about PIP, MedPay, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage on your policy.

Preserve Autonomous-Vehicle Evidence

This is the step most people miss. Unlike an ordinary crash, the most important proof may live inside company-controlled systems: sensor logs, operation data, and remote assistance records. This evidence can be overwritten.

A preservation letter (sometimes called a spoliation letter) is a legal tool that demands the vehicle’s owner or operator preserve this data. One of these letters should go out quickly to likely custodians, including the fleet operator, insurers, maintenance vendors, and any other involved drivers. This is one reason to seek legal help early.

Preserve your own data too. Back up phone photos and videos, save location history, and keep messages and ride receipts. Be careful about social media after a crash.

Request any additional tech context while it’s fresh:

• Sensor and perception data from cameras, LiDAR, and radar
• Event data recorder logs from before and after impact
• Automated driving system engagement and disengagement status
• Remote assistance or teleoperations communications
• Software version and any active recalls or updates

Operating companies are not usually eager to grant access to this data, so you may need to work with an attorney to compel the operating company to turn it over to you.

Certain crashes involving automated driving systems must be reported to federal regulators under the NHTSA Standing General Order. Accurate incident details support both that reporting and your claim.

Who May Be Liable in a Texas Robotaxi Crash?

Liability in a Robotaxi collision can spread across several parties. Potential targets include other drivers, the fleet operator or authorization holder, the vehicle owner, manufacturers, software or component suppliers, maintenance contractors, and occasionally a government entity if a roadway condition contributed.

Corporate claims teams move fast, vehicles get repaired, and data retention windows close, so it is critical to start investigating early.

When the ADS Is Engaged, Who Is the “Operator”?

Texas addresses automated vehicles in Texas Transportation Code § 545.451–.453. When the automated driving system is engaged, Texas law treats the owner of the ADS as the ‘operator’ for purposes of applicable traffic and motor vehicle laws.

In practical terms, whether the ADS was engaged becomes a central fact. Evidence of engagement status (from company logs) often drives the liability analysis.

That statutory label doesn’t automatically decide civil liability. Fault, causation, and damages must still be proven. If you are assigned more than 50% of the fault, you are still barred from recovery under Texas’ “51% Bar Rule.”

Insurance & Claim Pathways

In an accident involving a self-driving taxi, expect multiple coverages and multiple adjusters. Common compensation routes include a third-party claim against an at-fault operator, a claim against the fleet’s commercial coverage, and in some cases a product-related claim, depending on the facts.

Early settlement offers can be risky. Injuries often evolve, and liability between multiple parties may still be under investigation. Our case results page shows how patient, documented work can change outcomes.

Insurers typically ask for medical records and recorded statements. You can ask for claim numbers, adjuster contact information, and written communications, and you can decline a recorded statement until you have counsel.

Deadlines & Urgency in Texas

Most Texas personal injury claims have a two-year statute of limitations under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003. Miss it, and your claim can be permanently barred.

Evidence can disappear much sooner than that. Vehicles get repaired, operation logs cycle, and witness memory fades within weeks. If evidence disappears, pursuing a claim gets increasingly difficult.

If a government entity or roadway condition may be involved, the Texas Tort Claims Act imposes short notice deadlines, sometimes as brief as six months, and many Texas cities require notice even sooner by ordinance.

When to Contact Angel Reyes & Associates

Call an attorney as soon as possible if you have serious injuries, the operator disputes fault, multiple vehicles or a commercial fleet are involved, or any need to preserve robotaxi data.

With over 30 years of experience and more than $1 billion recovered for clients, Angel Reyes & Associates handles robotaxi and complex vehicle cases across Texas from our more than 20 locations. We offer service in Spanish, and work on a no-fee-unless-we-win basis.

Our team can send preservation letters, coordinate evidence requests, handle insurer communications, and build a responsibility narrative aligned with Texas fault rules. You can learn more about our firm and read client reviews and testimonials to see how we work.

Schedule a free consultation to talk through your options.