Legal Guide

How Will A Claim Adjuster Determine Car Accident Fault?

The one thing that most people do not know about car accident law is that accident fault is going to be decided by an insurance company. It is not decided by a police officer that was on the accident scene. The officers will file statements and reports. These are evidence. They can convince the company to establish fault. While in most situations the car accident fault will be determined as being the same as what the officer said, that is not always the case.

In a car accident we have at least 2 involved parties. They normally have car insurance. We thus have 2 insurance companies that will take care of the claim for the people insured. A negotiation is going to happen between the two parties in order to settle the party that was at fault. This process is even the case when personal injuries appear.

A specific format is followed in order to establish accident fault. Driver negligence is initially analyzed for all the drivers. Fault percentages will then be attributed. Negligent analysis is the first step and the adjusters have to analyze driver causation, duties, damages and breaches to make the decision. Every single element is carefully analyzed. When an element is not present, the analyzed driver is normally not at fault. When all four appear, it is determined that there is a fault for the driver. However, the amount of fault is decided only later.

When you are driving a car you assume a driver duty. Your age or position does not care. The law places such duties in order to analyze accident fault. The duties attributed are normally associated with following road rules, avoidance and lookout. Out of all these, the one that has the highest impact is following road rules. Traffic laws exist and drivers have to be in compliance. You will find many differences in the traffic laws from one state to the next so the laws that apply where the accident happened are those considered. As an example, if the driver was speeding, even if he did not cause the actual collision, a fault percentage will be attributed.

It is really important to understand the fact that accident fault is normally determined by the insurance companies. That is because we are faced with something that can become subjective in some cases. In the event that the faults are not considered to be accurate by a party, it can be challenged. This is where attorneys step in to help in the process. When personal injuries appear, claims have to be a lot higher. That is when specialized personal injury attorneys have to be contacted.

On the whole, car accidents are traumatic events. Establishing faults is complicated. Most people simply accept what the insurance companies decide but you do not need to simply agree if you have a different opinion. Do think about all that happened, get your own evidence and fight the process if you believe you are right. Attorneys are here to help you.


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