Children and Fatal Texas Car Accident Claims

When a crash injures or kills a child, or takes a child's parent, each claim has its own owner, deadline and settlement safeguards.

Short answer

A Texas crash that involves a child rarely creates just one claim. The child may have an injury claim. The parents have their own claims. A death adds a wrongful death claim and a survival claim. Each one belongs to different people, and they can run on different deadlines.

Settling for a child adds a step. A child's settlement generally needs a judge's approval before it binds the child, and the court can control how the money is held until the child turns 18.

Who holds which claim depends on who was hurt:

Who owns each claim after a crash involving a child?

Under Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 71.002, a person whose wrongful act or negligence causes a death is liable for damages from that death. Which driver, owner, or employer caused the crash? That's the first question.

Section 71.004(a)-(b) names who can recover. When a mother dies, her husband can. So can her children and her own parents, and any one of them may sue for all. Her sister can't, and neither can her grandparents.

What if nobody files? If no beneficiary sues within three calendar months, the executor or administrator must, unless all beneficiaries ask them not to (§ 71.004(c)). Has an estate been opened, and who serves?

The survival claim is hers, carried on after death. Section 71.021 keeps her own injury claim alive for her heirs, legal representatives, and estate. The ambulance and hospital bills go here, along with her pain before she died and the funeral.

Under § 71.010, the jury divides wrongful death damages among the beneficiaries in shares it finds. A child's share is set apart from a surviving parent's share.

Under § 71.011, wrongful death damages aren't subject to the deceased's debts. Say a father who dies in the crash owed $40,000 on credit cards and a car loan. His creditors can't reach his daughter's wrongful death recovery.

For death claims in general, see the Texas wrongful death claims and litigation guide and the Texas fatal car accident page.

How long does the family have to file?

Minority pauses the clock for the child's own claim, but not for every claim the crash created:

Only the first row is clearly paused by minority. A disability that starts after the clock is already running doesn't pause it (§ 16.001(d)). Does minority pause a child beneficiary's wrongful death claim? Ask a lawyer that question early. The Texas car accident claims and litigation guide explains the general rules.

By the end of the week, the gas station camera on the corner may have recorded over the crash. Ask for it first. Keep the child's car seat, too, and photograph how it was buckled in before anyone touches it; a seat in a dumpster can't be inspected. Police photos, scene measurements, and the 911 call come next.

Who can sign for a child, and does a judge have to approve?

A parent can bring a child's claim as next friend. The settlement binds the child only when the court approves it. Under Tex. R. Civ. P. 44, a minor without a legal guardian may sue through a next friend, who may compromise the suit with the court's approval. A parent's signature on an insurer's release isn't the end of the process.

Sometimes the parent and child want different things. Rule 173.2 has the court appoint a guardian ad litem when the next friend appears to have an adverse interest, or when the parties agree. A father with his own claim against the same small policy is the classic case. Under Rule 173.4(c), the guardian ad litem tells the judge whether the deal is in the child's best interest.

Families often hire one lawyer for everyone. Tex. Disciplinary R. Prof'l Conduct 1.08(f) allows it, but an aggregate settlement needs each client's consent after full disclosure. In practice, the widower sees what his in-laws would get, and they see his number.

Here's how fast the claims pile up. A crash on I-30 near Grand Prairie kills a mother and badly hurts her 9-year-old son. The other driver has one policy, and it has to cover:

• the boy's injury claim
• wrongful death claims for the boy, his father, and the mother's parents
• the estate's survival claim

That leaves three calls to make:

How is a child's settlement money protected?

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 142.001, after an application and hearing, the court may decree how the child's funds are invested. Who can withdraw money, and for what? Ask before the hearing.

Section 142.004 lists the places the money can go. It may be placed with the court clerk on written order, or by the next friend in specified education savings, ABLE, or insured accounts.

Two other tools come up often:

• structured payments, which are periodic payments arranged through the settlement (ask for the payment dates, the amounts, and the company paying)
• a trust or guardianship, which provides longer-term management for larger recoveries or a child with a disability (ask whether public benefits could be affected)

The boy's money isn't the family's to spend. Before any of it moves, the court looks over the liens, the fees, and the expenses. The Texas Car Accident Knowledge Hub covers liens and coverage.

For the approval hearing, bring:

• final lien and provider balances, in writing
• the doctor's letter on future care, so payment dates can match it
• a separate release for each family member

Frequently asked questions

Does every relative have a wrongful death claim?

Texas limits wrongful death beneficiaries to the surviving spouse, children, and parents of the person who died. A grandparent or sibling isn't on the list.

Can a parent sign an insurer's release for an injured child?

A parent can negotiate as next friend. The settlement binds the child only after the court approves it.

Should we wait until the criminal case ends?

The criminal case doesn't pause civil deadlines, and evidence can disappear while it's pending.

Does my child have until age 20 to file?

That's possible for the child's own injury claim. The parents' claims and any government notice deadline run much sooner. Don't plan around age 20.

Who gets money for a child's medical bills?

Before the child turns 18, that claim usually belongs to the parents.

Sources

1. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.001
2. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003
3. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 71
4. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101
5. Texas Rules of Civil Procedure 44 and 173
6. Tex. Prop. Code ch. 142
7. Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct 1.08(f)

This article provides general information about Texas law, not legal advice. Every case depends on its facts, evidence, insurance, deadlines and governing law. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.