What should I do right after a car accident in Collin County?

Call 911. The responding agency depends on where you are: McKinney Police Department within McKinney, Plano Police Department in Plano, Frisco PD in Frisco, Allen PD in Allen, the Collin County Sheriff's Office in unincorporated areas, and the Texas Department of Public Safety on state highways including US-75, the Dallas North Tollway, and SH-121. Make sure a Texas Peace Officer's Crash Report (CR-3) is generated — you'll need it for your insurance claim and it can later be obtained through the agency's records division or the Texas DOT CRIS system. If it is safe to do so, move vehicles out of active traffic lanes — US-75 and the tollways carry fast-moving traffic and secondary crashes are a risk. Before anything moves, photograph vehicle positions, damage, debris patterns, skid marks, traffic signals, and road conditions. Collect the other driver's name, license number, plate, insurance information, and contact details, and get contact information from any witnesses. Seek medical evaluation within a day or two, even if you feel only sore — some injuries don't appear immediately, and an unexplained treatment gap gives insurers grounds to challenge the connection between the crash and your injuries. If a commercial truck, a city vehicle, or any other government-owned vehicle was involved, note that carefully, because truck cases and government-entity claims (which trigger the Texas Tort Claims Act's 90-day notice requirement for most Collin County cities) have their own urgent deadlines.

The other driver had no insurance or not enough coverage. What can I do in Texas?

Texas has a significant uninsured-driver problem, and your best protection against it is your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage. Under Texas law, every auto insurer must offer UM/UIM coverage, and you can only decline it by signing a written rejection. If you did not sign a written rejection, you should have the coverage — review your declarations page or call your agent to confirm. UM coverage pays when the at-fault driver has no insurance or cannot be identified (hit-and-run with physical contact). UIM coverage pays the difference when the at-fault driver's liability limits — often the Texas minimums of just $30,000 per person under §601.072 — are insufficient to compensate for your damages, up to your own UIM limit. Texas UIM claims have some procedural quirks: generally, a UIM insurer is not required to pay until the insured's damages and the other driver's liability are established, which sometimes requires filing suit against your own insurer. Personal Injury Protection (PIP), also required to be offered in Texas and rejectable only in writing, separately pays your medical expenses and a portion of lost wages up to the policy limit regardless of who was at fault — useful for immediate medical bills while the liability claim is being resolved. Document the at-fault driver's lack of insurance carefully (get the declaration from the police report) and notify your own insurer promptly.

A commercial truck hit me on US-75 or SH-121 in Collin County. How is that claim different?

Commercial truck crashes are categorically different from ordinary car accident claims because of the regulatory framework, multiple layers of potential liability, and typically much higher insurance minimums. Trucks operating in interstate or intrastate commerce are governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (49 C.F.R. §390 et seq.), which impose hours-of-service limits to prevent fatigued driving, driver-qualification and drug-testing requirements, and detailed vehicle maintenance and inspection standards. A violation of these regulations — a driver who exceeded allowable driving hours, inadequate maintenance records, improperly loaded cargo — can establish negligence and often expands liability beyond the driver to the motor carrier company itself (for negligent hiring, training, or supervision, or under respondeat superior), a freight broker who assigned a carrier without proper vetting, or a cargo loader who improperly secured the load. The critical step in any truck crash case is preserving evidence before it disappears. The truck's electronic logging device (ELD) data, the driver's paper logs, the carrier's drug-testing and qualification records, dashcam footage, and maintenance logs are all subject to routine destruction under normal document-retention practices — sometimes within 30 to 90 days. A written litigation-hold and preservation demand should go to the carrier immediately after the crash. Because this evidence can disappear quickly and gathering it requires legal tools, retaining an attorney experienced in Texas commercial trucking litigation as soon as possible after the crash is important.

How do I get my crash report from a Collin County accident?

