Motorcycle crash

Down on a motorcycle. The other side will blame the rider.

Riders get hurt worse and get believed less. Here is what the law in California, Texas and Washington says about helmets, lane splitting, fault and the insurance that pays when a driver did not see you.

The short answer

The driver who did not see you is still at fault. Failing to look is negligence. “I never saw the motorcycle” is an admission, not a defense.
Helmets are required for every rider in California and Washington. Texas allows a rider 21 or older to go without one after a safety course or with qualifying health insurance.
Lane splitting is lawful in California and not allowed in Texas or Washington. Where it is not allowed, it becomes a fault argument.
Your own uninsured motorist coverage matters more on a bike, because the injuries so often exceed the other driver’s minimum policy.
Photograph everything, including your gear. Road rash through a jacket tells a jury something a medical record cannot.

The bias riders face, and how the law answers it

Insurers and some jurors start from an assumption that the rider was speeding, weaving or showing off. The law does not. A driver turning left across a motorcycle’s path, changing lanes into one, or pulling out of a driveway without looking is negligent in every one of these states, and the rider’s mere presence on a motorcycle is not fault.

That said, the comparative fault rules give the insurer room to work. California and Washington reduce a recovery by the rider’s percentage of fault, with no cutoff. Texas cuts it off entirely above 50 percent. So an insurer in Texas that can push a rider over the line owes nothing. That is why the evidence of how the crash actually happened, from witnesses, skid marks, damage patterns and the other driver’s own words at the scene, matters so much.

Helmets

California and Washington require a helmet for every operator and passenger. Texas requires one too, with an exception for a rider who is at least 21 and has either completed an approved safety course or carries health insurance that covers motorcycle injuries.

Riding without a required helmet is a traffic violation. Whether it reduces a rider’s recovery is a separate question: the other driver’s insurer will argue that a head injury would have been less severe with a helmet, and that argument goes to the comparative fault percentage. It does not touch injuries a helmet would not have prevented, such as a broken leg or a crushed hand.

Lane splitting

California defines lane splitting, riding between rows of stopped or moving vehicles in the same lane, and does not prohibit it. A California rider lane splitting at a reasonable speed who is hit by a car drifting across the line has a strong claim. Texas and Washington both forbid riding between lanes of traffic moving in the same direction. A rider doing it there who is hit will face a fault argument, though the driver who moved without looking still shares the blame.

Medical bills while the claim is open

Texas and Washington policies carry personal injury protection unless it was rejected in writing, and it pays no matter who was at fault. California has no such requirement, though medical payments coverage is sold as an option. Health insurance pays too, and will usually want to be paid back from a settlement. The who pays the bills page sorts out the order.

The deadline to sue is two years in California and Texas and three in Washington; the deadlines page has the exceptions.

Your next step

Talk to a lawyer about your motorcycle accident

Tell the firm what happened, in your own words. It tells you what it can do and what comes next. The call commits you to nothing, and the line is answered at any hour.

Ask for a call back Or call 800-300-0001Or call 800-300-0001

The rules, with their sources

These are the rules of law this page relies on. Each one is a general statement with exceptions that are not shown, and each links to the statute, regulation or court decision it comes from.

Topic	California	Texas	Washington
Motorcycle helmets	Required for every driver and passenger. [1]	Required, with one exception: a rider who is at least 21 and has completed an approved safety course, or has health insurance that covers motorcycle injuries. [2]	Required for every operator and passenger. [3]
Riding between lanes	California law defines lane splitting, riding a motorcycle between rows of stopped or moving vehicles in the same lane, and does not prohibit it. [4]	Not allowed. A motorcycle may not travel between lanes of traffic moving in the same direction or pass a vehicle within the same lane. [5]	Not allowed. A motorcycle may not travel between lanes of traffic or between rows of vehicles. [6]
If you were partly at fault	California reduces your damages by your percentage of responsibility. There is no cutoff: you can recover something even if you were mostly at fault. [7]	Texas reduces your damages by your percentage of responsibility. If you are found more than 50 percent responsible, you recover nothing. [8]	Your share of fault reduces your damages by that percentage but does not bar your claim. One exception: an injured person who was under the influence can be barred entirely if that was a cause of the injury and they were more than 50 percent at fault. [9]
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage	Every auto liability policy includes uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage unless the insurer and a named insured removed or reduced it in a signed written agreement. [10]	An auto policy in Texas must include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage unless a named insured rejected it in writing. If you never signed a rejection, you may have this coverage without knowing it. [11]	A new auto policy must include underinsured motorist coverage, which in Washington also covers uninsured, hit and run and phantom vehicles, unless the named insured or spouse rejected it in writing. [12]
Coverage for your own medical bills	California does not require drivers to carry coverage for their own medical bills. Medical payments coverage is optional. Where a policy has it, it can pay for immediate medical care no matter who was at fault. [13]	Personal injury protection (PIP) is part of every auto policy unless it was rejected in writing. The statute does not require an insurer to provide more than $2,500 per person, and PIP pays no matter who was at fault. [14]	Insurers must offer personal injury protection (PIP) with every auto policy, and it can only be declined in writing. The minimum benefits are $10,000 for medical and hospital care, plus limited amounts for lost income, household services and funeral costs. [15]
Deadline to sue for an injury	Generally two years for an injury caused by someone else’s wrongful act or carelessness. [16]	Two years from the day the claim arises. For most crashes and falls that is the day of the injury. [17]	Three years for most injury claims. [18]

Sources

The rules on this page were last checked against these sources on October 3, 2026. Laws change, so follow the link before you rely on a rule.

Attorney review in progress. Responsible attorney: Emery Brett Ledger. Page last updated October 26, 2026.