Hit by a City-Owned Truck in Houston? You Have 90 Days, Not Two Years

Suing the City of Houston After a Truck Accident: What You Need to Know Before the Clock Runs Out

Most people who are hit by a truck assume they have two years to take legal action. In Texas, that’s generally true, the standard statute of limitations for a personal injury lawsuit is two years from the date of the accident.

The moment that a truck belongs to the City of Houston, Harris County, or the State of Texas, a completely different legal clock starts running. And it’s far shorter than almost anyone realizes.

If you need a garbage truck accident lawyer, fire truck accident attorney, or dump truck accident lawyer in Houston because a city-owned vehicle hit you, be aware: you may have as little as 90 days to preserve your right to file a claim. Miss that window, and it doesn’t matter how serious your injuries are or how clearly the city was at fault. Your case can be dismissed entirely.

This is one of the most consequential and least understood rules in Texas personal injury law.

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Which Trucks in Houston Are Government-Owned?

Before you can know which deadline applies to your situation, you need to know who operated the truck that hit you. That’s not always obvious at the scene.

Government-owned and operated trucks you’re likely to encounter in the Houston area include:

• City of Houston fleet vehicles — garbage trucks, dump trucks, public works, and street department vehicles
• Houston Fire Department apparatus — fire trucks, ladder trucks, rescue vehicles
• Houston Police Department vehicles
• METRO buses and transit vehicles — operated by the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County
• Harris County fleet vehicles — note that Harris County is a separate entity from the City of Houston, and different rules apply
• TxDOT construction and maintenance equipment — vehicles involved in highway construction, road maintenance, and lane striping on state highways
• Port of Houston Authority vehicles — relevant given the volume of heavy equipment operating near the Ship Channel and the refinery corridor along SH-225

In Harris County’s energy sector, the picture gets more complicated. Some trucks operating near refineries, petrochemical plants, and construction zones along the Gulf Coast may be privately contracted but working under a government project. If there’s any ambiguity about who owns or operates the vehicle that hit you, identifying the entity responsible is the first thing an attorney needs to do.

The Two Deadlines  And Why the 90-Day Deadline Is Dangerous

Texas law creates a two-track deadline system for government vehicle claims that works like this:

The two-year statute of limitations still applies to government claims. But it’s functionally irrelevant if you’ve already missed the notice of claim deadline. Under the Texas Tort Claims Act, you must file a formal written notice with the responsible government entity before you can file a lawsuit. If that notice isn’t filed on time, the case is over regardless of how much time is left on the two-year clock.

The City of Houston’s 90-day requirement is set by city ordinance, and it is strictly enforced. The Texas Tort Claims Act sets a general baseline of six months for state-level entities, but municipalities are permitted to shorten that window, and Houston has. This means a victim injured on a Monday in a collision with a city garbage truck has until approximately the following Sunday, 90 days later, to get formal written notice to the City. Not to file a lawsuit. Just to give notice.

That’s an extremely short window for someone who may be hospitalized, focused on recovery, and not yet thinking about litigation.

What the Notice Must Include and What Doesn’t Count

A lot of people assume that because the police responded to the scene, or because they spoke with a city supervisor, or because they filed a report with the city’s 311 service, the city already knows about the accident. That assumption has derailed legitimate claims.

Under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code Section 101.101, a valid notice of claim must:

1. Be in writing
2. Reasonably describe the damage or injury you suffered
3. Identify the time and place of the incident
4. Describe the incident itself

For a claim against the City of Houston specifically, that notice must be directed to the mayor and the city council.

The safest approach is certified mail with a return receipt, so you have documented proof that the notice was delivered and when.

Here is what does not satisfy the notice requirement:

• A police report was filed at the scene
• A verbal conversation with the truck driver or their supervisor
• A call to the city’s claims department
• An informal report filed through a city service portal
• A conversation with an insurance adjuster

Texas courts have drawn this line clearly. In City of Mission v. Lucila Gonzalez (2021), the court held that a police report alone was insufficient to meet the actual notice requirement; the city had no specific reason to believe it was at fault based solely on the report. The formal notice requirement exists to ensure the government unit is put on actual, formal notice that a claim may be coming.

The “Actual Notice” Exception, Don’t Count On It

The Texas Tort Claims Act does include a narrow exception: if the government unit already has actual notice that a death, injury, or property damage occurred and that the government may be at fault, formal written notice may not be required.

This sounds like a safety net. It isn’t one you should rely on.

Texas courts interpret the actual notice standard narrowly and strictly. The government unit must not only know that an accident occurred, but it must also have specific knowledge of its potential fault. General awareness that an accident happened, even if city employees were involved, doesn’t meet that standard.

