Determining Fault in a Car Accident

When someone crashes into your car, the mere fact that you’re involved in a collision is usually stressful and frustrating. If you’re injured and the other driver denies responsibility, frustration and stress often escalate to anger. While some drivers wouldn’t consider lying about hurting someone else in an accident, others have no problem with dishonesty if it protects them from a negative outcome. You should know what to do just in case you have to prove that the other driver hit your car, instead of the other way around.

Drivers don’t always lie about accident circumstances. Sometimes they sincerely  believe they aren’t at fault, even when the facts say otherwise. When a negligent driver is simply mistaken about his/her fault, that person’s version often contains enough facts to verify what really happened. However, when the person tells an outright lie, getting to the truth becomes more of a challenge.

Bad Drivers Can Lie About the Car Accident

It seems unthinkable that a driver would simply lie about causing an accident that hurt someone else. People with a bad driving history sometimes feel compelled to lie because they have a lot to lose. The National Highway Transportation Safety Association’s driver data provides some insight into chronically bad driving habits. It illustrates a trend of repeat traffic violations among the 52,274 drivers involved in fatal accidents during 2017:

• 8,468 drivers had previous crashes on their driving records;
• 8,639 drivers had prior speeding convictions;
• 8,468 had previous license suspensions;
• 7,366 drivers didn’t have a valid license when the crash occurred.

Drivers sometimes lie because telling the truth could mean major penalties and financial losses. A driver might lie if he/she is a point or two away from losing his/her license, or if his/her job depends on bouncing back from a poor driving history. If the driver is already rated “high risk,” another accident or citation may mean an expensive, unaffordable, insurance premium.

Determining Fault for a Car Accident is Important

If you can’t prove that an accident was the other driver’s fault, you have a lot to lose, as well. Your financial losses begin if the police officer cites you, and you must pay a fine. It continues when you pay your collision deductible, before you can have your vehicle repaired. It’s often emotionally draining when you know that you’re not at fault, but you must jump through hoops to convince your insurance company that you did nothing wrong. If your insurance company pays the other person’s liability claims anyway, it can change your “safe driver” rating for years.

If your insurance company decides to renew your auto policy, an at-fault accident usually increases your renewal premium. If the company drops your coverage, you will pay a high premium to your new insurance carrier. If your job requires that you use a company car or drive on company business, your employer may reassign you to a different position or even let you go.

When you receive an accident citation, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles places a crash entry on your record. The entry remains on your driving record for three to five years. Each new insurer will refer to it during its rating process. An employer may access your driving history as part of a pre-employment investigation.

It’s Up to You to Preserve the Evidence of Car Accident Negligence

Sometimes, you won’t know that the other driver misled an investigating police officer until your insurance company tells you what the police report states. When officers conduct accident scene investigations, they document driver information, physical evidence, and each driver’s version of the accident. For example, if the other driver tells the investigating officer that he had the green light and you had the red, the officer will document that as that driver’s version. It’s up to you to prove otherwise. If you wait until several days later, you will have lost your best opportunity to help prove who hit whom.

Call 911 after your crash. While you’re waiting for the police to arrive, explore the accident scene and document what you see. Your personal “site investigation” will help preserve some of the evidence you need to prove that the other driver hit you.

Capture the Moment of a Car Accident

Immediately after an accident, the scene is still fresh. The crash site is as close as you’ll get to the way everything was the moment the accident occurred. Drivers move their vehicles out of the roadway, but not immediately. Bystanders and witnesses gather at the periphery of your accident scene. The weather conditions and lighting are the same as they were moments before. It’s the perfect time for you to capture the accident evidence before everything changes.

Your Personal Car Accident Site Investigation

If you are injured and can’t get out of your car, ask a passenger or a bystander to help. It’s that important! Your cellphone camera is perfect for capturing the evidence, and forwarding it to your insurance company after you make your accident report.

Get photos of these key things:

• Close-ups: Take a photo of the accident scene before the other driver moves his/her car. Get a close-up photo of the points of contact, any new and old damage, and the license plates. Step back and take distance photos, to show how the vehicles came to rest immediately after the crash. Take at least one photo showing both cars completely.
• Background and crash area: Photograph the accident scene from a distance. Be sure to include background, traffic signals, traffic lights, the roadway, accident debris, and any signs designating the intersection.
• The other driver. Take photos of the other driver’s license and insurance card. If you can manage it, discreetly take a photo of the other driver.
• Witnesses: Ask bystanders if any of them witnessed the accident. If they did, ask for their names and contact information, to pass along to your insurance company. Witnesses often feel more comfortable giving the information to you, than to a police officer.

Accident scenes often change by the time a police officer arrives. Drivers leave without identifying themselves. Witnesses simply walk away. In just a few moments, you will have preserved these details in a more dynamic way, than any oral version could have described it. You will have information that your insurance company would otherwise be unable to obtain.

Your Insurance Company’s Claim Investigation

When there is a dispute about who hit whom, your insurance company conducts a liability investigation. While your insurer has a contractual duty to pay you regardless of fault, the company owes the other driver, only if your negligence caused or contributed to that driver’s damages.

You must report your claim immediately so your insurer can initiate a timely investigation. When you make your initial accident report, you must make it clear that you don’t believe you were at fault. If you must give your insurer your statement, share only provable facts – do not include speculation or opinion.

Share Your Site Investigation

When you hear from the insurance representative assigned to handle your claim, don’t feel shy about sharing the evidence you collected at the accident site. Forward your photos and any other information, so that the company will have it as a reference. Your site investigation provides information that helps back up your version of the events. It also lets the claim representative know that you’re conscientious, and that you’re serious when you say you’re not at fault.

