(Newswire.net — September 4, 2018) — Car accident claims come down to one thing – proving negligence; that the other party was at fault. In fact, damages are often informed by the degree to which the accused was at fault for the accident. The more evident it is that they were at fault, the more money you’ll get in form of compensations (after other factors have been considered). It means that you need to do your homework thoroughly and come up with solid evidence.
To prove negligence, you need to provide evidence of four things;
-
That the truck driver owed you a duty of care
The keyword here is duty. Every driver on the roads has a duty to drive in a manner that doesn’t put the lives and properties of other road users at risk. They are expected to abide by both national and local laws when driving on the road. For instance, every driver must obey traffic lights and signs. Drivers must also observe speed limits and avoid distracted driving or driving under the influence.
-
That there was breach of duty
After establishing that there existed a duty of care, the next step is to prove that that duty was breached. Did the truck driver fail to obey the traffic lights? Did he or she make the wrong turn? Were they over speeding? These are just examples of how a duty to responsible driver can be breached. It is also against the laws to send text messages or listen to music via earphones while driving. Was the truck driver engaged in any of these activities? If so, then they breached their duty.
-
The breach of duty was the main reason of the accident
In the third step, you or your truck accident lawyer must convince the court that the act of negligence in step two above was the primary cause of the accident. Yes, texting while driving is unlawful. Even if there was no accident, the driver will most likely be punished. But when filing a claim, you have to show that the act is what led to the accident. In other words, you’re required to prove that without the act of negligence, the accident wouldn’t have occurred; that if the truck driver didn’t take out his phone to text, he wouldn’t have crashed into your car.
-
That the accident caused some sort of damage
Is it the crash that caused your whiplash? Is it the head on collision that caused your brain injury? Or, did you have the injury before the crash? If so, did the crash make it worse? These are just some of the questions you’re required to answer in this step. Also, there must be a monetary value attached to the said losses. So, you must prove things like loss of earning potential, lost wages, property damage, pain and suffering, and medical expenses.
If you can prove all the four pillars of negligence, you’ve won the case. However, if you can’t satisfactorily convince the court on even one of the four, then you may walk away with nothing. That’s why it’s recommended that you hire an experienced truck accident attorney when faced with such situations. The attorney will present a watertight case.