Painful injuries and mental distress are only part of the story after a severe collision in St. Louis. Car accidents can cause significant financial strife and leave you and your family struggling to return to solid ground. Often, recovering the money you deserve comes down to determining liability and proving fault for the accident.
At Sumner Law Group, LLC, we have the knowledge and resources to gather and preserve the evidence to establish liability and prove who caused the accident that hurt you. With this information, we can build a solid compensation claim and fight for maximum compensation on your behalf. We have over 50 years of combined legal experience and know what it takes to advocate effectively for you.
Contact our St. Louis office today to discuss the specifics of your case during a free consultation. We’ll review your situation at no cost to you and won’t charge a fee unless we recover money for you.
Reasons Liability Is a Critical Issue in Car Crash Cases
Establishing liability in a car accident is critical. The Missouri car insurance system follows a traditional fault-based model. When a crash occurs, you file a car accident claim with the at-fault driver’s insurance company to seek compensation for your injuries and related losses. That is one big reason proving fault is so crucial.
Pursuing compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance company means you need to prove that the other driver is liable for causing the crash in the first place. Without evidence showing that the other driver is responsible, insurance adjusters can attempt to shift blame to the injured party, diminish the claim’s value, or outright deny a claim.
How Is Car Accident Liability Determined in St. Louis?
Proving liability comes down to one thing: What does the evidence show? Liability for a car accident rests on four general legal elements:
- Did the other driver owe the victim a duty of care?
- Did the other driver breach the duty of care?
- Did the violation directly cause harm to the accident victim?
- Did the accident victim’s injuries cause measurable losses?
All drivers owe other motorists a duty of care. Everyone on Missouri roadways is responsible for safely operating their vehicle. However, it takes solid evidence to establish the different elements of a personal injury case. You must also prove the other elements to show that the at-fault party is liable.
Understanding Missouri’s Comparative Negligence Law
Proving car accident liability also factors into Missouri’s comparative negligence rules governing civil lawsuits. Missouri follows a pure comparative negligence model. Under this system, a civil court evaluates the evidence and arguments of each side of the situation at trial and assigns fault to each party. A victim’s compensation will be diminished by the same percentage as the fault they bear for causing the accident.
However, with pure comparative negligence, even if an individual is found to be predominantly responsible for causing the accident, they can still recover some compensation for their injuries. There is no cutoff point at which someone can’t recover compensation. Theoretically, someone 99 percent responsible for causing a car accident would still be entitled to compensation for 1 percent of their total losses. The flip side is that the more responsible party is also on the hook for compensating the other driver for their injuries.
The stronger the evidence proving liability, the better your chances for securing maximum compensation for your injuries. Pure comparative negligence only binds court decisions, not insurance settlements. However, many insurers use the model as a guide when evaluating a claim.
Common Factors That Impact Fault in Car Accidents
Driver error is by far the most common factor that can affect fault in Missouri car accident cases. All drivers are responsible for safely operating their vehicles on Missouri roadways and paying attention to their surroundings. Other factors that can impact fault in a St. Louis car accident include:
- Distracted driving
- Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs
- Speeding or going too fast for conditions
- Failure to yield the right-of-way
- Improper or unsafe lane changes
- Driver inexperience
- Drowsy driving
- Following too closely
- Aggressive driving
- Poor road conditions
- Inclement weather conditions
- Mechanical defects
Physical evidence and witness accounts can help explain how these factors resulted in a car accident and who is liable.
The Role of Evidence in Proving Car Accident Liability
Every St. Louis car accident case hinges on the quantity and quality of the evidence presented to the insurance company or the court. Evidence is vital in helping to piece together the circumstances of an accident and how the actions of each party played a role in the incident.
Evidence that can help determine liability in a St. Louis car accident case can include:
- Information from the police report
- Photographs and videos from the accident scene
- Physical evidence from the accident scene
- Surveillance videos
- Information from “black box” electronic data recorders
- Dash camera videos
- Witness statements
- Medical records
- Cell phone records
- Alcohol and drug test results
- Expert witness testimony on accident reconstruction
Collecting and preserving these types of evidence before they can be lost or destroyed can be challenging for injured St. Louis car accident victims. Our experienced attorneys have the resources to gather evidence that supports your case and shows how the other driver caused the crash.
What to Do If Fault Is Disputed After a Car Accident
If the insurance company claims their insured was not at fault for the accident, the best way to fight back is with the help of a seasoned St. Louis car accident attorney from Sumner Law Group, LLC.
An insurer or other party can dispute fault for several reasons, including a lack of evidence or the other party making false statements. If you disagree with an initial assessment, you must provide additional information and evidence substantiating your position. Our law firm has the resources to collect evidence that may be out of reach for the average car accident victim, such as cellular phone records, surveillance videos, and electronic data.
How Our St. Louis Lawyers Help Establish Fault in Car Accidents
At Sumner Law Group, LLC, our St. Louis car accident lawyers work hard to secure and analyze the evidence necessary to prove liability. We’ll prioritize your needs and fight for you from start to finish. That means putting everything we have into finding and preserving information vital to your car accident claim. We want to help you build a solid case, backed by substantial evidence, that gives you the best opportunity to pursue fair compensation for your injuries.
After a St. Louis car accident, contact our office to set up a free case evaluation to discuss your legal options.
