People often don’t realize or don’t think about just how dangerous driving is until they are performing a simple errand in their car and they all of a sudden find themselves surrounded by broken glass and smoke.
As the victims being rushed to the hospital with personal injuries, they often run through in their mind the circumstances of what happened. Many victims come up blank or with only a vague recollection of the details. Other victims have a clear recollection of the incident and know exactly why they are in the state they are in.
Either way, the victim of the accident has a long road in front of them with recovery, which means extensive medical bills, time away from work, pain management, and the possibility of physical therapy due to a devastating permanent injury. This requires compensation on the part of the negligent party, but how exactly do you prove negligence in a personal injury or wrongful death case?
Four Requirements to Proving Negligence
This article may seem fairly simple and cut-and-dry concerning proving negligence. But proving negligence is far from easy in almost all cases, especially when an insurance company is involved. They have legal teams dedicated to making sure that they pay you nothing regardless of who’s at fault.
That is why it is best to leave the proof of negligence to your legal professional, but it is always a good idea to educate yourself in order to understand the process. The first thing your lawyer is going to look at are whether the four general criteria for negligence were or were not met. They are:
1) A duty to refrain some form of conduct or a duty to engage in some conduct
2) The defendant breached that duty
3) The breach actually and proximately caused some harm
4) The plaintiff, as a result of the negligence, sustained damages
What is Duty? (otherwise known as “Duty of Care”) Duty is the first element that must be established to proceed with an action in negligence. This is a social contract expecting individuals to conform to a standard of reasonable care while performing any act that could foreseeably harm others such as driving. The plaintiff (the injured party seeking compensation, i.e., you) must be able to show a duty of care imposed by law, which the defendant (the other driver) has breached. In turn, breaching a duty may subject an individual to liability.
Tools of Proving Negligence
To prove anything it is always a good idea to have some sort of evidence. Physical evidence collected at the scene is perhaps the most concrete. Collection of evidence is fully reviewed in our article “What Kind Of Collision Evidence Do Authorities Collect at the Scene of a Car Accident?” There is also other kinds of evidence as you will see below.
Police Report – This is most likely the first responder to the scene of the accident and they do the initial assessment of the incident. In the police report there are many statements and an officer suggestion of what they thought probably happened based on what their investigation. This is often the only investigation that is done in times of tight budgets or when the accident happens in smaller municipalities with limited access to resources.
Medical Report – This is the assessment of the medical professionals (EMTs and Firemen) that show up to provide critical medical care to injured motorists. The fill out their separate report and sometimes it contradicts what is in other reports, which can work either in the favor of the plaintiff or defendant.
Investigation Report – An investigation is done in the event of a major accident involving serious injury death to one or more people involved in the accident. This thorough and detailed report is perhaps one of the most telling and may be accompanied by testimony by the investigating officer.
Eye Witness Account – Eye witness account can be sketchy at times as many people only see the outcome of the accident seconds after hearing the crash and seldom see the accident unfold in front of them.
Footage – It is not uncommon to have footage of an accident either through the city’s intersection video monitoring section or through the security cameras of surrounding businesses.
DUI (Driving Under the Influence) – If the other driver was found to be above the legal limit for alcohol of .08 on a breathalyzer or blood test then they are automatically deemed negligent. It is only through a very well thought out defense that they are not considered at least partially if not fully at fault for the accident (see definition of “Fault” below).
Medical Examination – In the event of an accident caused by a medical emergency such as a heart attack or stroke, a through medical examination is conducted on the defendant. The plaintiff has the ability to subpoena the medical records of the defendant in order to determine if they had prior knowledge of a medical condition and the risks involved.
Other Tests – Tests for drugs both legal and illegal can subject the defendant to DUI laws and render them liable for the accident.
Washington State RCW 4.22.70 – “Percentage of Fault” – The sum of the percentages of the total fault attributed to at-fault entities shall equal one hundred percent. The entities whose fault shall be determined include the claimant or person suffering personal injury or incurring property damage, defendants, third-party defendants, entities released by the claimant, entities with any other individual defense against the claimant, and entities immune from liability to the claimant, but shall not include those entities immune from liability to the claimant.
Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer
As stated above, when proving negligence, there are many different other factors that come into play that are basically only interpretable by a legal professional with extensive skill and experience in personal injury law. That is why it is best to find a most qualified legal professional you can.
Phillips Webster is a full service law firm with a substantial track record of success Personal Injury Litigation. We take the time to fully assess the injured party’s case in order to assure that the victim receives the compensation they deserve. Call our Personal Injury Attorneys today for a free consultation.
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