Anderson Injury Lawyers | February 15, 2025 | Personal Injury
One of the first rules drivers learn is where they can and cannot park. The curb is painted red or yellow in many places to identify the no-parking zone for fire hydrants. However, sometimes the paint wears off, or the curb deteriorates, obscuring the no-parking zone. Thus, knowing how close you can park to a fire hydrant is helpful.
Aside from getting a ticket for parking too close, a careless driver may be liable for any injuries that result from a parking violation. For example, a driver might be liable for car accidents that occur when another driver hits their improperly parked car. They may even bear liability for a victim’s burn injuries when firefighters cannot reach the hydrant quickly during a fire.
Texas Parking Restrictions
Texas law prohibits parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant. The law includes an exception for temporarily stopping to pick up or drop off a passenger. Logically, the rule has two additional exceptions. Fire trucks can park next to a fire hydrant. Additionally, you can likely avoid a ticket if you stop to obey a police officer, stop sign, traffic signal, or construction flagger.
However, parking, stopping, or standing for any other reason violates the law. For example, you violate the law if you stop to drop off a package, no matter how briefly you park.
Moreover, the law does not create an exception based on your intent. If your car breaks down in front of a hydrant, you must act quickly to push or tow it away from the hydrant, or you risk receiving a parking citation.
Texas law has exceptions to other parking prohibitions for disabled vehicles, tow trucks, and waste vehicles picking up waste. However, these exceptions do not apply to the prohibition against parking near a fire hydrant.
The reason for this strict rule is straightforward. Fire trucks need access to fire hydrants during emergencies. If a vehicle parks in front of a hydrant, firefighters may waste valuable time moving the vehicle when they could be rescuing victims and dousing the fire.
Liability for Parking Violations
In Texas, police can issue a citation to someone who parks in front of a fire hydrant. This non-moving violation is punishable by a fine.
The driver may also face civil liability for any injuries that result from their parking violation. Drivers are responsible for any losses that result from their negligent acts. Negligence means that the person failed to exercise reasonable care, thereby harming someone.
In this situation, someone injured in a fire could assert that the driver failed to act with reasonable caution and care when they parked in front of the fire hydrant. They could also assert that their injuries were foreseeable based on the well-known reason for fire hydrant parking restrictions.
Under Texas law, a court might allow an injured victim to skip part of their negligence case by proving the other party violated the parking restriction. A doctrine called “negligence per se” applies when someone violates a safety law and injures someone else as a result.
This doctrine usually applies to moving violations such as running a stop sign. However, an experienced injury lawyer might persuade a judge that the prohibition against parking near a fire hydrant qualifies as a safety law, allowing the victim to skip two elements — duty of care and breach of duty — and move on to the last two elements, loss and causation.
Parking Near a Fire Hydrant
Parking too close to a fire hydrant isn’t just a minor traffic violation—it’s a serious safety concern. Texas law strictly prohibits parking within 15 feet of a hydrant to ensure firefighters have unobstructed access in emergencies. Violating this law can result in fines and even civil liability if the obstruction delays firefighting efforts and causes injuries. Whether marked or not, always be mindful of hydrant zones to avoid penalties and, more importantly, to help keep your community safe. Responsible parking can make a life-saving difference.
Contact Our Personal Injury Law Firm in Texas
If you’ve been injured in an accident in Fort Worth or Dallas and need legal help, contact our personal injury lawyers at Anderson Injury Lawyers to schedule a free consultation. We proudly serve Tarrant County, Dallas County, and throughout Texas.
Anderson Injury Lawyers – Fort Worth Office
1310 W El Paso St, Fort Worth, TX 76102
(817) 294-1900
Anderson Injury Lawyers – Fort Worth Office (Secondary)
6618 Fossil Bluff Dr # 108, Fort Worth, TX 76137
(817) 631-4113
Anderson Injury Lawyers – Dallas Office
408 W Eighth St Suite 202, Dallas, TX 75208
(214) 327-8000
Anderson Injury Lawyers – Dallas Office (Secondary)
6301 Gaston Ave suite 820, Dallas, TX 75214
(469) 457-4711
