Accidents happen, even when we're being extremely cautious. Maybe you're on an Ohio highway and didn't see that motorcycle because it was dark and the driver didn't turn on his headlights. Perhaps another driver ran a stop sign and side-swiped your vehicle. In any case, your car is damaged and you broke an arm or have a sore neck. What if the insurance company finds you slightly at fault for the car accident? Can you still recover compensation for the damages you suffer?
The law depends on the state. There are five states that operate on the basis of contributory negligence, which means that if it is found that you contributed just 1 percent to the accident, then you are barred from any sort of recovery. So if you suffered a serious medical condition owe hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills, you will have to pay those on your own, since you won't be able to collect damages from the other driver.
There is also comparative negligence, which allows a person to receive compensation for damages even if he or she is 99 percent at fault. Ohio operates under a modified version of this law. Under modified comparative fault, there is a 51 percent bar, which means that a person can sue for damages as long as he or she is no more than 50 percent at fault for the crash. He or she cannot be more at fault than the other party, hence the 51 percent bar. In addition, damages are reduced based on the percentage of fault. So if a victim is seeking $100,000 but is 20 percent at fault, the final amount would be reduced by 20 percent, which means that the victim would receive $80,000 if the defendant is found negligent.
In some crashes, one party is clearly at fault. Others, however, are caused by multiple parties, making it difficult to determine percentage of fault and final compensation. A personal injury lawyer can help make sense of these complex matters.
Source: FindLaw, "Contributory and Comparative Negligence: Defenses in Car Accident," accessed June 13, 2015
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