Fault and Liability for a Car Accident

A car accident can happen in the blink of an eye. After the accident, you may have to deal with liability insurance claims and pay your deductible. How much you have to pay and who is responsible for paying for damages can depend on fault and liability. If one driver blames the other, liability could be decided in court.

State laws and your liability coverage determine liability for car accident injuries. Talk to a car accident attorney in your area for legal advice about your case.

Who Is at Fault for a Car Accident?

The driver at fault for causing a car accident should be held responsible for the damages. Liability is a legal obligation. It means the driver responsible for the accident has to pay for the damages. Fault in a car accident is usually based on negligence. Negligence is the failure to drive like a reasonable person.

Traffic Violations and Liability

Negligence in a car accident is often based on traffic laws. For example, traffic regulations say a driver must stop at an intersection with a stop sign. If a driver doesn’t stop, there is an unreasonable risk of an accident. If the driver doesn’t stop and hits another driver following traffic rules, the driver who didn’t stop may be considered negligent.

Negligence can also involve things like not paying attention or driving carelessly. For example, if a driver on the freeway was reading the newspaper and not looking at the road, that could be considered an unreasonable risk for an accident. If the driver rear-ended another driver while their eyes weren’t on the road, the driver may be liable for vehicle damages in a car accident claim.

In cases like this, the most critical question is whether the incident would have occurred without the violation. These violations can vary from state to state, but what is illegal in one state may not be illegal in others. Your car accident lawyer should be familiar with all the rules and regulations in the state where the incident occurred, allowing them to proceed accordingly.

Fault and the Driver’s Insurance

Liability for car accidents can depend on state insurance laws. Some states have no-fault insurance coverage for drivers. Also known as personal injury protection (PIP), the driver’s own insurance will cover their personal injury damages. Depending on the type of insurance policy, PIP will cover medical bills and other damages for the driver and their passengers. Check with your state law to see whether you have PIP auto insurance requirements.

If you live in a no-fault state, your insurance will cover your medical expenses and auto accident damage. Instead of having to fight the other driver and their insurance provider, your personal injury protection (PIP) policy determines the process for car accident victims.

In “at-fault” states, the blame will be assessed in percentages for each driver involved in the accident. Many factors are used in determining the at-fault driver, including:

• Police report and accident scene

• Insurance company and insurance adjuster
• Car insurance policy
• Property damage
• Medical billsTraffic Law Violations and Liability

Accidents With Multiple Drivers

Sometimes, with rear-ending accidents involving three cars, the last car in line isn’t always the car that causes the entire accident. Occasionally, the second car will hit the first car before the third car hits the second car. This can be difficult even for the drivers to discern. Sometimes the fault can be challenging to determine.

Note that in some states, the police will not come to the accident scene to fill out a report. It will be up to the people involved in the accident to describe the events to their insurance companies.

Contributory Negligence and Comparative Negligence

When there is more than one cause of the car crash, liability can depend on who was more at fault. Fault is divided by the fault percentage, up to 100%. Comparative fault can determine who can recover damages. It can also change how much money anyone with injuries can recover.

States are divided on contributory negligence laws. Some states still use pure contributory negligence to deny recovery for drivers with any fault in the accident. Other states use pure comparative negligence or modified comparative negligence. Here’s how it can affect a personal injury case.

Driver A is 1% responsible, and Driver B is 99% responsible. Driver A suffers $100,000 in damages. In a contributory negligence state like Virginia, Driver A could not get anything for damages because they were partly responsible for the accident. In a comparative negligence state, Driver A could recover compensation from Driver B, but it would be reduced to $99,000.

Strict Liability: No Burden of Proof for Negligence

Some types of personal injury claims are based on strict liability. This means one party is liable for damages, and there is no need to prove negligence. A common example of motor vehicle accidents is defective vehicles. The manufacturer can be strictly liable if a defective vehicle part causes an accident. You don’t have to show that anyone in the factory was negligent, only that the part was defective as sold.

Clear It Up With a Lawyer’s Help

Liability and compensation can be complicated after a serious injury accident. Talk to a personal injury lawyer in your area for more information about how you can recover money for damages after a car accident.