Being in a serious auto accident is always stressful and rife with uncertainty. You may wonder about your injuries, medical bills, and who will pay for them. Also, you may be uncertain about who caused the accident. Being partly to blame for an auto accident doesn’t necessarily bar you from receiving compensation. However, you should immediately retain a Lutz car accident lawyer to ensure your right to compensation isn’t at risk.
Learn more about auto accidents and liability below. If you were in a recent accident, speak to a car accident attorney for more information.
How Is Fault Proven In A Car Accident?
Obtaining compensation in a car accident claim usually means proving negligence. However, if you are in a no-fault state, your own auto insurance may be responsible for covering your initial damages. Depending on the situation, the party who caused the accident can be liable for the rest of your losses. Talk to a car accident lawyer about how your losses can be covered in a no-fault state.
Proving negligence in a car accident cause means showing the following:
- Another party had a duty of care to you. For example, other drivers have a duty of care to obey traffic rules and not injure other people.
- The other driver violated their duty of care. For instance, they ran a red light and hit your car.
- You have injuries from the accident, such as a back and neck injury.
- You have damages from the accident, such as medical expenses.
You should promptly retain a car accident attorney to prove how the accident happened and avoid being wrongly blamed. You can still receive compensation in a car accident claim in many states if you were partially at fault. However, it will reduce your compensation for medical bills, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.
You Might Be Wrongfully Blamed For The Car Accident
It’s important to remember that car accidents are usually confusing and difficult to sort out. The involved drivers can have different versions of the crash. All involved drivers have a stake in the argument because the liable driver may have to pay some or all of the plaintiff’s damages.
An essential aspect of any car accident investigation is causation. Even if the other party did something wrong or negligent, the action must cause your injury and losses. There are occasions where you can be partly at fault for the accident, so the other driver may not be entirely to blame for your injuries.
However, the insurance company does not get the final word if it says you were partially to blame for the crash. You can challenge their conclusion. This is when you should always retain a seasoned car accident lawyer to protect your rights. They will thoroughly investigate the accident and determine how it happened. Doing so will ensure you aren’t improperly blamed for your own injuries.
What Damages Are Available In A Car Accident Claim?
If you suffered an injury in a crash caused by another party, you can be entitled to damages, including:
- Medical bills, including future medical expenses
- Lost income, potentially including lost earning capacity for a permanent injury
- Pain and suffering, including mental anguish
- Property damage to repair or replace your vehicle
Obtaining auto accident damages means proving that the other driver was substantially at fault for the accident. Rely on a seasoned auto accident attorney to prove fault in your case.
How Fault Is Determined In A Car Accident
You may think that you were partially at fault for the car accident. However, you should still have a car accident attorney review your case. You may be eligible for compensation for your medical bills, lost earnings, and pain and suffering.
Furthermore, determining fault in an auto accident is complex and involves extensive evidence. You can be blameless for the accident, even though you think you were partially at fault. It’s not unusual for an insurance company to unfairly blame the accident victim for causing or partially causing the accident. Your auto accident attorney will rely on some or all of the following evidence to prove liability:
Traffic Law Violations
Traffic laws for the state where the accident happened may play a critical role in determining liability. For example, if an accident happened in Florida because of a speeding driver, local speed limits will decide if the person violated the law. This can be used to prove that the at-fault driver violated their duty of care and injured you.
Traffic Tickets
One of the first pieces of evidence of accidents is often whether traffic violations were committed. If the other driver is cited for a speeding violation at the crash scene, this is helpful to prove fault. However, receiving a traffic ticket doesn’t necessarily mean the other party was 100 percent at fault.
Videos And Photos
With so many dashcams and smartphones on the market, video and photo evidence can significantly determine liability. Photos and videos taken after the accident can be helpful, especially those that show car damage and positions, traffic signs, and road conditions. Dash cam footage is often beneficial for proving fault, as well.
Insurance Company Investigation
After a car accident, each party’s insurance company will do its own investigation to understand how the crash happened. The insurance investigators may visit the crash scene and inspect the cars involved. You must cooperate with all insurance companies but aren’t required to speak to the other driver’s insurer. Have a car accident lawyer handle discussions with the other driver’s insurance company.
Accident Reconstruction
Testimony from your attorney’s accident reconstruction professionals helps prove fault. These professionals use scientific instruments and calculations to establish how the accident occurred.
Your Auto Accident Attorney’s Investigation
One of the best reasons to retain an auto accident attorney is that they will perform an independent investigation. If necessary, the findings can be used to fight the insurance company’s conclusion. Remember, the liable driver usually pays the other party’s damages, so proving fault is critical.
Eyewitness Statements
Accident accounts from eyewitnesses may provide objective views about who caused the accident. Although the relevance and credibility of witnesses can vary, they are often crucial in the accident investigation.