The Texas Peace Officer's Crash Report (form CR-3) is prepared by the responding law enforcement agency and is the key document for your insurance claim. Which agency has the report depends on where the crash occurred. For crashes within a city, contact that city's police department records unit: McKinney PD records (2200 Taylor Burk Dr.; 972-547-2700); Plano PD records (909 14th St.; 972-424-5678); Frisco PD records (6101 Frisco Square Blvd.; 972-292-6010); Allen PD records (305 Century Pkwy.; 214-509-4321). For unincorporated Collin County, contact the Collin County Sheriff's Office (4300 Community Ave., McKinney TX 75071; 972-547-5100). For crashes on state highways or interstates, the Texas Department of Public Safety (TxDPS) often prepares the report. Alternatively, the Texas Department of Transportation's Crash Records Information System (CRIS) at cris.dot.state.tx.us allows you to purchase certified and non-certified CR-3 reports statewide, typically for a small fee. Reports are usually available several days to two weeks after the crash. The CR-3 contains the officer's assessment of contributing factors and any citations issued — insurers rely heavily on this, though it is not legally binding and can be contested with additional evidence. The two-year statute of limitations (§16.003) is running from the date of the crash.

I was hit by a rideshare driver near Plano's Legacy West or Frisco's The Star. Who pays?

Rideshare crashes near Collin County's dense corporate and entertainment centers — Legacy West in Plano (Toyota, JP Morgan, FedEx Office, Ericsson), The Star in Frisco, and Stonebriar Centre — are fairly common, and the applicable coverage depends entirely on what the driver was doing at the moment of the collision. If the rideshare app was completely off, only the driver's personal auto insurance applies — and many personal policies exclude commercial rideshare use, which can leave a coverage gap. If the app was on but the driver had not yet matched to a ride, the transportation network company (TNC) typically provides contingent liability coverage at reduced limits (generally $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident). Once the driver has accepted a ride request or has a passenger in the vehicle, the TNC's $1 million commercial liability policy applies. As an injured third party — another driver, a pedestrian, or a passenger of a different vehicle — you can pursue whichever coverage layer applies. Determining the exact trip phase at the moment of the crash requires the rideshare company's internal trip and GPS data, which Uber and Lyft maintain and which can be obtained through the claims process or through a lawsuit and subpoena if necessary. Screenshots of any receipts, driver profiles, or trip records visible to a passenger should be preserved immediately. The two-year statute of limitations (§16.003) applies, and consulting an attorney familiar with Texas rideshare litigation early helps preserve your options.

Car Accidents in Collin County, Texas

Collin County, Texas Car Accidents: court movement, the local signals that move the matter faster, and the next move worth slowing down for

Clearer car accidents guidance for Collin County, Texas built around vehicle damage proof, the local signals that move the matter faster, and the local follow-through that often gets overlooked.

Reviewed January 2026 4 min read Official-source grounded Ver en Espanol En Español

Key Takeaways

Texas at-fault state; minimum liability 30/60/25 (Tex. Transp. Code §601.072) — often inadequate for serious injuries at Baylor Scott & White McKinney or Texas Health Presbyterian Plano
UM/UIM and PIP must be offered by Texas insurers and can only be rejected in writing — check your policy; UM/UIM is critical given Texas's high uninsured-driver rate
Commercial trucks on US-75 and SH-121 governed by federal motor carrier regulations (49 C.F.R. §390) — preserve ELD data and driver logs immediately with a written demand
CR-3 crash reports available from responding agency (McKinney PD 972-547-2700, Plano PD 972-424-5678, Frisco PD 972-292-6010, CCSO 972-547-5100) or via TxDOT CRIS system
Government-vehicle crashes trigger Texas Tort Claims Act — most Collin County cities require written notice within 90 days; preserve evidence immediately
Two-year SOL (§16.003); rideshare coverage rises to $1M TNC policy once a ride is accepted or passenger is aboard