If both you and the other driver sustained injuries, your claim will be handled by an experienced claims representative. That’s better for you in the long run. A seasoned adjuster understands more about relevant liability issues. The adjuster will be more likely to appreciate your site investigation, and gain the most from the information you provide. If it’s only a property damage claim, a less experienced adjuster may handle it. The property damage adjuster is unlikely to have the experience that would enable him/her to recognize all of the liability issues.

Sorting Through the Liability Issues of a Car Accident

When a questionable liability injury claim has a high value, insurance companies put more energy and effort into disputing the claim. They may investigate an accident scene, but by the time they get there, everything will have changed. They also get drivers’ and witness’ versions of the events that occurred, police reports and other relevant information. The insurers then review and evaluate each piece of evidence, in order to determine fault.

Sometimes a driver will state that he/she is not at fault, but the statement given by that driver indicates that he/she is to blame. When an insurance adjuster/ investigator takes a recorded statement, that person will listen for key words and phrases. The adjuster/investigator will ask the same questions in different ways and listen to the responses with a critical ear. Most drivers don’t know legal issues well enough to generate a lie that covers all the bases. They often reveal the details, even when they’re trying to hide or disguise those details. When an insurance adjuster/investigator asks questions in person, he/she might also see a driver’s visible discomfort and agitation, which can signal that the driver is lying.

An experienced insurance adjuster/investigator has heard the same types of accident stories over and over again. He/she usually recognize when a driver is lying or stretching the truth. The investigator will seek witness statements .An unbiased witness is a person who saw the accident but wasn’t involved in the crash. Presumably, that unbiased witness has nothing to gain or lose from telling the truth. When determining fault, that witness’ version is usually more important than a driver’s.

Often, an experienced vehicle damage appraiser can look at the damage to both involved vehicles, and know which one caused the initial impact. The appraiser will discuss the drivers’ versions of the accident with the claim representative, and try to match up the damage with what the drivers say occurred. The appraiser will then look at the damage location, the paint swipes, dents and dings, broken tail lights, and missing parts that were left as debris in the street. He/she will then look at old damage, and examine areas of rust and wear to confirm whether or not it’s old damage, or damage related to the current accident.

After examining one of the vehicles, an experienced appraiser can explain how, when, and where the vehicle was hit. When an appraiser looks at both vehicles, he/she can usually determine who hit whom.

Other Investigative Resources for Your Accident

When an insurance company’s claims personnel and resources aren’t enough to determine the truth, they sometimes rely on outside resources and experts. Because experts are usually costly, claim departments only turn to them when an injury case has a high value, or when they need an expert witness for a court case.

Surveillance and traffic cameras are everywhere. They’re on poles, at intersections, in businesses, and on top of buildings. They record everything, which is exactly the point. The problem with cameras is that you have to figure out where they are, find out who controls them, and access them before the owner deletes the footage you need. You may need a legal representative to issue a subpoena for the right to view and copy the footage.

Accident reconstruction expert. Accident reconstructionists sometimes call themselves “Forensic Engineers.” They specialize in fields such as mechanical or biomechanical engineering. In addition to basic accident reconstruction and analysis, they perform digital services such as “Human Factor Analysis” and “3-D Evidence Preservation.”

Accident Reconstructionists examine accident scenes and vehicle damage and draw conclusions based on physical evidence. They often come up with the same conclusions as an insurance investigator or an auto appraiser, but their credentials allow them to provide trial testimony as an expert witness.

You might not realize that your vehicle has an Event Data Recorder (EDR). Vehicle manufacturers have been installing them since Federal Transport Code, Part 563 established an EDR mandate in 2012. They function in ways similar to an airplane’s “black box.” EDR’s record a vehicle’s activities in the moments before and during an impact. Recorded data includes steering wheel angle, restraint use, lateral and longitudinal acceleration, dashboard warning lights, and other factors. They collect data primarily during a front end collision, or when an accident deploys a vehicle’s airbags. This data may be instrumental in resolving liability issues.

Due to privacy issues, only an owner can give permission to download their vehicle’s EDR data. An attorney can subpoena the other driver’s data during litigation discovery. Downloading and interpreting the data requires assistance from a forensic engineer or another expert.

The Good News When Determining Car Accident Fault

The good news is that an insurance company doesn’t usually try to undermine their insured’s position on liability. Unless the evidence confirms that you were at fault, your insurance company will usually handle the other person’s claims as though you weren’t legally liable for that person’s damages. However, this doesn’t mean that your insurance company won’t pay the other driver some money to settle that person’s claim. Florida’s Comparative Fault Statute recognizes that more than one person can contribute to an accident. To protect you from future litigation, your insurance carrier might offer a small settlement, based on the other driver’s vehicle and personal injury damages.

The Bad News When Determining Car Accident Fault

The other driver’s insurer will likely look at the accident from its insured driver’s  point of view. That insurance company will investigate, with the end goal of proving that you were at fault. Unless that insurer finds and produces overwhelming evidence that its insured is lying about who hit whom, you may end up with a liability stalemate, where both you and the other driver contribute nominally to each other’s damages.

We’re Here For You

You need immediate legal assistance when the other driver claims that you hit him/her, when you know it didn’t happen that way. The Law Offices of Andrea D. McMillan will help you manage your insurance company contacts, and ensure that you don’t jeopardize your legal rights. We will work to sort through any legal issues and they may have additional resources to help you prove your claim against the other driver. While you focus on your healing, we will be there for you, and will work hard to recover maximum financial compensation for the injuries and other losses you have suffered. All consultations are free. Contact the Palm Beach County car accident lawyer Andrea McMillan with the Law Offices of Andrea McMillan today at (561) 612-5700. We’re here for you.