A day or two after a Houston crash, the phone rings. It is an adjuster for the other driver’s insurance company, friendly and quick, asking if they can record a few questions about what happened. Before you say yes, it helps to know what that recording is for.
This post is from the Houston office of LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC. Several of our attorneys spent years working for insurance companies before they represented injured people, so we have seen recorded statements from the side that asks for them.
What a recorded statement is for
An adjuster for the other driver’s insurer works for that insurer. A recorded statement gives the company your account of the crash in your own voice, taken early, while you may still be in pain, on medication or unsure of details. It becomes part of the claim file, and it can be played back later if anything you say afterward sounds different.
The questions often seem harmless. How are you feeling today? How fast were you going? Did you see the other car before it hit you? A short “I’m doing okay” can later be read as a sign you were not badly hurt. A guess about speed or distance can be treated as a fact. And because Texas compares fault, any answer that moves a little blame onto you matters: under Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 33.001, you can recover if you are 50 percent or less at fault, and your share reduces what you receive.
What Texas law makes you give at the scene
Texas does require some information from drivers right after a crash. Under Transportation Code section 550.023, a driver involved in a crash must give their name and address, the vehicle registration number and the name of their liability insurer, must show a driver’s license if asked, and must give reasonable help to anyone injured. That exchange happens between the drivers, and with the officer who comes to the scene.
That duty is about the people at the crash. It does not say anything about giving a recorded interview to another driver’s insurance company afterward. You can be polite, take the adjuster’s name, claim number and phone number, and tell them your lawyer will be in touch.
What you may decline
- A recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer.
- Guesses about speed, distance or timing that you are not sure of.
- Predictions about your injuries before your doctors have finished their work.
- Signing a medical authorization or a release the other insurer sends you.
A blanket medical authorization can let the insurer collect years of your records, not just the visits from this crash. A release can end the claim for good. Neither should be signed before a lawyer has read it.
Why we take those calls for our clients
Once you hire us, the adjuster talks to us. We give the insurer what it needs to look at the claim, in writing, with the records that support it, and we keep your words from being picked apart in a phone interview. Jonathan Harris spent more than a decade as a senior trial attorney for a major automobile insurance company, and Ian Nelsen worked as an adjuster before he became a lawyer. They know which answers end up quoted in a denial letter, and our insurance tactics page covers more of what adjusters do.
Got a call from the other driver’s insurer? Call our Houston office before you answer their questions.
Your own insurer and PIP
Your own insurance company is a different matter. If your policy includes personal injury protection (PIP), you will make a claim with your own insurer for it. Texas law says PIP is paid without regard to fault (Insurance Code section 1952.155(a)), and that it must be paid within 30 days after the insurer gets satisfactory proof of the claim (section 1952.156(a)). Getting that proof in quickly, with medical bills and a record of lost income, keeps the clock running in your favor.
Your policy may also set out what you must do to make a claim under it, so read it or let us read it with you. If your insurer asks for a statement, we can help you prepare and can be on the call.
If you already gave a statement
Many people do, and a statement on its own does not end a claim. Tell us what you remember saying and who you spoke with. We ask for a copy, compare it with the crash report and the other evidence, and deal with any problem it causes. You can also read our guide on how to get a Houston crash report, or learn how an accident attorney in Houston handles the claim from here.
Our Houston office works on a No Fees or Costs Unless We Win basis for injury cases. The firm advances the case costs of building the claim, and you are charged no fee and no case costs unless the claim produces money for you.
Questions people ask us
Must I let the other driver’s insurance company record me?
Texas Transportation Code section 550.023 requires drivers to exchange name, address, registration, insurer and license information at the scene and to help anyone hurt. It does not require a recorded interview with the other driver’s insurer. You can refer the adjuster to your lawyer.
Can I just tell the adjuster I am fine?
It is better not to describe your injuries before your doctors have. Some symptoms take time to appear, and an early comment that you feel fine can be used against the claim later.
Will my PIP claim turn on who caused the wreck?
No. Under Insurance Code section 1952.155(a), PIP is paid without regard to fault, and section 1952.156(a) requires payment within 30 days after the insurer receives satisfactory proof of the claim.
What if I already gave a recorded statement?
Call us and tell us what you said. We will ask for the recording or transcript and work with the rest of the evidence. Having given one does not by itself end your claim.