Blind-spot accidents are among the most startling vehicle accidents for those involved. Neither person sees the collision coming until the moment of impact and then BAM!
Afterward, it’s hard to figure out what happened. The accident is pieced together based on the locations of the vehicles, the recollections of the drivers, and any available scraps of evidence.
Who’s at fault? That depends, so here’s how to establish fault and seek compensation for your damages.
Why Blind Spot Accidents Happen
A vehicle’s blind spots are areas where the driver can’t see what’s around them, usually due to built-in structural components of the vehicle. For example, a typical passenger car has two large blind spots to the left and right rear created by the columns that hold the roof of the vehicle.
Semi-truck blind spots create extremely dangerous situations for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other drivers. The average big rig has 5 to 20 car lengths’ worth of blind spots around the perimeter of the truck’s cab and trailer.
Sometimes, blind spot accidents happen because drivers forget about checking their blind spots or don’t think it’s an important thing to do. A collision can even be due to a health condition like poor vision or a neck injury that makes it difficult to twist around and view the blind spots.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that more than 800,000 blind spot accidents occur in the U.S. every year. Although they can happen anywhere, they’re most often triggered by a vehicle changing lanes, passing through an intersection, using a roundabout, or making a sudden maneuver at a high speed.
Knowing all this, it’s easy to see why these accidents happen. But there’s still another important question to answer: Who’s at fault?
Establishing Fault in a Blind-Spot Accident
It’s common for both people to instantly blame each other for a blind-spot accident. One person says, “Why didn’t you see me?” and the other says, “You came out of nowhere!”
In California, each person’s level of fault is assigned as a percentage using the comparative negligence rule. It means one person could be 100% responsible and the other zero percent. Or there could be 50/50 shared fault, or anywhere in-between.
Your amount of fault is established through evidence. This can include a wide range of things that support your case, like the police report, witness testimony, expert analysis, skid mark evidence, video footage, and more.
It’s all presented to the court and/or to the insurance company. The goal is to provide overwhelming evidence of the other person’s fault, plus documentation that shows your expensive costs like car repairs, medical bills, lost days of work, and pain and suffering.
Yes, You CAN Get Money When You Share the Blame!
Worried that you’ll be found partially at fault for the accident? Don’t be. The comparative negligence rule is a great thing for people in California car accidents.
It simply means your total award will be reduced by your share of the blame. If you’re 10% at fault and the award is $100,000, you’ll still receive $90,000. That could be more than enough to pay your medical bills and other costs.
With this in mind, someone might try to scare you away from taking legal action by saying you’re 100% at fault and can’t recover any money. Not so fast!
A California car accident lawyer can help you can gather strong evidence that shows the other person deserves more blame than they’re admitting. Your lawyer can use the power of the law to gain access to traffic camera footage, accident reconstructionist testimony, and much more.
Give Sally Morin Personal Injury Lawyers a call and put us on the case. We have decades of experience with establishing fault in California blind spot accidents and winning our clients fair and full compensation.
We Handle Your Accident Claim So You Can Focus on Your Life
After an accident, contact the attorneys at Sally Morin Personal Injury Lawyers. We handle many types of personal injury claims, including blind spot accidents. We believe you should be able to focus on recovering from your accident while we handle the legal details.
We truly care about the people of California. Contact us today for a free online case evaluation.
