You are in a car accident, and you know the other party caused it, but are they truly negligent in what happened? Many people do not understand the role of negligence in car accident lawsuits, and not having that information could mean that you are unable to recover all of the damages owed to you. At BDIW, our top-rated Oklahoma City car accident lawyer can help you to better understand what these requirements are and how they impact your case.
How Do You Prove Negligence?
The only way to recover the maximum damages you may be owed in a car accident is to prove negligence occurred, and that is not always as easy to do as it may seem. Legally, to prove negligence in Oklahoma, you must show that someone else did something that others would not do and, as a result, it caused your injuries. Specifically, there are four components or elements of negligence that you must prove in order to receive compensation for your losses.
- Duty of care: The duty of care means that the other party had a responsibility for ensuring you are safe while on the road, and just getting behind the wheel, they make that decision.
- Breach: The person in some way breached that duty of care, which means they engaged in some type of action or inaction that, like distracted driving or reckless driving, breached their duty of care.
- Causation: This element of the process focuses on what caused your injuries in that the breach of their duty of care was the direct or indirect cause of the injuries you had, and without it, you would not have suffered those losses.
- Damages: The direct result of the accident led to financial damages or losses that can be remedied through compensation provided to you.
When you are creating a lawsuit against the responsible party, it is critical that you address all four of these areas with careful attention. When you do, it is very hard for anyone to refute that you are owed compensation for the losses you have suffered. This is not simple to do, and it is best that your car accident attorney helps you ensure it goes well.
Our Team Is Here To Assist You Every Step Of The Way.
SPEAK TO AN ATTORNEY TODAYWhat Can You Use to Prove Negligence in a Car Accident Case?
Proving negligence in a car accident case takes careful examination of the situation, the development of clear evidence to support your case, and the building of a clear level of fault. While this may be simple in some situations where it is obvious the other person caused the losses, it is not always the case, and often, insurance companies will use any opportunity to limit your success. Our car accident attorneys will work closely with you to ensure this does not happen in your situation by using all available evidence that may apply, including the following:
- Medical records from you and from the other party
- Police reports from the scene of the incident
- Witness statements from those in your car or others nearby
- Cell phone records that demonstrate distracted driving
- Expert witness statements that can show the losses present
- Toxicology reports for the other driver
- Surveillance footage in the area
- Photos of your injuries, the damage to the cars, and the scene overall
- Vehicle maintenance records for the other vehicle
- Data from the event data record, or black box, on the vehicle
The more evidence that is available in your case, the more likely it is that we can piece together a better understanding of what occurred and, if possible, why it happened. In every situation, the goal is to ensure that the individual who caused this to occur is held responsible for the damages they have caused to you. Our experience in proving negligence in even the most challenging of legal cases helps us to provide our clients with the reassurance they need.
Determining Your Losses Are a Part of the Process
Another component to proving negligence is showing that the incident led to your financial losses or other losses that can be compensated monetarily. When you work with our legal team, we will gather all evidence possible to ensure this is the case by learning how this accident impacted your health, mental well-being, and quality of life. We also gather all evidence in the case to support this information, including:
- Your medical records
- Testimony from your doctor at the time of the accident and current providers
- Your family and friends who can account for your mental health
- Your work records and absences
- The damage to your vehicle
- Photographs of your injuries and how you are recovering
- Medical costs related to your accident, rehabilitation, and recovery
- Emotional trauma information and details, including any care you have had from a professional
- Evidence of post-traumatic stress disorder
- Data that shows how much your earning capacity has dropped due to the incident
- Ways that your quality of life has changed
These are just some of the most common points of data that we can use to demonstrate that the person’s negligence contributed to your losses. When you work with our legal team, we gather all data available and aggressively demonstrate the losses you have so that we can help you obtain maximum compensation for those costs. When you have a trusted, experienced, and dedicated team like this by your side, proving negligence becomes far easier from your point of view.
Schedule a Free Consultation to Speak to Our Car Accident Attorneys Today
The role of negligence in car accident lawsuits is clear – without it, it is hard for you to get any compensation for the losses another person caused to you. At BDIW, our car accident attorneys in Oklahoma can work closely with you to protect your rights to full compensation and strive to provide you with the very best ability to maximize your losses. It starts with a free consultation, of which there is no obligation to work with us, to learn more about your case and your right to compensation.
