Multi-Faults & Car Accidents

It is possible that a number of parties can be a fall during a car accident.

Negligence in a car accident is never a one party affair. Well, maybe the use of the word never is too strong. However, is that uncommon that a number of parties are at fault for the injuries sustained in a car accident. For example, if you are the passenger in a vehicle that rolls over due to the negligent driving of the driver and the roof of the car collapses there are two parties at fault here: The driver and the manufacturer of the car. Actually, there may even be more parties at fault and this may be revealed in an examination of the factors that led to your injuries.

In order to understand this, a brief breakdown of the accident and where the negligent lies is provided. Obviously, the fact the driver was driving recklessly clearly places much of the blame on the driver's shoulders. By driving recklessly the driver greatly contributed to the accident that occurred. However, it is also important to note that the manufacturer of the car is not supposed to release cars that have a propensity for the roof to collapse. So, any injuries that result from the collapsing the roof may be also blamed on the manufacturer of the car. Then, upon further examination of the car is discovered that faulty brakes were responsible in part for the accident as well. If any repair work on the brakes turned out to be faulty then the brake shop may be held

work on the brakes turned out to be faulty then the brake shop may be held liable for damages as well.

As this scenario illustrates, car accident fault can be spread around to all parties who may have contributed to accident. No one gets a free pass if they are responsible for a car accident in any way, shape or form. And, honestly, they should not be able to get away with it. This is why we have laws on the books that do not allow negligent behavior -no matter how peripheral - to be excused.

Anti-Lock Brakes and their Importance

Properly maintaining antilock brakes is critical to avoid car accidents when road conditions are poor.

Anti-lock car safety brakes have been designed for a reason. Their purpose is to prevent car crashes by a installing a safety mechanism to keep the car under control during an unforeseen event. If a car skids and its brakes lock up then the ability to bring the car to a stop in a safe manner will be impeded. Remember, in the event of an unforeseen incident it can be difficult to maneuver car properly particularly when road conditions could be hazardous. Now, a road can become hazardous even under common circumstances. For example, there will always be oil on the road as it leaks from cars driving on the asphalt. When it rains mixes with the water and the slick oil makes it very difficult for the car to stop. In order to come to a complete stop, the driver of the car must slowly pump the brakes. If the brakes lock then the car could skid. This is a very serious situation because of the car skids and heads towards a tree or any other obstruction, and then an extremely dangerous collision could occur.

Again, this is where anti-lock brakes as an aid to car safety can save lives. Because these types of brakes prevent locking, the ability to slowly pump the

brakes allows the car to gain a semblance of control before it crashes. Of course, the brakes must be properly functional in order to perform the safety duties their intended. Sadly, this is not always the case.

If the brakes have been installed properly, not repaired correctly, or have manufacturer defects and a collision occurs then a great deal the liability will rest on the shoulders of those who were derelict in their duty. Again, this is a very serious matter and those who falter in their performance will face punitive actions in civil litigation if the negligence can be clearly proven.

Thoughts on Settling without an Attorney's Advice

Settling without the advice of an attorney can be a disastrous proposition.

When you are injured in a car accident sometimes you do not think ahead when offered a settlement. Many times, the person who injures you in a car accident will ask that you do not involve the police, insurance agencies, or lawyers in this situation. Let the truth be told, the reason that they do this is because they know they are at fault in the accident and do not wish to have their misfortunes compounded. Therefore, they may offer to pay for all of your hospital expenses. This may seem like a tempting deal for some because they are getting their medical payments up front. Plus, if there any hassles in collecting, the injured party can always reverse course and file a lawsuit. However, there are a number of problems with this thought process.

That is, imagine if you started to lose the feeling in your arm due to the car accident five years AFTER the car accident occurred. If you opted to go back and file a lawsuit five years later you may be completely out of luck. This is because the statute of limitations on seeking damages for the car accident has expired. Had you had a little bit of experience in litigation you would have understood that in addition to current medical expenses you could have also sought damages for future medical expenses. In other words, in settling without notifying an attorney to negotiate the settlement offer you

have grossly shorted yourself on the amount of money that you deserved.

Better than flippantly accepting a settlement out of hand, it would be much better to discuss all your options with an attorney. Simply because you are the victim in the accident it does not make you qualified to handle the settlement matters. Making such uneducated decisions can often turnaround and harm you in the end. This is why it is always best to procure the services of a solid accident attorney in the aftermath of a serious crash.

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