Do I Have To File A Claim If My Injury Was My Own Fault?

Do I Have To File A Claim If My Injury Was My Own Fault?

If you were injured because of someone else’s fault, you may be entitled to file a personal injury claim. Although you may feel responsible for your accident in some cases, a compensation claim may still be possible.

The Non-Fault Accident

An accident that was not your fault occurs when you are involved or injured due to circumstances beyond your control. Nevertheless, you can’t make a claim simply by claiming that you’re not responsible for the accident. Furthermore, you have to establish the following:

  • There was a duty of care owed to you by the party at fault
  • You were injured within the last three years (in most cases).

The claim would not be feasible if you simply lost control of your bicycle since there would be no one to file against. A local authority may be liable for the loss of control if the pothole or defective road surface caused the accident.

In some cases, it is difficult to determine who caused the accident. A person’s responsibility (legally) for an injury may not be as clear-cut as it first appears.

What Would Happen If I Had Partly Contributed?

Compensation may be sought through a “split liability agreement” when both parties were at fault. A split liability agreement often provides you (the claimant) with a percentage of the compensation you would have gotten if the defendant had been completely liable. If a court determines that you were 25% liable for your injuries, your compensation amount will be reduced by 25%.

  • Liability in Vicarious Relationship

A vicarious responsibility occurs when one party is held responsible for the acts or omissions of another. Injuries sustained by employees at work are the most common vicarious liability cases. The injured person may believe that their injury was caused solely by their own activities. However, in the workplace, an employer may be held accountable for its workers’ actions or omissions if it can be demonstrated that the damage occurred while they were working.

A vicarious liability lawsuit stems from when an employee injures another person (or themselves) while on the job.

  • Negligence That Contributes to Injury

Contributory negligence occurs when an injured person does not take precautions to limit the risk of injury. It is possible to believe that your injuries are your own fault if you weren’t wearing a seatbelt when you were injured in a car accident. You would not have been wounded at all if the accident had been caused by someone else’s negligence.

The courts rely on the concept of contributory negligence in addressing this gray area. It could be established, for example, that if you had been wearing a seatbelt, the severity of your injuries would have been cut in half. In this case, you would receive half of the compensation you would have received otherwise.

Who is to Blame if it is Unclear?

It may still be possible to file a claim even if you don’t know who caused your injuries. It all depends on how severe your injuries are, and what sort of incident caused them. In most cases, a personal injury lawyer will be able to help identify the party responsible for the accident. If a defendant cannot be identified, your solicitor will advise you on other avenues for pursuing a claim.

The Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) exists to recompense victims wounded by untraceable and uninsured drivers in traffic accidents. If you have been injured in a criminal assault but don’t know who the perpetrator is, you can seek compensation from The Criminal Injuries Compensation Jurisdiction (CICA).

The Impact of Signing a Disclaimer

It may be necessary to sign a disclaimer before participating in sporting events or exercise classes. You may still have the ability to file a claim if a disclaimer attempts to prevent you from seeking redress from an organization that has not followed its legal obligations.

How Can I Get Help If I Was Injured As a Child?

Different approaches are taken to treat children’s accidents. Risk and danger cannot be assessed by children in the same way as they can by adults. A youngster cannot be held legally responsible for his or her acts. What an adult might consider an accident could be the duty of the child’s caregiver, nanny, or school. The three-year time limit is not applicable. You have until your 21st birthday to file a claim if you were under the age of 18 when you were injured.

If I Had Accepted Responsibility, But Later Realized I wasn’t at Fault, What Would I do?

It’s common knowledge that you should not take responsibility for an accident at the scene. In the event that you or another party decides to file a lawsuit, accepting responsibility at this time may hurt your position. If you’re in an accident, simply exchange information and make a note of the circumstances.

If you accept responsibility for an accident during a time of stress and confusion, you should analyze what happened afterward. The possibility of filing a claim does not disappear just because you accept culpability for the incident. Your Deldar Legal Injury Attorney will go over all of the information and put together a case for you.

 

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Posted in: Auto Accidents, Bicycle Accidents, Personal Injury, Slip & Fall

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