STATE LAW – TEXAS LIBRARY – GUIDE 16
Texas Government Vehicle Crashes, Tort Claims Act Notice & Liability Caps
A government-vehicle crash can involve immunity, a limited waiver, short notice requirements and liability caps. Treat notice as an immediate issue.
A government vehicle does not end the immunity inquiry
Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 101.021 provides a limited waiver for specified injury, death and property-damage claims involving an employee’s negligence, scope of employment and operation or use of a motor-driven vehicle or equipment, subject to the statute’s conditions.
Identify the correct governmental unit and the employee’s activity. Chapter 101 contains exceptions, including provisions relevant to emergency responses. The presence of a public vehicle or apparent negligence does not by itself establish jurisdiction or recovery.
Notice can be due before the lawsuit
Section 101.101 ordinarily requires notice no later than six months after the incident describing the injury or damage, time and place, and incident. The statute also addresses municipal charter or ordinance notice requirements and actual notice. A local requirement may be shorter and needs prompt checking.
Do not assume a police report, a claims-adjuster call or the government’s knowledge of the accident establishes legally sufficient actual notice. Deliver appropriate written notice to the correct recipient and keep proof of delivery. Notice and the lawsuit limitation period are separate obligations.
Know which cap applies
Section 101.023 generally caps covered bodily injury or death liability for state government and municipalities at $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence, with $100,000 for property damage. Other units of local government generally have $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence bodily-injury/death caps and $100,000 property limits.
Identify the entity before applying the figures. These caps concern statutory liability and do not establish that a particular claim qualifies for the waiver. Several claimants may affect the occurrence limit. Other legal routes, defendants or statutes require their own analysis.
Preserve facts and seek timely review
Collect the vehicle number, agency, employee identity, dispatch and emergency-response information, scene evidence, witnesses and available video. Request preservation promptly. Records access, claim notice and litigation discovery are distinct procedures.
Chapter 16’s ordinary injury limitation rule does not remove Chapter 101’s notice requirement. Obtain early legal review of waiver, exceptions, notice, service and the correct governmental defendant. Settlement negotiations or a pending records request should not be treated as permission to miss a notice or filing deadline.
Authorities and source notes
- Tort Claims Act — Civil Practice and Remedies Code §§ 101.021, .023, .055, .101
- Limitations — Civil Practice and Remedies Code §§ 16.001, 16.003
Official source links and cited propositions checked October 4, 2026. Full subsequent-history and legal-currentness review remains open. General information; individual facts, policy terms and deadlines require case-specific review.
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