After you have been seriously injured in a car accident, you might be wondering who is responsible for the accident. During the investigation portion of your car accident claim, a Queens car accident lawyer can help determine who is liable and point the blame at the correct person. You may have a lot of questions about this. Please keep reading to learn more about car accident liability and how we can help you get full compensation. Then reach out to set up a free consultation with us right away.
Car Accident Liability Laws in NYS
It is important to note that NYS is a no-fault state. That means you must turn to your own insurance company to cover your damages unless you are qualified to bring a case against the other driver who was at fault for causing the accident. Those who are seriously injured may bring a case against the responsible party.
If you have been deemed eligible for a claim against the liable party, you may be wondering what that really entails.
First, know that even if you share partial fault in causing the accident, you can receive compensation for your damages. That is what you are going to be pursuing for your justice. Compensation is meant to cover all of your economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages have to do with the money that you have lost due to this accident. Non-economic damages relate to your pain and suffering, emotional damages, loss of life quality, etc.
The law in NYS follows pure comparative fault laws which means, even if you are 80% at fault for the accident, you can still recover 20% of the damages you have suffered.
Scenarios to Understand Car Accident Liability
To better understand the fault laws in NYS, here are three example scenarios. The first is if you share 0% fault, the second is if you share partial fault, and the third is where you are solely to blame.
If you were at an intersection, driving at the speed limit through a green light, and get t-boned by a driver on their phone, you might be deemed 0% at fault for the accident. If you were awarded $100,000 dollars from the incident, you would receive that entire amount.
If you were driving on the highway going over the speed limit when someone tried to merge into your lane but ends up clipping the front of your car causing an accident, you will likely share some fault. Let’s say the insurance company deems you 40% at fault because there was a chance this could have been avoided if you went the speed limit. The other driver gets most of the fault because they merged without looking and without a turn signal. If you were awarded $100,000 with 40% fault, you would receive $60,000 of the award.
Let’s say you are driving down the street and need to grab something from the backseat. Instead of pulling over to safely look, you reach around, taking your eyes off the road, and end up smashing into another person. The insurance company then deems you 100% at fault which would completely bar you from being able to take any compensation award whatsoever.
Call Our Queens Injury Lawyers Today
If you have been injured in a car accident and need help from a dedicated Queens car accident liability lawyer to fight for your full compensation, please get in touch with us today. We offer free initial consultations for clients who are getting started. Do not wait to reach out. We are glad to take your call today to get you set up with a free consultation right away.
