Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is the part of your own auto policy that pays when the driver who hit you has no insurance or too little. Insurers in Texas must include it in an auto liability policy, and it stays on the policy unless a named insured declines it in writing.
The short version
- It is included unless declined. The coverage is part of each Texas auto liability policy by default; only the named insured’s written refusal takes it out (Insurance Code § 1952.101(b)-(c)).
- It pays what you could recover. The payment is the damages you are legally entitled to recover, up to your policy limit, and an underinsured claim is reduced by what the other insurer recovered or could recover (§ 1952.106).
- Hit-and-run needs contact. For an unknown driver, actual physical contact is required (§ 1952.104(3)), and the state guide ties hit-and-run payment to a report to police.
- Your insurer has deadlines. It must acknowledge a first-party claim within 15 days, and it has 15 business days after receiving the items it requests to accept or reject the claim (§§ 542.055(a), 542.056(a)).
- Property damage carries a deductible. Property damage under this coverage is subject to a $250 deductible (§ 1952.105(b)).
Do I have uninsured motorist coverage in Texas?
Probably, unless you rejected it in writing. An insurer may not issue an auto liability policy without uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, and the coverage does not apply where a named insured has turned it down in writing, under Insurance Code § 1952.101(b)-(c).
In an April 2026 story, Houston Public Media said roughly one in eight Texas car owners goes without insurance and cited a Texas Appleseed and United Way of Greater Houston study that put Harris County above 14 percent. The article is at Houston Public Media, “Soaring car insurance premiums force many low-to-middle income Texans to do without”. For the wider process after a Houston crash, see our Houston car accident page.
Check the declarations page of your policy first. TDI’s auto insurance consumer guide says insurers must offer the coverage and that you must tell the company in writing if you do not want it. If you cannot find it on the policy, ask your agent for any written rejection you may have signed. Our article on when a crash claim calls for a lawyer is a useful next read.
What is uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage?
It protects insureds who can recover damages from an uninsured or underinsured driver, for bodily injury, sickness, disease, death or property damage. An underinsured vehicle is one whose liability limits were originally lower than, or were reduced by other claims from the same accident to less than, the underinsured limit on your policy (Insurance Code §§ 1952.101(a), 1952.103).
The statute also treats a vehicle as uninsured where its insurer is unable, because of insolvency, to pay the legal liability within the policy limits (§ 1952.102(a)). The state’s minimum liability limits are 30/60/25: thirty thousand dollars for one injured person, sixty thousand for an accident, and twenty-five thousand for property damage, as the TDI guide sets out. The same guide notes that those minimums “might be too low” in some crashes, such as a multi-vehicle accident.
What does a UM or UIM claim pay, and what limits apply?
It pays what you are legally entitled to recover from the owner or operator of the uninsured or underinsured vehicle, up to the limit on your own policy. In an underinsured claim the payment is reduced by what the other driver’s insurer recovered or could recover, under Insurance Code § 1952.106.
You choose the bodily injury limits, but not above the bodily injury limits of your own policy (§ 1952.105(a)). Property damage coverage is subject to a $250 deductible and is likewise capped by the property damage limit on your policy (§ 1952.105(b)). The table lists the main rules in Chapter 1952 that decide a claim.
| Rule | What the statute provides | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage with each policy | Insurer must provide it, unless a named insured rejects it in writing | § 1952.101(b)-(c) |
| Limit per person | One aggregate limit per person per occurrence, regardless of the number of insureds, policies, vehicles or claims | § 1952.104(1) |
| Bodily injury limits offered | In the amounts the insured wants, not above the policy’s bodily injury liability limits | § 1952.105(a) |
| Property damage | Subject to a $250 deductible; offered up to the property damage liability limit | § 1952.105(b) |
| Unknown driver | Actual physical contact between the unknown vehicle and you or your property | § 1952.104(3) |
| Where suit may be filed | Only in the county of residence or the county of the accident | § 1952.110 |
The aggregate limit matters when several claims arise from one crash. Under § 1952.104(1), the total payable to any one person cannot exceed the stated limit, however many policies, vehicles or claims are involved. For a serious injury that takes a while to value, that limit is the number to check first, and for how long valuation can take, see our piece on Texas injury claim timing.
Does uninsured motorist coverage apply to a hit-and-run?
For a hit-and-run by an unknown driver, the coverage applies only with actual physical contact: § 1952.104(3) requires that the unknown vehicle have touched you or your property. The state’s guide also ties hit-and-run payment to a report made to police.
The contact rule has its own article, and our Houston hit-and-run article is the place to read it in full. For the reporting step, see the hit-and-run steps article, and the hit-and-run claims page covers how these claims are handled.
Why would my own insurer dispute my claim?
Because the coverage pays only what you could legally recover from the other driver (§ 1952.106), fault and the value of your damages are central to the claim. Under Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 33.001, recovery is barred when a claimant’s responsibility for the harm exceeds 50 percent.
