Car Accidents - Who Is Legally at Fault?

You're driving along, doing the speed limit, obeying the traffic laws and out of nowhere an irresponsible driver hits you - damaging your car and slightly injuring you. In that instance it should be incredibly easy to determine fault, legal responsibility.

Unfortunately, that's not the case.

In almost all truck, car or motorcycle accidents, assigning blame (fault) is a lot more involved and complicated than just determining what vehicle hit the other vehicle.

WHAT DOES FAULT MEAN?

Fault, in this context, refers to the party (person, driver) responsible or legally liable for property damages or physical injuries suffered in an accident. Determining who is at fault is the first step in the victim(s) possibly recovering financial expenses stemming from the accident.

HOW IS FAULT DETERMINED?

In most cases the first step in determining fault for an accident involves the insurance company representative and lawyers reviewing such things as police reports to see if a law enforcement officer cited one party or the other for negligence in the accident. While police citations of negligence or blame do not necessarily prove fault, they can go a long way in assigning responsibility and building a case for a specific party's fault. Other material that the insurance companies and personal injury lawyers will utilize are statements from competent witnesses. Witnesses that had clear, unobstructed and unbiased accounts of the accident can help to substantiate negligence claims by detailing the events that transpired before, during and after the accident took place.

Determining fault - which can be negligent, careless or a willful act - can be the difference between a victim being compensated for property damage, medical costs, lost wages and/or pain/suffering, or not.

Typically, a driver (a person) is at fault because they were:

• Negligent. Negligent driving can come in many forms, like texting-while-driving, drunk driving or any number of instances where a person if careless or unwittingly engaging in behavior that may cause another vehicle or person harm.


• Recklessness: Reckless driving is indulging in behavior where a person willfully or willingly knows that they are going to cause harm.

There are a wide range of factors that go into determining fault. Because of the sometimes substantial - and even life-changing - consequences of a negligent accident, it is critically important that the steps you take to protect yourself after an accident are smart, swift and prudent. The best way to protect yourself, your property and your loved ones after a car accident is to speak with a car accident personal injury attorney to ensure that your legal and financial rights are best protected.