If you’ve been in an accident and injured, you can bring a claim for your losses and damages even if you’re partially at fault. However, things can get tricky when you’re partially to blame for your accident, and a Fort Myers personal injury attorney can help you work out what to do and protect your settlement.
According to Florida law, anyone who is 50% or less at fault can bring a claim, though the final damages you collect will be reduced by the same amount as your fault. So if you are 50% at fault, you would only be able to claim 50% of your damages.The reason two parties can both bring a claim when they’re equally at fault is simply that, while blame may be shared equally, consequences may not. For example, in an accident involving a car and a bike, the driver and rider might be equally to blame for causing it; but it’s highly likely the rider will have greater injuries and losses. By allowing both to make a claim and get 50% of their losses, the law allows the actual burden of the shared fault to be equally apportioned.
Important Things to Know
Never Assume You’re at Fault
You should never say you’re at fault until you have talked to a lawyer and gotten a thorough investigation. For one thing, accidents happened very quickly, and it’s easy to be so wrapped up in what’s happening around you that you don’t really know what everyone else was doing and thus don’t really know how it all fell out. After an investigation, it may turn out that someone else was just as much at fault, if not more, than you were.But another important reason never to assume your fault is to protect yourself. Once you say you’re at fault, even if you know that the other person is too and assume that they will also acknowledge their fault, you’ve put yourself in a bad position. What if the other person now claims they are not at fault or not equally at fault? Insurance companies also love to jump on statements of fault and use them to deny you even the legitimate compensation you’re owed.
Always Talk to a Fort Myers Personal Injury Attorney
When you’re partially at fault, it’s vital that you talk to a lawyer as quickly as you can. Your lawyer will review the accident details and help you understand your position, legally. Your lawyer can also defend you against improper blame that would try to push more of the responsibility onto you than you should hold. And your lawyer will negotiate for you aggressively with insurance companies that attempt to deny your claim or minimize your losses.For a free consultation on your personal injury case, contact Goldstein, Buckley, Cechman, Rice, Purtz, Smith & Smith, P.A. in Fort Myers, FL. We also serve Lehigh Acres, Port Charlotte, Cape Coral, Naples, and surrounding areas.