How Georgia’s Comparative Negligence Law Affects Your Car Accident Claim

How Georgia’s Comparative Negligence Law Affects Your Car Accident Claim

After a car accident in Georgia, the other driver’s insurance company may try to shift at least part of the blame for the accident onto you. They do this as a way to limit their own liability in accordance with the state’s comparative negligence law.

You need to understanding comparative negligence and how it could impact your car accident claim to maximize your compensation and protect your rights.

What Is Comparative Negligence?

Comparative negligence is a legal system under which a plaintiff’s awarded compensation may be reduced by their degree of fault for the accident that injured them. For example, if you are found to be 30 percent at fault for the accident that caused your injuries, the at-fault party would only be liable for the remaining 70 percent of your awarded compensation. If your total compensation was $20,000, you could only recover $14,000 in this case.

However, it’s important to know that comparative negligence specifically applies to compensation awarded through a trial. Insurance settlements are not legally bound by comparative negligence, despite what the at-fault driver’s insurance company may lead you to believe.

Georgia’s Modified Comparative Negligence Rule

Some states use a pure form of comparative negligence, which allows an injured person to seek and recover compensation even if they were 99 percent at fault for the accident. As long as another party was at least partly to blame, the plaintiff can seek compensation in those states.

This is not the case in Georgia. Georgia uses a modified form of comparative negligence that adds a 50 percent bar. If the plaintiff is 50 percent or more at fault for the accident, the courts will prevent them from recovering compensation through a trial award.

In addition to the 50 percent bar being in place, the modified comparative negligence rules work the same as pure comparative negligence rules in that they also reduce an injured person’s compensation in proportion to their degree of fault. Even if you are less than 50 percent at fault, your compensation will be reduced if you share fault for the accident.

How Comparative Negligence Affects Car Accident Claims

While comparative negligence doesn’t explicitly apply to car accident insurance claims, insurance companies still rely on it when negotiating settlements. For example, if the insurance company believes that a jury would find you 50 percent or more at fault for the accident, it may deny your claim and refuse payment, forcing you to take legal action to seek the compensation you need.

Additionally, if the insurance company believes a jury would find you 20 percent at fault, it may only offer a settlement worth 80 percent of what you’re seeking.

How a Car Accident Lawyer Can Help Maximize Your Compensation

It’s always in your best interest to let an experienced car accident lawyer handle your case. This is because a lawyer will know the best ways to fight back against the insurance company’s claims that you were partly to blame for the accident that caused your injuries, which can help maximize your compensation.

One way your lawyer can do this is by gathering various types of supporting evidence, including accident scene photographs and videos, eyewitness statements, and expert witness testimony. However, they can also do this by recognizing the bad faith tactics the insurance company is using and forcing them to negotiate fairly.

Contact Our Georgia Car Accident Lawyers

If you sustained injuries in a Georgia car accident, contact Kaufman Injury Law for a free case evaluation. Our lawyers will review the accident details to determine the strengths and weaknesses of your case. We’ll also explain your options for seeking compensation and walk you through what to expect from the insurance claims process.