What’s the Significance of Proving Fault in a Car Accident?

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After your car accident event, it is rather unlikely that the other driver will come out and admit the fault they contributed to its occurrence. This is because they probably do not want their auto insurance rates to inflate outrageously, on top of being ordered to financially compensate you after the personal injury claim you place against them. For these reasons, as the plaintiff of such a civil claim, you carry the burden of proof in providing a “preponderance of evidence” of their fault. With this in mind, please read on to discover the significance of proving fault in your car accident and how a seasoned St. Mary’s County car accident lawyer at The Dorsey Law Firm can help your argument stand firm in your upcoming claim proceedings.

What is the importance of proving fault in my car accident?

If your car accident happened in Maryland, you must file your personal injury claim in this state. This is regardless of whether you are a Maryland resident; because more importantly, the laws in the state where your accident, and subsequent injuries and damages, happened must apply to your case.

With that being said, Maryland is one of four states, along with the District of Columbia, that observes the contributory negligence statute. This is considered a strict, “all or nothing” law. According to this, as a plaintiff, if you are even found to be only one percent at fault for your car accident event, you may be completely barred from recovering any damages in a personal injury claim.

All of this to say, the defendant’s negligent behavior and actions may be completely irrelevant under the Maryland civil court’s eyes unless you can prove that they were 100 percent at fault. This alone should have you understand the importance of fulfilling your burden of proof duties in your upcoming claim proceedings.

What arguments can a defendant make in the claim proceedings?

If there missing evidence in your personal injury claim proceedings, the defendant may easily poke holes in your argument. You may make their counterargument even simpler to make. After all, it may not take much for them to prove that you were one percent at fault for your car accident event and completely eradicate your chances at a monetary award.

For example, the defendant may argue that your claimed injuries are not connected to the car accident event at all. Or even that your claimed injuries are not as severe as you have led on. This may be especially possible for them to do if you wait too long to seek medical attention and subsequently collect medical evidence, or if you fail to seek professional medical aid entirely.

In another example, the defendant may defend that they were not even present at the scene at the time of your claimed car accident event. This is if you failed to call law enforcement onto the scene to write an official accident report. Or if you neglected to approach eyewitnesses and get their testimonies on who was there and what went down.

We hope that this blog offers the insight you were searching for. For more information, we encourage you to contact a competent St. Mary’s County auto accident lawyer from The Dorsey Law Firm today.