Insurance companies are responsible for determining who is at fault, or liable, in a car accident. They must find who is liable before they can pay for damages resulting from the car accident. To determine accident liability, the insurance company will consider police reports and other evidence from the accident scene. They will also take into consideration driver and witness statements as well as the state’s statutes and traffic laws.
Determining Accident Liability
Here are the steps that insurance companies take when examining liability.
- Driver Duty - The insurance company examines the duty of each driver involved in the accident. The general duties of a driver are to look out at all times, to avoid an accident or collision as much as possible, and to obey the rules of the road at all times. Adherence to these duties is a critical part of the liability determination process.
- Breach - The insurance company will determine if the drivers breached any of their duties during the accident. All drivers must have been paying attention, obeying rules of the road, and both must have tried to avoid the accident. Otherwise there has been a breach and fault can be assigned. During this portion of the examination, car insurers look closely at avoidance. Even if the other driver disregarded the rules of the road or even committed a crime, the other driver must have made every effort to avoid the collision. The insurance company closely considers the rules of the road when assessing liability. The rules are clearly codified in each state and must be applied uniformly. If both drivers in an accident have breached duty, the insurance company must also examine which breach was more substantial as they determine liability. Driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol and flying through a red light will outweigh the breach of another driver failing to change signals.
- Cause - The insurance company must be able to establish cause, linking the breach to the damage of the accident. There must be a connection between the breach and the accident.
- Damages - Damages must have occurred in the form of property damage or physical injury, and these damages must be associated with the breach of duty. If you sustained both knee and ankle pain after an accident, damage analysis will be applied twice, once for each specific injury. Both injuries must be shown to have been caused by the accident in question.
Getting Help
If you have been involved in a car accident, it is important to consult with a qualified car accident attorney as soon as possible. Your lawyer can help you to gather evidence to prove the other driver was at fault and can help you to understand your rights in the post-accident process.
