Written by Travis S. Kelley

Every week, someone calls our office after getting hit on I-35. The details change — the stretch of highway, the time of day, the severity of the crash — but one thing I hear constantly is this: “The other driver was on their phone.” If that’s your situation right now, you have real legal options, and I want to walk you through what those look like in plain terms.

At Kelley Wolff Injury Attorneys | Austin Accident Lawyers, we handle personal injury claims across Central Texas. Our Austin office works with people who’ve been hurt in car crashes, bicycle accidents, pool accidents, school injuries, and more. This post covers the questions we get most often — the ones people search for at midnight from a hospital bed or the day after an accident when they’re trying to figure out what to do next.

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Can I Sue if I Was Injured in a Car Accident on I-35 in Austin and the Other Driver Was Texting?

Yes. If another driver was texting and caused a crash on I-35 that injured you, you can file a personal injury claim against that driver. Texas law allows you to seek compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses tied to the accident.

The legal foundation here is negligence. To win your case, you need to show four things: the other driver owed you a duty of care (all drivers do), they breached that duty (texting while driving is a breach), that breach caused the crash, and you suffered actual damages as a result. A driver who was looking at a phone screen instead of the road clears that “breach” hurdle pretty clearly.

What makes texting cases stronger than a typical fender-bender claim is the paper trail. Phone records don’t lie. Under Texas law, your attorney can subpoena the other driver’s cell phone records through discovery to establish exactly when they were using the device. If the timestamps on those records line up with the time of your crash, that’s powerful evidence. I’ve seen cases where this single piece of documentation shifted a case from disputed liability to the other side’s insurer coming to the table quickly.

Texas also passed a statewide ban on handheld device use while driving back in 2017, which remains in effect in 2026. A violation of that law can be used as evidence of negligence per se — meaning the driver broke a statute designed to protect people like you, which makes your burden of proof lighter.

I-35 runs through some of the most congested corridors in the state, from the Rundberg Lane area through downtown and out toward Buda. High-traffic conditions make phone distraction even more dangerous. In my experience, crashes on I-35 involving distracted driving often result in more serious injuries than typical surface-road accidents simply because speeds are higher and reaction time matters more. The CDC has documented that distracted driving claims thousands of lives annually, and Texas consistently ranks among the top states for distracted driving fatalities.

One mistake I see frequently: people wait too long to act. Texas has a two-year statute of limitations on most personal injury claims. That clock starts on the date of the accident. Missing it almost always means losing your right to recover anything. Don’t let the insurance company’s delays eat up that window.

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Can I Sue if I Was a Passenger in a Car Accident in Austin and Injured?

Yes, and in some ways your position is stronger than the driver’s. As a passenger, you almost certainly bear no fault for the crash. Texas follows a modified comparative fault system, meaning your recovery gets reduced by your percentage of fault. As a passenger, your fault percentage is typically zero.

You can file a claim against the at-fault driver — whether that’s the driver of the car you were in, the other vehicle, or both. If your driver caused or contributed to the crash, you can still claim against their insurance even though they were your friend, family member, or rideshare driver. That’s an uncomfortable reality, but the law doesn’t carve out exceptions based on personal relationships.

I’ve worked with passengers who hesitated to pursue a claim because they didn’t want to “go after” a close friend. What I tell them is that they’re making a claim against the insurance policy, not personally suing their friend out of their own pocket. That distinction matters emotionally and practically.

If you were in a rideshare vehicle — Uber or Lyft — the coverage picture is more complicated. Both companies carry substantial commercial liability policies that apply when their drivers are actively transporting a passenger. Our Austin car accident attorneys can help you sort out which policy applies and how to pursue the right claim.

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Can I Recover Compensation if I Was Injured in an Austin Bicycle Accident Caused by a Car Driver?

Yes. Cyclists have the same right to compensation as any other road user when a negligent driver causes injury. Texas law treats cyclists as vehicle operators with full rights on the road. When a car driver fails to yield, doors a cyclist, or simply isn’t paying attention, they can be held liable for the resulting personal injuries.

Bicycle accident injuries tend to be severe. A person on a bike has no structural protection around them. Broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, road rash that goes deep enough to cause permanent scarring — these are common outcomes, and the medical costs add up fast. According to the Mayo Clinic, head injuries from cycling accidents are among the most serious and can have long-term neurological effects even when helmets are worn.

Evidence collection is critical after a bicycle crash. Skid marks fade. Road conditions change. Security cameras get overwritten after a few days. If you were hit by a car while cycling, getting an attorney involved quickly helps preserve the evidence you’ll need. Our Austin bicycle accident attorneys handle these cases regularly and know what to look for.

One thing worth knowing: Texas uses proportionate responsibility rules, meaning if the insurance company can argue you were partially at fault — say, riding without lights at night — your recovery gets reduced proportionally. That makes documentation and legal representation more valuable, not less.

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Can I Sue if I Was Injured in a Swimming Pool Accident at an Austin Home or Apartment?

This falls under premises liability law, and the answer is generally yes, though the specifics depend on the circumstances. Property owners in Texas have a legal duty to maintain safe conditions and warn visitors of known hazards. Pools create obvious risks — slippery surfaces, broken drains, inadequate fencing, poor lighting, absence of safety equipment.

