Personal injury suit and comparative negligence after Reno crash?

Personal injury suit and comparative negligence after Reno crash?
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Mar 02, 2016
After the dizzying effects of a car accident injury, an injured party often has many questions. What happened and who are to blame are high on the list of questions that people involved in the crash usually have after a Reno car accident. You may even be wondering about your actions leading up to the crash and if they hold any weight of responsibility. But even if you are partially responsible for a car accident, you can still receive compensation if another party was also responsible.

This is what is called comparative negligence, which is essentially that two or more parties are responsible for a car accident. To what percentage each party is responsible is called apportionment of fault. For example let’s say that a car is in the left lane, yielding to oncoming traffic before making a left turn, and does not see the oncoming vehicle speeding 20 miles over the speed limit. The two cars collide when the car makes the left turn.

The person turning should have noticed the oncoming vehicle, but the driver going straight should not have been speeding. This is an example of comparative negligence because both parties share a percentage of fault for the crash. Depending on how the state’s comparative negligence law is construed will determine how at fault each party is for the crash. Percentage of fault and the injury costs will determine how financially responsible one might be for their own, or another driver’s injuries.

No one is perfect, and people make mistakes behind the wheel every day. However, when an accident involves two drivers, there is usually a way to determine who is more at fault. An investigation into a car accident that caused injuries will turn up clues as to who is more responsible. To prove that another driver was equally or more negligent and thus financially responsible will require effort from the injured party.

Source: FindLaw, ” Comparative Negligence ,” Accessed Feb. 27, 2016