
Product Liability in Texas
Texas generally bars a products-liability action more than 15 years after the defendant’s sale, with an exception for a written express warranty extending beyond that period. A nonmanufacturing seller is generally not liable unless a listed exception applies, such as seller participation in design, alteration, or actual knowledge of a defect.
What Is Product Liability Insurance?
Product liability can cover claims that a product you make, import, distribute or sell injured someone or damaged property. If your business handles products, describe every role in the supply chain and ask how the quote treats product damage and recall costs. Read the national Product liability guide.
What Should You Watch for With Product Liability Insurance in Texas?
Preserve sale dates and written warranties
Texas measures its 15-year product repose period from the defendant’s sale of the product and excepts a written express warranty extending beyond that period. Keep dated sale records and the exact warranty version; marketing language alone may not establish the statutory exception. 1
Seller status depends on specific conduct
Chapter 82 generally shields a seller that did not manufacture the product, but lists exceptions for design participation, alteration, installation, warning control, incorrect express representations, actual defect knowledge, or manufacturer insolvency/jurisdiction. Document these functions and identify the manufacturer in your application. 1
Check the manufacturer’s statutory indemnity duty
Texas law generally requires a manufacturer to indemnify and hold a seller harmless for losses arising from a product-liability action, subject to an exception for seller conduct. Give the broker the supplier agreement and ask how the policy coordinates with defense and indemnity obligations. 2
Which Product Liability Providers Have Texas License Records?
These providers publish a national listing for Product liability; the license records below name the licensed entities and roles. Some records rely on company-reported information rather than independent regulator verification. A national listing does not confirm the product is available in Texas. Check the regulator’s license lookup and confirm state availability for your business when requesting a quote.
Vouch
Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC
Vouch’s licenses page, effective January 16, 2025, lists producer licenses in all 50 states and DC. Its separate surplus-lines table includes Idaho number 870820, while a footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses. Because those statements conflict for Idaho, this record keeps Idaho producer-only and does not treat the table number as established agency surplus-lines authority. The page is company-reported and does not establish product availability. 16
Vouch lists product liability among the core coverages in its technology-company programs.
Who Regulates Insurance in Texas?

Texas Department of Insurance
TDI licenses agents and insurers, reviews company rate filings, and investigates complaints against insurance companies and people it regulates. Its complaint page states limits on what it can resolve, including disputes outside its regulatory authority. 3,4,5
Surplus-Lines Tax and Stamping Office in Texas
Reported tax rate. 4.85% of gross premium plus 0.04% SLTX stamping fee 6,7,8
When Texas is the insured’s home state, the state tax is 4.85% of gross premium; absent a compact allocation agreement, a multistate policy can be taxed on its entire premium. Policies effective on or after Jan. 1, 2024 also carry a 0.04% stamping fee; SLTX invoices the broker and says the insured pays it, and the surplus-lines insurer is not covered by the Texas guaranty association.
Questions to Ask Before You Buy Product Liability in Texas
- Which entities design, import, manufacture, label, distribute, install, or sell our products in Texas?
- What product dates, warnings, warranties, and change records should we preserve for claims in Texas?
- How do the policy’s product wording, reporting terms, and defense provisions apply when a claim involves several product-chain businesses?
Product Liability Insurance in Texas: Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Texas product claim be brought after 15 years?
What can extend Texas’s 15-year product repose period?
Section 16.012 provides an exception when a written express warranty extends beyond 15 years; preserve the warranty text and sale date for counsel’s review. 1
Product Liability Insurance Guides for Other States
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Other coverage in TexasEvery coverage guide for Texas, plus the regulator and surplus-lines details.


