If a public school district’s bus hits your car, the claim is against a governmental unit, and the district is entitled to notice of it within six months of the crash (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101(a)). That is far shorter than the two years Texas allows for filing an ordinary injury suit, and the amount a governmental unit can be made to pay is capped by statute.
Not every yellow bus belongs to a district. Some are run by private contractors or private schools, and those are ordinary claims against a company and its insurer. This article explains how to tell the difference, what the Texas Tort Claims Act requires, and when drivers must stop for a school bus. Our Houston bus accident page covers city buses, charter buses and coaches.
The short version
- A school district is a governmental unit (§ 101.001(3)(B)) and can be liable for injuries arising from the operation or use of a motor vehicle by its employee (§§ 101.021, 101.051).
- Notice within six months of the incident, describing the injury or damage, the time and place, and what happened (§ 101.101(a)).
- Liability is capped. For a unit of local government: $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence for bodily injury or death (§ 101.023(b)).
- Drivers must stop for a school bus that is stopped with its signals on; the fine is $500 to $1,250 (§ 545.066).
Who pays when a school bus hits my car?
If the bus is operated by a public school district, the district is liable for property damage, injury and death caused by its employee’s negligence in operating the bus within the scope of employment, if the employee would be personally liable under Texas law. If a private company operates the bus, the claim is an ordinary one against that company.
A school district is a political subdivision and so a “governmental unit” under § 101.001(3)(B). Governmental liability for the “operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle” is in Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.021, and Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.051 confirms that for school districts the Act applies only “as to motor vehicles.”
The name on the side of the bus is the starting point, but the crash report and the district’s transportation office settle who owned and operated it and who employed the driver. That has to be established early, because the notice deadline below runs from the day of the crash.
What is the six-month notice rule?
A governmental unit is entitled to receive notice of a claim not later than six months after the day of the incident. The notice must reasonably describe the damage or injury claimed, the time and place of the incident, and the incident itself. A city’s charter may set its own notice period.
| Deadline | What it requires | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Notice of claim | Notice to the governmental unit not later than six months after the day of the incident, describing the damage or injury, the time and place, and the incident | § 101.101(a) |
| City charter notice periods | A city’s charter and ordinance provisions requiring notice within a charter period permitted by law are ratified and approved | § 101.101(b) |
| When formal notice is not required | The notice requirements do not apply if the governmental unit has actual notice that death has occurred, that the claimant has received some injury, or that the claimant’s property has been damaged | § 101.101(c) |
| Filing suit | A personal injury suit must be brought not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues | § 16.003(a) |
Source: Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Chapter 101 and Chapter 16. Read October 5, 2026.
Do not rely on the actual-notice exception. Whether a district had actual notice is argued over after the fact; a written notice sent within the period removes the argument.
How much can be recovered from a school district?
Less than from a private defendant. The liability of a unit of local government under the Tort Claims Act is limited to $100,000 for each person and $300,000 for each single occurrence for bodily injury or death, and $100,000 for each occurrence for property damage. Different limits apply to the state and to cities.
The limits are in Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.023: $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence for the state government and for a municipality, and $100,000 and $300,000 for other units of local government. Which limit applies to the operator of a particular bus is one of the first things an attorney confirms.
Because of the caps, your own coverage matters more than usual in these crashes. Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and personal injury protection on your auto policy are not subject to the Tort Claims Act limits; whether they apply depends on the policy.
When does a driver have to stop for a school bus?
When approaching, from either direction, a school bus that is stopped on the highway to receive or discharge a student and is operating its visual signal. The driver must stop before reaching the bus and may not go on until the bus moves, the bus driver signals, or the signal is turned off.
The rule and its penalties are in Tex. Transp. Code § 545.066. The fine is not less than $500 or more than $1,250; a second offense within five years carries $1,000 to $2,000; and the offense is a Class A misdemeanor if the driver causes serious bodily injury. A driver on a highway with separate roadways is not required to stop for a bus on a different roadway.
This cuts both ways in a claim. A driver who passed a stopped bus and struck a child or another car will have that violation weighed in the percentages of responsibility, and a driver who was rear-ended while lawfully stopped for a bus has a strong account of who was at fault.
What should I do after a crash with a school bus?
Report it to police, get the bus number, the district or company name and the driver’s name, photograph both vehicles and the scene, get medical attention, and have an attorney send written notice to the bus operator well inside six months. If children were on board, expect the district to begin its own investigation the same day.
A crash with injury must be reported to police immediately (Tex. Transp. Code § 550.026(a)), and the officer’s report can be bought from the state once it is filed. If you were a passenger or the parent of a child on the bus, our article on the rights of bus passengers and pedestrians applies. The general steps are in our guide to the hours after a crash.
Questions people ask after a crash with a school bus
Do I have to stop for a school bus on the other side of a divided highway?
An operator on a highway having separate roadways is not required to stop for a school bus that is on a different roadway (Transportation Code § 545.066(b)(1)).
Does the two-year deadline still apply if I gave notice in time?
Yes. The notice requirement in Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.101 and the two-year period for bringing a personal injury suit in § 16.003(a) are separate requirements, and both have to be met.
Is a school district liable for injuries that do not involve a vehicle?
The statute says that, except as to motor vehicles, the Texas Tort Claims Act does not apply to a school district or to a junior college district (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.051).
What if the school bus driver was not negligent?
A governmental unit is liable for a motor vehicle injury only if it was proximately caused by the wrongful act or omission or the negligence of an employee acting within the scope of employment, and the employee would be personally liable to the claimant according to Texas law (Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.021(1)).
What is the penalty for passing a stopped school bus a second time?
A second or subsequent offense committed within five years of the most recent one is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $1,000 or more than $2,000, and the court may order the driver’s license suspended for not longer than six months (Transportation Code § 545.066(c)-(d)).
If a school bus was involved in your crash, time matters more than in most claims. Call Maida Law Firm at (713) 785-9484 or send the date and place of the crash through the contact page.
Sources
- Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Chapter 101. Read October 5, 2026.
- Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Chapter 16. Read October 5, 2026.
- Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 545. Read October 5, 2026.
- Texas Transportation Code, Chapter 550. Read October 5, 2026.
About the authors
Sam A. Maida, Jr.
Owner and Managing Attorney
Sam A. Maida, Jr. has represented injured Texans in the greater Houston area since the firm opened in 1993.
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Bernard G. Johnson III
Litigation Managing Attorney
Bernard G. Johnson III is a board certified trial lawyer licensed in Texas since 1996 and a graduate of South Texas College of Law.