Current through Reg. 49, No. 12; March 22, 2024
(a) A Notice
of Suspension will be issued to the driver and/or owner in a crash that meets
the criteria in §
25.1
of this title (relating to Criteria for Establishing Crash Cases for
Enforcement). The suspension will be effective 21 days from the date of the
notice unless a timely administrative hearing is requested or the Department
receives complete compliance as indicated in subsection (c) of this
section.
(b) If a hearing is
requested timely (within 20 days from the date on the Notice), it will be
granted pursuant to Texas Transportation Code (TRC), §601.156. The
administrative hearing will be conducted pursuant to TRC 521 Subchapter N and
37 TAC §§
15.81-
15.85 of this
title (relating to Driver Improvement).
(c) Compliance acceptable to prevent a
suspension if filed prior to the effective date of the suspension, or to lift
the suspension after the effective date in any of the following ways:
(1) information indicating liability
insurance coverage at the time of the crash in the form of a letter on
insurance company letterhead.
(2)
evidence of settlement indicating no probability of a judgment, such as:
(A) a copy of the front and back of a
canceled check/checks totaling the amount of security required in the crash,
or
(B) evidence that the uninsured
party had been paid by another party/parties involved or their insurance
company, or
(C) proof that the
damaged vehicle was illegally parked at the time of the crash.
(3) form SR-11 (Release) or a
properly executed document releasing the at-fault individual from all
liability.
(A) The release must be signed by
all owners of the damaged property and /or by all parties who sustained
personal injury.
(B) The document
must be notarized or signed before two uninvolved witnesses.
(C) If both the owner of the vehicle and the
driver are suspended under one crash case, a release of either individual is
deemed a release for both unless the release expressly states
otherwise.
(D) If evidence is
received that the owners of the damaged property and/or individuals who have
sustained personal injury have been paid by their insurance company, the
release may be signed by an authorized representative of the insurance
company.
(4) form SR-19
(Installment Agreement) or other similarly styled document between the parties
which must be:
(A) executed by the uninsured
party,
(B) accepted by all parties
who sustained damage in the crash,
(C) signed before a notary or two witnesses,
and
(D) if evidence is received
that the owners of the damaged property and/or individuals who have sustained
personal injury have been paid by their insurance company, the acceptance
portion of the installment agreement may be signed by an authorized
representative of the insurance company.
(5) security deposited in accordance with the
original Notice of Suspension which must be:
(A) in cash, or
(B) by cashier's check or money order payable
to the Texas Department of Public Safety, or
(C) by a surety bond written by an insurance
company authorized to execute surety bonds in this state, or
(D) a bankruptcy petition indicating "filed"
by the court, a final order of bankruptcy or discharge. A reinstatement fee is
required prior to the renewal or issuance of a license if acceptable compliance
is not received prior to the effective date of the suspension, unless the
suspension was cleared due to bankruptcy proceedings.
(E) If a person satisfies a security deposit
by the methods described in (c)(5)(A) through (c)(5)(C) of this section, the
security deposit must also be accompanied by a form SR-22 (insurance
certificate) and form SR-22A (certificate of a 6 month prepaid liability
insurance policy).
(d) When the owner and operator are separate
persons and each one is required to deposit security, a joint deposit may be
made with a stipulation in writing that such deposit is on behalf of both
persons required to deposit the security and will be acceptable compliance for
both the owner and operator. If no stipulation of joint deposit is received,
the deposit will be filed on behalf of the depositor only.
(e) Each person depositing security that must
file proof of insurance in the form of an SR-22 in his/her name, must also file
form SR-22A as stated in (c)(5)(E) of this section.
(f) Disbursement of security.
(1) security will be released to the injured
or damaged party upon receipt of a certified copy of a judgment, form SR-42
(Transcript of Civil Proceedings) and form SR-61 (Application for Payment of
Judgments Out of Security Deposited).
(A)
security released will be in the amount of the judgment.
(B) if the amount of security on file does
not satisfy the judgment, the driving privileges of the negligent party will be
suspended under the judgment provisions for the balance of the
judgment.
(C) if the amount of
security on file exceeds the amount of the judgment, the depositor will be sent
form SR-14 or SR-14A (Application for Return of Security), to have the balance
disbursed.
(2) security
deposit will be released to the damaged or injured party upon receipt of form
SR-11 (Release), signed by the damaged party and form SR-45 (Release of
Deposit), signed by the depositor.
(3) security deposit will be released to the
depositor or person for whom security is deposited by showing eligibility and
filing a completed form SR-14 or SR-14A (Application for Return of Security
Deposit). Eligibility may be shown by evidence of a release from liability, two
year anniversary of crash date for initial suspensions, or two year anniversary
date from the date of deposit for suspensions based on an installment agreement
in default.
(4) if the depositor is
deceased, the deposit may be released to the person named as executor of his
estate. The appropriate form/forms as indicated in paragraphs (2) or (3) of
this subsection, along with a copy of the will, or a Letter of Testamentary
must be filed to have the monies disbursed.
(g) If an installment agreement is filed as
compliance in a crash case, upon receipt of form SR-73 (Notice of Default), the
license of the person who defaulted on the agreement will be suspended.
Compliance may be in the form of:
(1) a
release as stated in subsection (c)(3) of this section, or
(2) a security deposit as stated in
subsection (c)(5) of this section, or
(3) an installment agreement granted by order
of a court where an agreed judgment has been rendered, or
(4) bankruptcy as stated in subsection
(c)(5)(D) of this section.
(5) a
reinstatement fee is required prior to the renewal or issuance of a license if
acceptable compliance is not received prior to the effective date of the
suspension, unless the suspension was cleared due to bankruptcy
proceedings.
(h) If,
after two years from the crash date for initial suspensions or two years from
the date on the Notice of Default for suspensions based on an installment
agreement in default, no judgment has been filed against the party at fault,
the suspension may be withdrawn by filing form SR-60 (Application to Waive
Requirement to Deposit Security). A reinstatement fee is required prior to the
renewal or issuance of a license.