Police Report
When the police respond to a car accident, they often write a police report. The report may contain the responding officer’s opinions and observations about who caused the crash. It may also include statements from involved drivers and witnesses and other important information about the accident, such as weather conditions. The police report alone doesn’t prove liability, but the insurance company will consider it.
Remember, it is confusing after a serious car accident, and you may think you caused the accident and didn’t. The best step to preserve your rights is to retain an auto accident attorney to handle the case. They’ll prove how the accident happened and estimate your case worth. Then, if you are eligible for compensation, they’ll work tirelessly to negotiate a fair settlement.
You Can Fight The Insurance Company’s Conclusion
You might feel hopeless after a car accident where the insurance company blames you for the crash. However, the insurer doesn’t get the last word about accident causation. After all, the insurance company may have a motivation to partly or fully blame you for the accident. They know that the mere allegation that you caused the accident can reduce what they pay for your losses.
You have legal options if you dissent from the insurance company’s conclusion about fault. Your auto accident attorney can fight back. Your attorney can continue negotiating with the insurer to reach a fairer resolution. The insurance company knows that a jury in a lawsuit may disagree with its liability conclusion.
You Can Take The Case To Court
Suppose the insurance company wrongly concludes that you were partially at fault for the crash. Your auto accident attorney can file a lawsuit and take the case to court. The jury has the final say on who was at fault, no matter what the insurance company says.
The jury will hear the crash evidence and determine who is at fault and how much. The only risk is that the jury may reach the same conclusion as the insurance company. However, the jury has no financial incentive to blame you for the accident. Their view is impartial and will decide based on the case evidence.
Your auto accident attorney will tell you if they think it’s worth taking the case to court to contest the insurance company’s conclusion regarding fault. Retaining an auto accident attorney is always a good idea, especially when serious injuries and questions about liability arise.
How To Avoid Blame For The Car Accident
For compensation, the proper party must be held liable for the accident. You want to ensure that the liable party must pay your damages. There are certain things you can do to avoid being wrongfully blamed for the auto accident:
First, avoid talking to the other driver’s insurance company. After the car accident, don’t be surprised if their insurance company calls you. The insurance adjuster may couch this call in kind language, such as asking how and whether you suffered an injury. However, the purpose of the conversation is to get you to undermine your claim.
Insurance adjusters are trained to get injured parties to say something to reduce their compensation. For example, you might wrongly say that you were partially at fault or that you aren’t injured. You may be wrong about liability, and you probably don’t know yet what your complete injuries are.
The best course is to have your auto accident attorney handle all conversations with the other party’s insurance company. This ensures that your rights are protected and that you receive maximum compensation.
Second, you should hire an experienced auto accident attorney early in your case. Doing so ensures that your rights are respected from day one and that you are not incorrectly blamed for the accident. There is nothing that you can say to the insurance company that will help your case. Allow your attorney to handle those conversations. Also, your attorney can take the case to court if you are being wrongly blamed for the crash.
What Is My Car Accident Claim Worth?
Every auto accident claim is different. Your case can be worth more than someone with similar injuries. Or, the case can be worth less. An experienced car accident attorney can review your case to determine its approximate value. The following factors will largely determine what your case is worth:
- Liability: Your compensation may be reduced in many states if you are partially liable for the accident. However, you may think you are to blame when you aren’t, so talk to a car accident lawyer immediately. They will investigate and determine who is at fault.
- Severity of injuries: Someone with a serious head injury will have a higher case value than someone with a minor back injury.
- Medical expenses: Your case is worth more if you have extensive medical needs, such as hospitalization, surgery, rehabilitation, etc.
- Insurance: Not every liable driver has enough insurance to pay all of the plaintiff’s damages. If you live in a no-fault state, your own auto insurance may cover your initial expenses. You would need to step outside the no-fault system for a serious injury to have more of your losses covered.
- Lost earnings: A serious injury may entitle you to months or years of lost earnings compensation. You also can receive compensation for lost earning capacity due to a permanent injury.
Speak to an experienced auto accident attorney to understand your potential case value. An attorney will also investigate the accident and ensure the correct party is held liable.
Speak To A Car Accident Attorney Today
Being seriously injured in a car accident is alarming, but you may be eligible for compensation in a personal injury claim. A car accident lawyer should be consulted to learn if you have a case. The legal consultation is free, and there are no legal expenses if your case is unsuccessful. Speak to a Lutz personal injury attorney today.
James Wayne Holliday
James Wayne Holliday has been practicing law since 1995. He has been named as a “Best Attorney” Lifetime Charter Member in Florida, an honor awarded to less than one percent of the nation’s lawyers.
Mr. Holliday has earned a reputation as a relentless trial lawyer because of his outstanding work ethic and thorough preparation of his cases for trial.
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