What Happens If You Get Injured In A Car Accident That Was Partially Your Fault?

You have probably heard that your insurance premiums will increase if you cause a car accident, and therefore, you should never admit that an accident was your fault.  This is true, but determining fault in a traffic accident is more complicated than it sounds, and so are the consequences of the fault determination.  Sometimes, car accidents that result in bodily injury are partially the fault of both of the drivers involved, and sometimes other parties, such as the city that failed to repair a broken traffic light or the bar that sold alcohol to a customer who was obviously too drunk to drive but had come to the bar alone, can also bear some of the responsibility for causing the collision.  How costly your accident-related injuries are does not always correlate directly to how much fault you bear for the accident; sometimes the driver who bears most of the fault gets injured seriously enough to require hospitalization, while the other driver is unharmed.  A Columbia car accident lawyer can help you get money to pay your accident-related medical bills, even if the accident was partially your fault.

The 51 Percent Rule and Modified Comparative Negligence

South Carolina law follows the rule of modified comparative negligence when determining eligibility for compensation after a car accident.  This means that, if the accident was at least 51 percent your fault, you cannot seek damages from any other party that contributed to the accident.  Meanwhile, if you were injured in an accident that was 50 percent your fault, you can still get money from an insurance claim with the other driver’s insurance company, or even a lawsuit against the other driver.  The amount of money you can get depends on your percentage of fault.  If you bear no fault for the accident, you can request and receive payment for the entire amount of your accident-related losses.  If the accident was 20 percent your fault, then 20 percent of the financial responsibility is yours, but you can seek compensation for the other 80 percent.  If, between your totaled vehicle and your medical bills, your losses equal $100,000, you can get the other driver’s insurance to pay you $80,000.

Every Percentage Point of Fault Represents Money That You Can or Cannot Recover

Getting stuck with a $20,000 medical debt is a lot less bad than getting stuck with a $100,000 debt, and a $10,000 debt is even less bad.  Insurance companies try to trick you into admitting as much fault as you can.  Therefore, you should not give a recorded statement to the insurance company.  If your accident-related financial losses are in the thousands of dollars, you should have a car accident lawyer negotiate with the insurance company on your behalf.

Let Us Help You Today

The personal injury lawyers at the Stanley Law Group can help you get the money you need after a car accident, even if your actions played a role in causing the accident.  Contact The Stanley Law Group in Columbia, South Carolina or call (803)799-4700 for a free initial consultation.

Source:

scstatehouse.gov/code/t15c038.php