General Rules For Proving Fault In Personal Injury Case

If you have been injured in an accident, then you may be able to file a personal injury claim. First, you must prove that the other party was at fault. Would you have grounds for making that allegation?

Ask this: Of all those involved in the accident, who was the least careful?

If only 2 parties were disputing about damage caused by a collision, then this would become the question that must be addressed: Who was less careful?

What sorts of actions demonstrate a readiness to be careful? On the road, the willingness to obey the posted signs qualifies as one example. In addition, the willingness to wear a seat belt would demonstrate an appreciation for self-care on the part of the belted rider in a hit automobile.

If an accident takes place on someone else’s property, then a different question must be answered. Was the person that got injured in the spot where he or she was supposed to be? Someone that has ventured into an “off limits” area would lack grounds for personal injuries claim, if his or her decision to venture into that unsafe spot had resulted in the occurrence of an injury-causing accident.

Was the person that got injured careless?

As indicated above, the rider in a car that has been hit has a stronger case, if he or she was wearing a seat belt at the time of the impact. Of course, the state in which the collision took place would also determine the size of any award that the same rider might receive. Some states operate on the principle of pure comparative negligence. In that case, the percent contribution to occurrence of the accident that was made by the victim would determine the percent of the award subtracted from the same victim’s compensation.

Other states have adopted the principle of modified comparative negligence. That copies the rules used for pure comparative negligence, but only if the victim was less than 50% responsible for the accident. As per personal injury lawyer in Barrie, victims that are found to have been more than 50% responsible do not receive any type of compensation.

A few states base decisions on awarding accident victims on the principle of contributory negligence. In those states, a victim that has contributed in any way, no matter how small, to the occurrence of a given accident has lost the ability to get compensated for any accident-related injuries.

The insurance industry also has rules about liability, when there is more than one driver in a household. Each driver living in the household must be named on the car owner’s policy, in order to qualify for coverage, in the event of an accident. Someone that has spirited the keys is not covered.