Determining Faults in Auto Accidents

by Fusion 360 Studios Digital Marketing Specialists

You are driving down one of the many open and rural highways in the state of Utah. The sun is out, your favorite CD is giving you good vibes, all seems to be well. You remember that you forgot to text back your mother about some weekend plans so you slide your phone out from your pocket and carefully start a new text message. There are no cars in front of you so no need to worry about rear ending someone. However, out of nowhere someone in a lane next to you forgets to check their blind spot and plows right into the side of your car when switching lanes.

Who is at fault here? Auto accidents are always tricky. Even though the driver in Utah didn’t check their blind spot is mostly at fault, you also have some accountability for it as well. This is because of the shared fault law.

Let’s go back to the story and example used above. After the car accident, your car is badly damaged and you also suffer some pretty bad injuries as well. You decide to take the other driver to court because you are pretty sure you will qualify for getting some nice compensation. However, since you were texting during the accident and therefore demonstrating some degree of negligence, the fault of the auto accident now becomes shared. Because of this, you might not receive as much money for the accident as you were hoping for. For example, if this accident were to happen to Utah the comparative fault rule would reduce how much compensation you would receive by an amount that is equal to the percentage of your fault in the auto accident.

So what does this all mean? If you were originally going to be awarded $8,000 for your injuries but in court it was determined that you were 10 percent at fault, you would lose $800 (10 percent of 8,000) of your compensation. If you were 20 percent at fault it would be $1,600, and so forth. For most states if someone is held 50 percent at fault, they wouldn’t receive any kind of compensation for their auto accidents.

The specifics of the shared fault law in auto accidents can differ by state; Utah’s shared fault law might not be the same as California’s shared fault law. Even though the specifics of the law can differ, the overall concept of shared fault in auto accidents is pretty much the same throughout the country.

Ian Francis is a legal writer reporter for Fusion 360, a Content Marketing Agency. Information provided by Robert J Debry.

* Image Credit: Wikimedia