Liability in Car Crash Claims Explained
Most car crash claims begin with the other driver, but the driver is not always the only party who may be responsible. The vehicle owner, an employer, a government agency or a parts manufacturer may also play a role. Finding every responsible party is one of the first jobs of an auto accident lawyer, since each responsible party may carry its own insurance.
Claims against the driver
A negligence claim asks whether a driver failed to use reasonable https://paxtoncupm075.currentvale.com/posts/insurance-adjusters-total-losses-and-diminished-value-2 care. Typical examples include distracted driving, speeding, impaired driving, following too closely and failing to yield. In many states, violating a traffic law can be evidence of negligence, and some states treat it as negligence per se. A citation can help a claim, but it is not required to prove fault, and paying a ticket is treated differently from state to state. A car crash lawyer will compare the driver's conduct with the traffic laws of the state where the crash happened.
Owners and rental companies
If the driver borrowed the car, the owner's insurance policy often covers permissive drivers. The owner may also face a negligent entrustment claim for lending a car to someone known to be unlicensed, impaired or unsafe. Rental and leasing companies are a special case. A federal law known as the Graves Amendment generally protects them from liability for a renter's negligence, unless the company itself was negligent, such as by renting a car with known brake defects.
When the driver was working
If the driver was acting within the scope of employment, the employer is usually answerable for the driver's negligence under respondeat superior. This can cover delivery drivers, sales staff and others who drive as part of the job. Rideshare crashes raise separate coverage questions, since the available coverage can depend on whether the app was on and a ride had been accepted. An auto accident lawyer will typically request the employer's policy in addition to the driver's.
Other parties that may share fault
A missing stop sign, a broken traffic signal or a dangerous road defect may point to a government agency. Claims against public bodies come with special immunity rules and short notice deadlines, and those rules vary by state. When a defective tire, brake or airbag contributed to the crash or the injuries, the manufacturer can face a product liability claim. NHTSA's recall lookup shows open recalls by vehicle identification number. In some states, a bar that served a visibly intoxicated driver may face a dram shop claim.
Claims by passengers
Passengers who are hurt may have claims against one driver or both, even the driver of their own vehicle. Coverage can come from the policy on the car the passenger rode in and from the other driver's policy, and sometimes from the passenger's own policy too. Some policies limit claims between members of the same household, which makes the wording of the policy important.
How shared fault affects the claim
Most states apply comparative negligence, which may reduce a recovery by the injured person's percentage of fault, while a small number still apply contributory negligence. How fault is divided among several defendants also varies by state. A car wreck lawyer reviews every possible party, since a single policy may not cover the whole loss. This is general information and not legal advice, and it cannot predict how a claim will turn out.