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You are here: Home / Personal Injury Frequently Asked Questions / How Is Fault Determined In A Florida Auto Accident Case?

How Is Fault Determined In A Florida Auto Accident Case?

Generally speaking, fault is determined in several different stages. The first is during the insurance claim process. During the insurance claim process, an insurance adjuster for both sides will be investigating the accident and determining who is at fault.

They may have an investigator take a look at the case. They may interview witnesses, and then once they have all the information available to them, they’ll make a determination of who’s at fault or how fault is to be broken down.

If the case needs to go to court, if you can’t settle with the insurance company, then fault will be determined either by a judge or jury who will again listen to all the witnesses, review all the evidence, and determine who’s responsible for causing the accident.

What Happens If The At-Fault Driver Involved In The Accident Is Not Insured Or Has Minimal Coverage?

If the other driver that’s responsible for causing the accident is uninsured or has minimal coverage, then you may have a couple of options available to you. First and foremost, you should look to see who’s the owner of that vehicle. If the owner is a separate person then the driver of the vehicle, then you may have a claim against the owner, so you should look for insurance from them. However, hopefully, you have uninsured or under-insured motorist coverage. What that means is if they didn’t have insurance, then your own insurance company will act as the insurance company for your claim. Or, if they didn’t have enough, as the question was asked, and they are therefore under-insured, then you may have a claim against your own insurance company under your under-insured motorist coverage provision.

Can I Be Found Liable In Florida If My Car Was Rear-Ended In A Crash?

There’s a common misconception that if you’re the lead vehicle in a rear-end collision case that the rear driver is responsible 100% of the time; however, that is not true. The rear driver is not responsible all the time. There are some circumstances under which the lead driver may be held completely at fault or partially responsible for causing the accident. To answer the question, if you stopped suddenly and unexpectedly, really for no good reason, such as you stopped at a green light, then you may be held partially responsible for the accident. Or, if you’re parked illegally on the side of the road or in the middle of the road, and you’re rear-ended, then you may be deemed at fault or partially at fault in that accident. There you can see some of the reasons why the rear driver is not always responsible for rear-end collisions.

If I Was Hit By A Commercial Vehicle In A Florida Car Accident, Is The Employer Of The Other Driver Also Responsible?

If the employee was acting within the course and scope of his employment when the accident occurred, then yes. For example, if the driver was a driver for a florist and making a delivery of flowers, and he was making a delivery at the time of the accident, then the florist would be responsible for your injuries in addition to the at-fault driver.

Who Is Liable In Florida If The Brakes In A Vehicle Failed?

Liability for brake failure really depends on why the brakes failed. For example, if you needed to replace your brake pads but never got around to it, and you wore the pads all the way down, and that’s what caused a brake failure, then you don’t have a claim against another party, because you’re at fault yourself. However, if you took your car in for service to a brake pad company, and they didn’t install the brake pads correctly, then you might have a claim against the repair facility. Or, if the brake pads themselves or the braking system was defective in some way, you may have a product defect claim against that company that manufactured that product. It really depends on who caused the failure, and that’s the basis for a claim against that party.

What If I Believe I Was The Victim Of A Hit-And-Run In Florida?

If you’re the victim of a hit and run in Florida, then hopefully you have uninsured motorist coverage. This is a type of coverage under your own policy that may provide you with insurance coverage in the event that you can not identify the other driver that caused the accident. Therefore, you still may make a claim. It’s just going to be with your own insurance company if you have uninsured motorist coverage.

What If Another Motorist Doesn’t Hit Me But Causes Me to Veer Off the Road?

Yes, you can make a recovery even if a motorist never hit you but did cause you to suffer an injury. For example, if a car was negligent in the way that it was driving, let’s say that the driver was texting while driving. They swerved into your lane, and you had to veer off the side of the road. Even if there was no impact, you have a claim against that driver for their negligent driving that caused you to veer off the side of the road.

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