Car accidents are complicated, and the reality is that there’s often more than one party responsible. If you’ve been injured in an accident, you have the right to get compensation for your losses from whoever is liable for that accident, but it’s always wise to talk with a McAllen, TX car accident attorney to find out how comparative fault may affect your claim.
What’s “Comparative Fault?”
Comparative fault is a way of acknowledging in law that more than one person can be to blame for an accident. It allows people to bring a claim even if they are partially at fault, but typically the amount of a person’s claim will be reduced by the same percentage as their fault. If you are found 15% at fault in the accident, therefore, you would only be able to claim 85% of your total damages and losses.
Different states have different ways of figuring fault. In some states, contributory negligence laws mean that you cannot recover a dime in compensation if you have any fault whatsoever, even if it’s just one percent. Other states have what’s known as a “pure comparative negligence” system, and this allows you to recover even if you are as much as 99% at fault! However, since your compensation is reduced according to the percentage of your fault, if you were 99% at fault, you would ultimately recover very little.
But most states, Texas included, have a system that takes a middle ground between these two extremes. If you are less than 51% at fault (in other words, if you are not primarily responsible for the accident), you can recover damages in Texas. Again, however, your damages will be reduced by the same percentage as your fault.
Why Having a Car Accident Attorney Is So Important
You can probably start to see why it’s so important that you have an attorney in these cases. First, if you are found to be 51% or more at fault, you will not be able to claim any damages whatsoever. If you and another driver both contributed fairly significantly to the accident, you can be sure that the other driver’s insurance company will work overtime to try to push enough blame onto you to avoid having to pay anything at all.
Even if things aren’t that close, though, every percentage point of fault assigned to you is a few more dollars the insurance company doesn’t have to pay. If you have $150,000 in medical bills and other losses, and the insurance company can get you from 10% to 15% at fault, that’s $7,500 they don’t have to pay and which you are now out of pocket for. One of the most important jobs your lawyer has is to protect you from any unfair blame so that you don’t lose any compensation you are owed.
After an accident, contact the Almaraz Law Firm in McAllen, TX as soon as possible so we can get started protecting your claim. We also serve clients in Midland, Edinburg, Odessa, and San Antonio.
Connect with us
Almaraz Law Firm
212 W. Nolana Ave. McAllen, TX 78504,
8422 Fountain Circle, San Antonio, TX 78229
701B W. Indiana Ste. 20, Midland, Texas 79701
Hours: Monday-Friday 9:00am - 4:30pm
*Midland, Texas available by appt only*
