Hundreds of Houston Police and Fire crashes reported: What's the cost?

Houston law enforcement reveals hundreds of crashes

Houston taxpayers could be on the hook for paying for hundreds of annual crashes involving law enforcement vehicles. 

HOUSTON - Houston’s public safety departments attended a City Council committee meeting Tuesday where they revealed hundreds of annual collisions involving first responders, leaving taxpayers potentially liable for heavy damage costs. 

Houston crash report

What we know:

During a Public Safety Committee hearing, both the Houston Fire Department (HFD) and Houston Police Department (HPD) defended their safety records as typical for a city of Houston’s size, despite being unable to provide a total dollar amount for the resulting property damage and legal settlements.

Data presented at the meeting showed a trend of vehicular accidents within the city’s emergency fleets:

• Houston Fire Department: Averages 400 to 500 accidents per year. Officials noted that approximately half of these occur while units are responding to emergencies with lights and sirens activated.
• Houston Police Department: Reported 552 total collisions in 2025. Internal investigations determined that department staff were at fault in 231 of those incidents — roughly 42 percent.

Assistant Fire Chief Joe Trevino told council members that the accident volume is a byproduct of the department’s massive workload, noting that HFD responds to more than 400,000 calls annually.

Questions Over Training and Costs

What we don't know:

As the numbers came to light, city officials faced questioning regarding preventative measures. HPD Captain Donna Crawford testified that the department has implemented additional training courses specifically focused on pursuit safety to mitigate risks.

When At-Large Councilmember Sallie Alcorn pressed for specific figures regarding insurance payouts and repair costs, department representatives could not provide an immediate answer, and referred to their finance department. 

What's next:

FOX 26 has asked the Mayor’s Office for a full accounting of the records. We're also working to find information comparing Houston's numbers to other major metro areas.