Who Is Liable in a Car Accident?
Most car crash claims start with the other driver, but the driver is not always the only party who may be responsible. An employer, the vehicle owner, a government agency or a parts maker can also play a role. Identifying every party with legal responsibility is an early task for a car accident lawyer, because each party may have separate insurance.
Claims against the driver
Negligence asks whether a driver failed to act with reasonable care. Common examples include speeding, distracted driving, impaired driving, following too closely and failing to yield. In many states, violating a traffic law can be evidence of negligence, and some states apply negligence per se. A citation can help a claim, but fault can be proven without one, 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 https://caraccidentlawyers.wiki/reference/uninsured-motorist-coverage/ crash happened.
When someone else owns the car
If the driver borrowed the car, the owner's insurance policy often covers permissive drivers. An owner who lends a car to someone known to be unlicensed, impaired or reckless may face a negligent entrustment claim. Rental and leasing companies are treated differently. 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.
Employers and work vehicles
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 usually ask for the employer's policy along with the driver's own.
Road defects and product defects
A broken traffic signal, a missing stop sign or a dangerous road defect may involve a government agency. Claims against cities, counties and states face special immunity rules and short notice deadlines, and those rules vary by state. If a defective tire, brake or airbag contributed to the crash or the injuries, the manufacturer may 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.
When a passenger is hurt
Passengers who are hurt may have claims against one driver or both, including the driver of the car they were riding in. Coverage may come from the policy on the passenger's vehicle as well as from the other driver's policy, and in some cases from the passenger's own policy. Certain policies restrict claims between relatives who live in 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 few jurisdictions still follow contributory negligence. How fault is divided among several defendants also varies by state. An automobile accident lawyer looks at every possible party because one policy may not cover the full loss. This article is general information, not legal advice, and no outcome can be predicted from it.