Wrecks & Fires

Chapter 11

Negligence Laws

  All human activities can lead to situations where negligence is alleged against one party by another.

Prudent Man Rule

 Negligence is the lack of proper care or attention to the matter at hand.  It is the standard of the reasonable and prudent man rule, which was established as a criterion against which human activities are measured.  This application applies equally too many things including the operation and/or ownership of a motor vehicle.

  In some states laws, statutes and ordinances have been enacted which may alter and/or modify some of the common law concepts of the application of negligence.  It is necessary for each agent to be specifically familiar with his or her state's provisions since they do vary from state to state.

Types of Negligence Laws

  There are basically three types of negligence laws:

1. Pure comparative negligence,

2. Modified comparative negligence, and

3. Contributory negligence.

  With pure comparative negligence, the policy owner can collect damages based upon the percentage of fault: what percentage was their fault and what percentage was the fault of the other driver.

  States that have modified comparative negligence laws allow the driver to collect from the other driver's insurance only if the policyholder's percentage of fault was less than a specified percentage (often under 50 percent).  In other words, a driver who was 40 percent at fault could collect damages from the other driver, but a driver who was 55 percent at fault could not.  As you can see, the percentage of fault must be proven.  It is often stated that those who prefer this method most are attorneys.

  States that have contributory negligence allow a policyholder to collect damages only if they had no fault at all in the accident.  Of course, their own insurance company would pay for the losses, but the other driver's company would not pay.

  In such a situation, the type of coverage carried becomes very important.   If no medical coverage is carried (some states do not require it) there will not be any coverage for the physical injuries of the driver or passengers.  Even in a no-fault state, the driver could find themselves in court as a defendant.  In most cases, no-fault laws cover only personal injuries.

End of Chapter 11