When a car accident results in significant injuries, there will be a lot of finger-pointing and finger-pointing. The wounded party will, without a doubt, want the responsible parties to step forward and compensate them for their losses, while the parties who are believed to have caused the disaster will do all in their power to avoid taking responsibility.
There is a plethora of different arguments that may be used to defend against a personal injury claim, but some of the most prevalent include various methods of demonstrating that the wounded individual was responsible for or contributed to their own damage.
While attempting to receive the compensation you deserve after being hurt in a car accident, a premises accident, or another occurrence, you may run up against one of the defense arguments listed below. If you have been injured and need help from an attorney, contact Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 for help.
Contributory negligence
An argument of contributory negligence can be used to claim that the plaintiff was completely to blame for their own accident, despite the fact that they were not.
A person who spills their own drink in a store and then trips over it is not the store’s fault, as long as the individual does not cause the spill. Cases involving contributory negligence, on the other hand, are sometimes considerably more nuanced than this, including existing problems on a property that were not caused by the plaintiff but that should have been detected and avoided by any reasonably prudent person.
A person who slips and falls on a wet floor at a store because they were distracted by their mobile phone and did not notice the wet floor sign would be liable for any injuries that resulted as a consequence of their own carelessness.
Comparative negligence
This is a legal term that refers to the act of being negligent in comparison to another person or thing. In instances when both the defendant and the plaintiff made mistakes that led to the accident, the defense may assert comparative negligence as a defense strategy.
If both drivers were speeding, changing lanes without indicating, following too closely, or engaging in some other traffic offense at the time of the collision, this is frequently the case. Assuming that it is not feasible to proof that you were reckless or negligent while driving, the focus will shift to demonstrating that the other driver’s behavior was worse.
A more advantageous liability split than 50-50 can be obtained in this manner, allowing you to collect a higher percentage of your losses than would otherwise be possible.
Failure to prevent or minimize damages
Yet another possibility is that the defense may argue that you permitted your injuries to worsen because you were negligent in obtaining timely and appropriate medical treatment. This is why it is critical to seek medical assistance as soon as possible after an accident and to adhere to any treatment or medication recommendations made by your doctor afterward.
Still, it is true that some forms of “late-appearing” injuries, such as whiplash, can take a long time to manifest themselves. With the assistance of your attorney, you can argue that your response to your injuries was really reasonable given the nature of the damage.
Engage the services of an experienced attorney for assistance
If you have not received an acceptable settlement offer, you should seek counsel from an experienced personal injury attorney such as Fernando D. Vargas, who can guide you through the process. The proof you need to fight back as successfully as possible against these and other defense arguments can be obtained with the assistance of your attorney if you have a solid claim for compensation.