Car accidents in Collin County occur on one of the most congested suburban highway networks in the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex. US-75 (Central Expressway) carries tens of thousands of daily commuters between McKinney, Allen, and Plano into Dallas; the Dallas North Tollway runs through the western corridor from Frisco through Plano; and SH-121 (Sam Rayburn Tollway) connects Frisco and Allen to DFW Airport and the eastern Metroplex. SH-289 (Preston Road) is one of the most heavily traveled surface arterials in North Texas, running from Dallas north through Plano, Allen, McKinney, and into Prosper and Celina. Rapid population growth has outpaced infrastructure expansion, and Collin County's crash volume continues to rise. Texas is an at-fault (tort) state for automobile accidents: the driver who caused the collision — and that driver's liability insurer — is responsible for damages, subject to Texas's modified comparative responsibility rules and the 51% bar under Chapter 33 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code.

Texas requires drivers to carry minimum liability insurance of $30,000 per injured person, $60,000 per accident, and $25,000 for property damage — the "30/60/25" minimums under Tex. Transp. Code §601.072. These minimums are frequently inadequate for serious injuries: a single trauma admission to Baylor Scott & White McKinney or Texas Health Presbyterian Plano can quickly exceed policy limits. Uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage, which must be offered by Texas insurers and can only be rejected in writing, pays when the at-fault driver is uninsured or has insufficient coverage to pay for all damages. Personal Injury Protection (PIP), also required to be offered and rejectable only in writing, provides no-fault coverage for medical bills and lost wages up to the policy limit regardless of fault. Both UM/UIM and PIP are worth checking for — if you did not sign a written rejection, you may have them even if you don't recall purchasing the coverage.

Commercial truck traffic is significant in Collin County given the freight corridors on US-75 and SH-121 and the many distribution and logistics operations serving the Legacy West corporate corridor and the booming residential construction sector. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (49 C.F.R. §390 et seq.) govern commercial trucking — hours-of-service limits, driver-qualification and drug-testing requirements, and vehicle inspection and maintenance standards — and trucking companies, freight brokers, and cargo loaders may share liability alongside the driver, often with much higher insurance limits than a personal auto policy. Electronic logging device (ELD) data, driver logs, and maintenance records can be overwritten within weeks under routine retention practices, so a written preservation demand must go out immediately after a serious truck crash.

After a crash in Collin County, which police agency responds depends on location: McKinney Police Department (2200 Taylor Burk Dr., McKinney TX 75071; 972-547-2700) within McKinney city limits; Plano Police Department (909 14th St., Plano TX 75074; 972-424-5678) in Plano; Frisco Police Department (6101 Frisco Square Blvd., Frisco TX 75034; 972-292-6010) in Frisco; Allen Police Department (305 Century Pkwy., Allen TX 75013; 214-509-4321) in Allen; the Collin County Sheriff's Office (4300 Community Ave., McKinney TX 75071; 972-547-5100) in unincorporated areas; and the Texas Department of Public Safety (TxDPS) on state highways. The responding agency prepares the Texas Peace Officer's Crash Report (CR-3), which can be obtained from the agency's records unit or through the Texas DOT Crash Records Information System (CRIS) online. If a government vehicle was involved, the Texas Tort Claims Act's 90-day notice requirement for most Collin County cities applies immediately.

The two-year statute of limitations (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.003) governs car accident injury claims. Rideshare crashes are common near the corporate campus density of Legacy West in Plano (Toyota, JP Morgan, FedEx Office, Ericsson) and The Star in Frisco (Dallas Cowboys headquarters, restaurants, and entertainment), and in these crashes the applicable coverage layer depends on the driver's trip phase at the moment of impact. Tollway crashes on the Dallas North Tollway or SH-121 can involve North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) infrastructure, adding a potential government-entity dimension. Most Collin County car accident attorneys work on a contingency fee, and the Collin County Bar Association (collinbar.org) and the State Bar of Texas Lawyer Referral Service (1-800-252-9690) can assist with referrals.

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