If you’re in any doubt about whether actual notice applies to your situation, the safest course is to file formal written notice anyway. The downside of filing a notice you didn’t need is zero. The downside of skipping it and being wrong is losing your case permanently.

What About Damage Caps?

Government liability under the Texas Tort Claims Act comes with limits on how much you can recover. These caps are real, and you deserve a straight answer about what they are:

• City of Houston claims: Up to $250,000 per person and $500,000 per incident
• Harris County and other local government entities: Up to $100,000 per person and $300,000 per incident
• Punitive damages: Not permitted against government entities under any circumstances

These caps exist to protect public funds, and they apply regardless of the severity of your injuries.

However, there’s a critical nuance: the caps only apply to the government entity itself. If your accident involved multiple liable parties, a contractor operating equipment under a city contract, a truck manufacturer whose defective component contributed to the crash, or a private company responsible for road work, those parties are not shielded by government immunity and are not subject to the same caps.

In many Houston truck accidents involving government vehicles, identifying additional defendants beyond the city or county is exactly where the value of experienced legal representation shows up. A garbage truck accident may involve the city as the operator and a separate maintenance contractor. A dump truck crash near a TxDOT construction zone may involve the state, the general contractor, and a subcontractor. Each carries different liability exposure and different insurance coverage.

The caps don’t end the conversation. They change how the case is built.

Emergency Vehicles: An Additional Layer of Complexity

If you were hit by a Houston Fire Department truck or a police vehicle responding to an emergency call, an additional legal standard applies. Under the Texas Tort Claims Act, claims arising from emergency responses require showing that the government employee acted with reckless disregard or conscious indifference to the safety of others, a higher bar than ordinary negligence.

This doesn’t mean you have no case. Fire apparatus traveling at high speeds through intersections without adequate clearance, or emergency vehicles failing to use proper warning signals, can still meet that threshold. It means the legal theory of your case must be framed specifically, and the evidence gathered must support the reckless disregard standard, not just general negligence.

This is another reason why the 90-day notice window matters so much. Preserving evidence, securing witness statements, and obtaining camera footage from intersections or nearby businesses is time-sensitive. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes.

What to Do in the First 48 Hours After an Accident with a Government Truck

If you’ve been in an accident with what you believe is a government vehicle, these steps matter:

1. Identify who operated the truck. Look for agency markings, fleet numbers, or any signage on the vehicle. Take photos of the truck itself, including any agency seals, fleet ID numbers, or contract markings. If you weren’t able to do this at the scene, a police report or crash report may include vehicle identification information.
2. Document everything. Photograph the scene, your injuries, your vehicle, road conditions, and any witnesses. If the accident occurred near a traffic light, intersection camera, or business with exterior cameras, note that — footage is often overwritten within days.
3. Do not give a recorded statement to any city representative, their insurer, or any claims adjuster until you’ve spoken with an attorney. Anything you say at this stage can and will be used to limit your claim.
4. Seek medical attention immediately, even if you feel your injuries are minor. Adrenaline masks pain. Medical records from shortly after the accident are foundational to any personal injury claim.
5. Contact an attorney as soon as possible. Not because the two-year statute of limitations is about to expire but because the 90-day notice window is. An experienced Houston truck accident attorney will identify which government entity is responsible, prepare and submit the formal notice of claim, and begin preserving evidence before it disappears.

Contact An Experienced Houston Commercial Truck Accident Lawyer

The 90-day notice requirement for City of Houston claims is not widely known, and it catches people off guard at the worst possible time, when they’re recovering from serious injuries and dealing with the immediate aftermath of a crash.

The legal framework for suing a government entity in Texas is procedurally unforgiving. One missed deadline doesn’t delay your case. It ends it. Understanding what you’re up against and acting quickly is the difference between having a viable claim and having none at all.

If you or someone you know was hit by a city garbage truck, dump truck, fire apparatus, or any other government-operated vehicle in the Houston area, the time to act is now, not after you’ve recovered, not after you’ve seen what the city’s insurer offers, and not after the 90 days have passed.

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About the Author: Adam Ramji, D.C., J.D.

Adam Ramji is the founding attorney of Ramji Law Group and the only “DoctorLaw” in Texas. He earned his Bachelors in Biology from the University of Houston, his Doctor of Chiropractic from Parker College of Chiropractic, and his Juris Doctor from South Texas College of Law.

Beyond the courtroom, Dr. Ramji is a recognized authority who frequently hosts personal injury seminars, teaching other doctors how to document clinical evidence for personal injury cases. He also serves as a mediator at the Dispute Resolution Center, donating his time to help Houstonians navigate complex legal conflicts.