If you have been injured and choose to seek compensation from a negligent party, you are likely to hear the subject of shared fault be addressed by your attorney. In the state of New York, the pure comparative negligence rule is followed in shared injury cases.
What is the Pure Comparative Negligence Rule?
When you make a personal injury claim against an individual or business that you believe is responsible for your injury, their response is often:
- They are not responsible at all for your injury
- You are at least partially to blame for your injury
If it is found that you do share a level of fault for receiving your injury, pure comparative negligence will apply. Simply put, the compensation award that you are entitled to receive will be reduced by the percentage of fault that you are assigned in your accident. In New York, the courts are obligated to abide by this rule.
Applying Shared Fault
Consider if you received serious injuries in an automobile accident. The other driver was in the opposing lane and without warning or any type of signal, made a left turn right in front of you. You then crash into the other driver's car and not only total your car, but you sustain a serious injury. Some might think this is a pretty cut and dry case of negligence. However, if you file a personal injury case, the subject of shared fault is sure to be addressed.
You may be questioned as to:
- Were you wearing a seat-belt while you were driving?
- Were you obeying the posted speed limit?
- Were you paying attention to the road or were you distracted by passengers or on your phone?
If you answer yes to any of those questions, or the police report shows evidence that any of those circumstances were present, you may be subject to carrying some level of liability in becoming injured. For example, suppose you were to be awarded $20,000 for your injury. However, it is determined that if you had been wearing your seat-belt your injuries would have been less severe; thereby you might be assigned 30 percent of the blame. That $20,000 award would be reduced by 30 percent by $6,000, leaving the other party to pay you only $14,000.
This is also why you should never immediately admit any guilt, whether you are the injured party or if you are the other party before speaking to an attorney. This could help you avoid complications if shared fault comes up in your personal injury case.
If you have been involved in a Bronx accident contact our personal injury attorneys at:
