Defenses to Car Accident Injury Claims

One of the most significant risks you face in your daily life is being involved in a severe car accident.

Car accidents happen in a flash and can change your life instantly, leaving you with medical bills, lost income, rehabilitative procedures and a lot of pain and suffering.

Alternatively, you may find yourself being accused of causing the accident in a personal injury claim.

It is helpful to understand what kind of defenses can be argued in a personal injury claim in both situations.

Fact – do you know that auto accidents are the leading cause of death in the United States for all people aged 55 or less? More than 38,000 people are killed in car crashes every year.

Suppose you sustained severe injuries in a car crash that resulted from someone else’s negligence. In that case, you might have a personal injury claim. Learn more here.

Two General Categories of Defence

Legal or Procedural Defenses

These types of defenses are technical in nature.

For instance, there are legally prescribed time limits to bring a personal injury claim. If you try to bring your claim once the time limit has expired, the other side can raise the defense that you are out of time, and if this is proven, you will be barred from bringing the action.

There are minimal legal aspects that need to be asserted in the complainant’s court documents to create the basis for their claim. For example, they need to establish a case on the facts as presented. If they leave out required elements, you can raise the defense that they have failed to adequately state their claim. If the court agrees, their case will be dismissed.

Factual defenses

Factual defenses are defenses raised on the facts of the case itself.

Fault as a defense

For instance, the defense could be raised that the defendant is not entirely at fault and that the complainant is partially liable.

Missouri is a fault state which means the driver responsible for causing the accident must pay for damages.

Multiple parties can be at fault, and their degree of liability determines how claims are settled.

Failure to Mitigate Damages as a Defense

If you are injured in a car accident, you have to curtail the damages suffered. If you act in such a way to make your damages worse, you may have your claim reduced.

Sometimes car accident injuries are exaggerated by those injured to claim more money. For example, suppose a patient fails to follow the doctor’s orders or simply doesn’t attend checkups or performs an activity that worsens the injury. In that case, they may have their claim reduced.

So, if you are injured in a car accident, make sure that you:

• Get immediate medical attention even if you are not in a great deal of pain – get yourself checked out.
• Take time with your rehab and listen to all of your doctor’s orders.

Parting Shot

Personal injury claims are pretty complex. Therefore, whether you are a claimant or a defendant, it is always best to appoint a specialized and experienced personal injury lawyer to represent you.

A decent law firm will assess your case and, if they believe you have a strong case, will act for you on a contingency basis, which means you only pay if you win.