HELPING PROTECT INJURED FLORIDIANS SINCE 1998
FALL 2023
How failing to wear a seat belt could affect your injury claim for your injuries, you would be legally barred from recovering any compensation. On the other hand, if a jury found that your failure to wear a seat belt contributed only 10% toward your injuries, then your eventual recovery would be reduced by 10%.
BY BRIAN D. GURALNICK, ESQUIRE According to the United States Department of Transportation, the instant you buckle up when driving or riding in the front seat of a car or truck, you cut your risk of a fatal injury in a crash nearly in half. So if you were not wearing a seat belt during an accident, the insurance company will likely argue that you should be held comparatively at fault for your injuries. For the past 50 years, Florida had been considered a “pure comparative negligence” state. Under this legal doctrine, damages were awarded in proportion to each party’s share of the blame for the accident. This meant, even if you were 90 percent at fault, you could still recover the other 10% from the other at fault party or their insurance company. However, things changed in Florida on March 24, 2023, when Florida Statutes §768.81 was amended to make Florida a “modified comparative negligence” state. Subsection 6 of this statute provides that any party found to be greater than 50 percent at fault for their own injuries will not be allowed to recover any damages. In other words, if a jury finds that your failure to wear a seat belt was more than 50% of the reason
Whether or not your failure to wear a seat belt impacted the actual injuries you sustained depends on the particular circumstances of each case. For example, what if as a result of you not wearing a seat belt, you were ejected from your vehicle and broke your wrist upon landing. Meanwhile, the vehicle you were in caught fire and exploded shortly after you were ejected. In that instance, it is likely your injuries would have been worse if you were wearing your seat belt and left in your vehicle. In order to help an insurance company or a jury understand the impact of your failure to wear a seat belt on the injuries you sustained, experts, such as accident re-constructionists, bio mechanical engineers, and medical doctors may be retained. An experienced injury lawyer should know which experts to retain to help you win this fight. So as soon as you have been injured in an accident, please “Call me personally” so I can help make sure you recover all the financial money you deserve. To read more and for other helpful blog posts please visit our website: https://www.injurylawpalmbeach.com/latest-news/
ADVERTISEMENT 1