Your insurer has statutory duties while it handles the claim. It must acknowledge the claim and begin investigating within 15 days after it receives notice, and then has 15 business days, once it holds every item it asks for, to give written notice of its decision (Insurance Code §§ 542.055(a), 542.056(a)). A rejection must state its reasons, and an insurer that needs more time must say why within that same period (§ 542.056(c)-(d)).
Those timing duties apply to a first-party claim, which the chapter defines as a claim made by an insured under the policy that must be paid directly to the insured (§ 542.051(2)). If the insurer agrees to pay, it must pay within five business days after that notice (§ 542.057(a)). The proportionate responsibility chapter sets the proportionate responsibility rules, including the 50 percent bar.
For delayed injury claims in Houston, see our note on insurance stalling in Houston injury claims. The fault rule itself is explained in the piece on comparative negligence; insurer tactics are in the article on insurer tactics after a crash.
Does personal injury protection work the same way?
No. Personal injury protection is separate coverage that is a further coverage an insurer must include in a Texas auto liability policy unless the named insured turns it down in writing, and an insurer need not provide more than $2,500 in total benefits for each person (Insurance Code §§ 1952.152, 1952.153).
The TDI guide describes PIP as similar to medical payments coverage, and says it also pays things like lost wages and other nonmedical costs. It states that all auto policies in Texas include PIP unless you tell the company in writing that you do not want it. An insurer that provides loss of income benefits may require reasonable medical proof of the injury that caused the loss (§ 1952.154).
While a UM or UIM claim is open, keep the medical bills and pay records together in one place. What to check before a medical authorization is signed is set out in the sharing medical records note, and for Sugar Land claim tips see Sugar Land insurance claim tips.
What should a Sugar Land driver know about an uninsured driver crash?
For a Sugar Land driver, the venue for a suit against your own insurer is set by where you lived and where the crash happened. Insurance Code § 1952.110 limits that suit to two places: the county of residence, and the county of the accident.
That means a Sugar Land driver should check two counties, the county of residence and the county of the crash, before choosing where to file. The statute leaves no third option. The text of Chapter 1952 sets the rule, and it applies the same way to a crash on a Sugar Land street as to one anywhere else in Texas.
The police rule is the same too. When a collision involves injury or death, or damage that keeps a vehicle from being driven safely, the driver must immediately notify the local police department inside a city (Transportation Code § 550.026(a)). The city’s police department is listed on the City of Sugar Land website, which we read on October 16, 2026. See also our Sugar Land pages on car accidents and personal injury, and the Sugar Land filing deadline article covers timing.
Which steps matter after a crash with an uninsured driver?
Report the crash to police, tell your own insurer about it as soon as possible, keep evidence of the other driver’s coverage and your losses, and get the crash report. The state guide says the insurer may ask for a signed proof-of-loss form, more information or a medical exam, so keep records from the start.
Texas requires a driver to immediately report a crash that injures or kills someone or leaves a vehicle unsafe to drive (Transportation Code § 550.026(a)). An officer must make a written report when a collision involves injury or death, or damage of $1,000 or more to one person’s property (§ 550.062(a)). The driver also owes you a name, address, registration number and liability insurer under § 550.023.
Tell your own insurer about the crash as soon as possible, because the state guide notes that most companies have deadlines for filing claims. The guide also says the insurer must tell you within 15 days that it received your claim. For a recorded statement, read the note on speaking with a lawyer before the adjuster, and for the first hours see the first-hours steps after a crash.
Read your own declarations page before you speak to any insurer, then describe the crash with the uninsured driver through the contact page. The Houston personal injury attorneys page is another starting point, a rider hit by such a driver should also see the motorcycle accident page, and our explainer on how much Houston accident lawyers charge covers fees. Witnesses are covered in a separate article.
Frequently asked questions
Is uninsured motorist coverage required in Texas?
Insurers must provide it with each auto liability policy, but a named insured can reject it in writing under Insurance Code § 1952.101(b)-(c).
Do I need uninsured motorist coverage in Texas?
Insurers must offer it, and it remains on the policy until a named insured refuses it in writing. When the other driver is uninsured or underinsured, the coverage pays what you are legally entitled to recover, up to your own limit (Insurance Code § 1952.106).
What does uninsured motorist cover in Texas?
It pays for bodily injury, sickness, disease, death and property damage, up to the limit on your policy, when the driver who caused the harm has no insurance or too little (Insurance Code §§ 1952.101(a) and 1952.106).
Does uninsured motorist cover hit and run in Texas?
The state guide ties hit-and-run payment to a report to police. For an unknown driver, § 1952.104(3) requires that the unknown vehicle have touched you or your property.
Can I sue my own insurer over a UM claim anywhere in Texas?
No. Section 1952.110 of the Insurance Code limits that action to the county of residence or the county of the accident.
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.