If you were a guest at someone’s home and their pool lacked proper safety features or was in disrepair, and you were injured as a result, you may have a valid personal injury claim. The same applies to apartment complexes and their shared pool facilities. In Austin, many apartment communities have pools, and property management companies are responsible for maintaining them to a reasonable safety standard.

Texas also recognizes the “attractive nuisance” doctrine, which is particularly relevant when children are involved. If a pool is accessible to neighborhood kids without adequate fencing or barriers, the property owner can be held liable even if the child was technically trespassing. I’ll address child injuries separately in the next section.

The homeowner’s insurance policy or the property management company’s liability coverage is typically what you’d be making a claim against. FindLaw provides a solid overview of premises liability standards if you want to understand the legal framework before speaking with an attorney. But the specifics of your claim — who owned the property, what they knew, what conditions existed — are things that need to be evaluated individually.

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Can I Sue for Permanent Scarring or Disfigurement After an Austin Personal Injury Accident?

Yes. Texas law explicitly recognizes physical disfigurement as a category of compensable damages. If you suffered burns, lacerations, or other injuries that left permanent scarring, you can include that as part of your personal injury claim — separate from your medical bills and separate from your pain and suffering.

Disfigurement damages are meant to compensate for the lasting physical change itself: the way a scar affects how you look, how you feel about yourself, and how others perceive you. Courts take these claims seriously. Juries respond to visible evidence of permanent harm. In my experience, cases involving facial scarring or scarring in visible locations tend to result in higher non-economic damage awards because the impact on daily life is tangible and ongoing.

Texas does not cap non-economic damages in most personal injury cases (medical malpractice is different), which means there’s no arbitrary ceiling on what a jury can award for disfigurement. That said, you need solid evidence: medical records documenting the injury, photos taken at different stages of healing, and often testimony from a plastic surgeon about the permanence and extent of the scarring.

Johns Hopkins Medicine has published research on the psychological impact of visible scarring, including effects on self-esteem and social functioning. That kind of evidence can support a claim for emotional distress damages alongside the physical disfigurement damages.

Don’t accept the first settlement offer an insurer puts in front of you, especially if your injuries include permanent scarring. Early offers rarely account for the full long-term value of disfigurement claims.

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Can I Sue if My Child Was Injured at an Austin Daycare or School?

Yes, though the path depends on whether the injury occurred at a private daycare, a private school, or a public school. Each involves a different legal framework.

For private daycares and private schools, standard negligence rules apply. If staff failed to provide reasonable supervision, the facility had a hazardous condition they knew about or should have known about, or a caregiver acted recklessly, you can file a personal injury claim. Texas licenses childcare centers through the Health and Human Services Commission, and those facilities have specific regulatory requirements around supervision ratios and safety. A violation of those regulations strengthens a negligence claim.

Public schools are a different matter. Claims against Texas public schools involve the Texas Tort Claims Act, which limits the circumstances under which you can sue a government entity and imposes strict notice requirements. You generally have to file a formal notice of claim within six months of the incident — much shorter than the standard two-year window. Missing that deadline can bar your claim entirely.

In both situations, document everything immediately. Get written records of the incident from the facility, take photos of any visible injuries, and seek medical attention right away. Schools and daycares often have incident reports — request copies of those in writing.

The American Bar Association notes that child injury claims require careful handling because courts apply additional scrutiny to ensure settlements genuinely serve the child’s interests. In Texas, settlements involving minors typically require court approval, and any recovery is held in trust until the child reaches adulthood unless the court orders otherwise.

Justia provides useful background on how Texas handles minor’s claims if you want to read further before calling an attorney.

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What These Cases Have in Common?

Every situation above shares one element: someone else’s negligence caused harm to you or your child. Texas personal injury law exists to make injured people whole — to compensate for what was lost because someone else acted carelessly or recklessly.

What I’ve seen over years of practice is that the cases with the strongest outcomes share a few things: evidence was preserved early, medical treatment was consistent and well-documented, and the injured person didn’t try to negotiate directly with the insurance company without legal support. Insurers handle thousands of claims per year. Their adjusters are trained to minimize payouts. A personal injury attorney levels that playing field.

Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute has an accessible breakdown of tort law basics that’s worth reading if you want to understand the legal theory behind these claims before your first consultation.

Our team’s background and approach are outlined on our about us page — we’ve worked on personal injury claims across Travis County and throughout Central Texas, and we take cases on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing unless we recover for you.

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Talk to an Austin Personal Injury Attorney Today

If any of the situations above match what you or your family member experienced, the next step is a free consultation. You don’t need to have all the answers before you call — that’s what the consultation is for.

Kelley Wolff Injury Attorneys | Austin Accident Lawyers represents injured people throughout Austin and across Texas. We handle personal injury claims involving car accidents, bicycle crashes, premises liability, and more. You can contact us online or call our office directly at (512)-470-6068. We’re located at 17800 Hamilton Pool Rd Ste. 203, Austin, TX 78738, United States.

Don’t wait. Evidence disappears, deadlines approach, and the other side’s insurance company is already working on their response. Get someone in your corner now.