Car accidents are devastating. They can result in injuries, emotional distress, and costly
expenses to repair your vehicle or seek medical care. At their worst, they frequently are fatal as
well. Since car accidents significantly disrupt your life in many ways, it’s a fairly common
procedure to hire an attorney and file a lawsuit against liable parties to help recover economic
damages.
How is liability decided, however? It can be difficult for courts to determine liability
when so many factors can contribute to a car accident. Some victims may have even
contributed to their accident to some degree. Since multiple parties can share liability in an
accident, many states employ specific laws and approaches to determining liability in court.
Comparative negligence is one of the main approaches most states use.
Learning about comparative negligence and other types of accident liability laws can help introduce you to how your case may be treated in court.
What Is Comparative Negligence?
Comparative negligence is a legal principle that helps courts assign liability—fault—in cases like
car accidents. Each party involved in the accident is assigned a certain amount of liability,
typically expressed as a percentage. It’s possible to share liability, have no liability, or have all
the liability.
Drunk driving, speeding, and distracted driving usually amount to a higher
percentage of liability. You may not share all of the blame, but certain behaviors can make you
slightly liable in an accident, such as arguing with your kids or paying attention to the radio.
Comparative negligence ensures that car accident lawsuits assess causes fairly. If you share
some liability, you’ll receive less compensation relative to how much you contributed to the
accident.
Most states employ this principle, and they typically use a few different types.
Pure Comparative Negligence
Pure comparative negligence uses the principle in its simplest form. No matter how much
liability you share in the accident, you can recover compensation for damages relative to your
contribution.
For example, you can still receive compensation even if you’re 99% liable. You
won’t earn much compensation, as you’re not responsible for only one percent of the accident,
but your liability won’t bar you. Only some states practice pure comparative negligence
principles, like California and Alaska. While you’re not guaranteed compensation in these
states, it may be easier to recover damages using this principle.
Modified Comparative Negligence
In some states, you are only entitled to compensation after your accident if you are only partially
liable. The state will apply a certain threshold that plaintiffs cannot cross in terms of liability; it’s
usually 50% or 51%, or half.
If you are found to be more than half liable for the accident, you can’t recover any compensation. As long as you are under that 50% threshold, you can still earn
compensation relative to your liability. The less liable you are, the more you can earn, just like
other comparative negligence approaches. Many states, including Georgia, Hawaii, and Illinois,
use modified comparative negligence to award compensation in accident lawsuits.
Contributory Negligence
There are some states where you are not allowed to share any fault at all in order to receive
compensation in a lawsuit.
This is a common law tort rule called contributory negligence. If you
even share one percent of the fault in an accident, you won’t be able to recover damages in
court. In contributory negligence states, a birth injury lawyer will need to work diligently to gather
evidence to prove that their client was not at fault in order to recover compensation for them.
Any kind of activity that contributed to the accident, like not wearing a seatbelt, texting and
driving, or speeding, can affect your recovery. Only five states or districts practice contributory
negligence: North Carolina, Alabama, Washington D.C., Virginia, and Maryland. If you’re
located in these areas, be certain to consult with your attorney.
Conclusion
You still need to work with an attorney to determine case eligibility regardless of where you live.
If your case is eligible for a lawsuit, you still need to win in order to recover damages. Working
with a qualified, experienced attorney in car accident law can help increase your chances of
recovering damages, but it isn’t guaranteed. Even if you feel you’re more than 50% liable in a
car accident and you live in a modified comparative negligence state, you can still consult with
an attorney.
They may be able to prove that other parties were more negligent than you. There
are a ton of variables and causes of accidents that you may not even be aware of. Be sure to
keep any records you obtain regarding police reports, medical expenses, car repairs, and
insurance claims.
On the accident scene, be sure to record insurance policies and contact
information for all parties involved to make obtaining evidence quicker and smoother. You may
be subject to other laws and regulations regarding your car accident claim as well, such as
statutes of limitations or compensation caps. Your attorney can provide you with more
information tailored to your state.
Source: Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers
