When injured in car accidents, you have several available options and it is very important that you determine all your claim options. Regardless of what you will die, insurance and liability rules do apply. These are actually different from one state to another. Also, there are several facts that will influence fault. For instance, there are no fault states and there might be different drivers that are considered to be at fault in traffic accidents.
In most US states, after the car accident, the driver that was at fault is the one that will be responsible for financial compensation to cover injuries and vehicle damage. Practically though, it is the car insurance company of that driver that is going to cover most of the claims. The driver usually just ends up paying a raised insurance premium in the future.
The traditional fault principles apply to financial and legal responsibilities for accident losses. In the no fault US states, there are different rules that apply and it is important to contact a personal injury attorney so that you are fully aware of what your options are and how actual fault will be determined.
Insurance rule differences do have major impact on personal injury claims. However, the one thing that does impact the claim the most was the party determined to be at fault. In some cases, this is incredibly easy to determine. For instance, police officers can easily figure out when someone is at fault if a state vehicle code was violated. In other cases though (usually in more severe car accident scenarios), the party at fault is much more complicated to determine.
Since you do have to prove liability, two of the main elements to be aware of are:
- Legal Duty Breaches – There is such a thing as the legal duty of care. This means that someone driving needs to care for others on the road. With this in mind, driver behavior is basically compared to the reasonably prudent driver expectations. When proper care is not exercised, we see it as a breach of legal duty of care. As a result, we are talking about negligence.
- Duty Breaches – The fact that the other driver was negligent is not enough. You need to prove the fact that the negligence is what led to the damages and the injuries you add to the claim. When the accident could have also happened if the driver was not negligent, fault is not assigned.
Insurance adjusters understand everything highlighted above so they never talk about things like breaches or legal duty. They ask questions after the car crash in order to serve their best interests. Since most people do not know about the legal duty of care and other more complex legal topics, insurance adjusters try to take advantage of the lack of knowledge.
At the end of the day, when cases are very complicated, it is particularly important that you hire an experienced personal injury attorney that is capable of offering you the right legal advice. When you do this, it is quite easy to get the financial compensation you deserve and determine fault.