Texas roads buzz with activity as drivers navigate intersections, merge onto highways, and respond to traffic signals. Right-of-way rules are crucial to maintaining order and safety on our roadways. When drivers disregard these rules, they put everyone at risk of serious injury or death. If you were injured by a driver who failed to yield, you may be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering with the help of a car accident attorney in McAllen.
Common Types of Failure to Yield Accidents
Despite the importance of these traffic laws, many motorists either misunderstand or deliberately ignore right-of-way rules, leading to preventable collisions. Some of the most common types of failure-to-yield accidents include:
- Left-Turn Collisions: Vehicles making left turns must yield to all oncoming traffic and wait for a safe gap before proceeding. When drivers ignore this fundamental rule, they create violent side-impact crashes that can push vehicles into other lanes or onto sidewalks.
- Unsafe Lane Changes: Drivers must yield to oncoming vehicles before merging or changing lanes. When drivers ignore this requirement and force their way into occupied spaces, they can easily collide with other vehicles or create chain-reaction accidents.
- Failing to Stop at a Stop Sign or Red Light: At controlled intersections, drivers facing a stop sign or red light must yield to all cross traffic that has the right-of-way. Instead of following this basic rule, impatient drivers often roll through intersections without stopping, leading to violent collisions.
- Obstructing Emergency Vehicles: All vehicles must immediately yield and pull to the right when emergency vehicles approach with their lights and sirens activated. Drivers who fail to follow this critical right-of-way law create dangerous accidents that can prevent first responders from reaching life-threatening emergencies in time.
- Roundabout Accidents: The right-of-way in roundabouts belongs to vehicles already circulating within the intersection; entering traffic must yield. When drivers misunderstand or ignore this yielding hierarchy, they cause sudden stops and dangerous merging conflicts that often result in multi-vehicle crashes.
Who Is Liable for a Failure to Yield Accident in Texas?
In Texas, a fault-based insurance state, determining liability directly impacts your ability to recover compensation for injuries and damages. When another driver fails to yield, their insurance company must pay for your medical bills, lost wages, property damage, and other losses—but only after you prove their policyholder was at fault.
For example, if a driver runs a stop sign and hits your vehicle that had the right-of-way in an intersection, that driver would likely bear full liability for the crash. However, some cases may involve multiple vehicles. For example, say that one driver’s failure to yield at a merge point causes another vehicle to swerve into yours. In this case, the driver who initially failed to yield bears liability for triggering the chain of events that led to your injuries.
Ready to Discuss Your Case? Contact an Attorney Today
If you were hit by a driver who failed to yield, you deserve justice and compensation for the damages that you have sustained. At De La Garza Law Firm, our McAllen injury attorneys know what it takes to hold these motorists accountable and prove that they failed to follow some of the most foundational traffic laws in Texas.
We will work diligently to gather evidence, negotiate with insurance companies, and represent your interests in court if necessary. Contact us today at (956) 533-1426 for a free, confidential consultation.
