Being the victim of a car accident in Indiana that was not your fault can leave you saddled with significant expenses for medical treatment, vehicle damage, lost wages, and more. Determining who is legally liable for covering your losses is crucial yet complex.
The need for understanding your rights is vital, as there has been an 18% hike in traffic fatalities in Indiana from 2019 to 2022.
Experienced car accident lawyers in Highland can thoroughly investigate accident causes and help identify all legally liable parties. They can then pursue maximum compensation through insurance claims, lawsuits, if necessary, and other avenues to get you the complete financial recovery you deserve.
Here is the list of potential liable parties from whom you can seek compensation.
1. Negligent Drivers
The most direct party at fault in most crashes is the motorist who violated traffic laws or drove recklessly or carelessly. Drivers have a legal duty to operate vehicles prudently, adhering to speed limits, traffic signs, safety standards, and common-sense practices. When drivers neglect these duties by speeding, running red lights, improperly passing, driving under the influence, or using a cell phone, they breach the expected standard of care. They will also be held responsible for any resulting collisions and injuries.
Indiana follows traditional tort liability rules: if an at-fault driver's negligent actions directly cause an accident, they bear primary responsibility for damages. The insurance carrier covering the at-fault driver's vehicle liability will cover victims' losses like medical expenses, lost wages, and property damage up to policy limits.
When severe injuries occur, victims may need to go beyond insurance payouts to sue the driver directly for compensation if policy coverage falls short.
2. Owner of the Negligent Driver's Vehicle
If the at-fault driver operated a borrowed vehicle belonging to another party, the reckless driver and registered owner may share liability exposure under Indiana law. Before handing keys over, vehicle owners must reasonably ensure that the driver is licensed, insured, mentally competent, and likely to drive responsibly. Family members, known acquaintances, and rental companies must exercise sound judgment, refusing to furnish vehicles to unfit drivers.
If a vehicle owner enables an intoxicated, reckless, or incompetent driver to use their vehicle and a crash follows, the owner has violated their duty of care. Victims can pursue owners for injury compensation. Business owners handing over company vehicles to employees face heightened liability risks and must verify drivers completely before allowing job-related usage.
3. Government Agencies
Though less frequent, government entities at the state or local level can shoulder the blame when road conditions, signage problems, or traffic control negligence contribute to auto accidents. Under Indiana law, state and municipal agencies must properly design roadways, maintain safe roads, install adequate warnings, establish speed limits, and implement traffic control devices to enable safe driving.
Victims can pursue injury claims against the responsible public agency when substandard roads or signage cause car accidents.
Some common deficiencies leading to government liability include:
• Obscured line of sight at intersections due to infrastructure obstructions or overgrown vegetation
• Confusing traffic patterns and a lack of clear lane markings and signs
• Failing to install traffic signals, signs, or speed limit postings
• Neglecting to correct dangerous curves, slopes, or roadway drop-offs
• Not correcting severely uneven, cracked, or deteriorating pavements
4. Businesses Furnishing Vehicles
Indiana businesses can share liability when employees driving company-provided vehicles for work purposes cause accidents. State law recognizes a heightened duty of care for employers to protect the public from unnecessary harm. Companies must implement policies verifying workers are properly licensed, insured, trained for driving duties, mentally fit, and free of impairments like intoxication or exhaustion while operating vehicles for business reasons.
Failing to exercise reasonable care in overseeing operational vehicle safety makes businesses jointly accountable along with negligent employees if accidents result while conducting company activities. Plaintiffs must definitively tie the driver's employment and job duties to the incident circumstances for businesses to be considered liable parties.
5. Product Liability
In rare cases, defective products lead directly to accidents, causing drivers to lose control and crash. Component failures like sudden unintended acceleration, brake system malfunctions, seizure-inducing steering loss, airbag non-deployment, or exploding tires can be conclusively linked as factors in a collision through expert analysis and documentation.
Indiana follows astrict liability doctrine in product defect claims, meaning victims do not need to prove negligence by the maker. If the product flaw caused the accident, the manufacturer is liable. Plaintiffs must demonstrate the product was defective, the defect was present when it left the maker's hands, and the flaw proximately caused the damages suffered.
Bottomline
Identifying all contributory factors and negligent parties is critical for maximizing potential compensation. Indiana follows modified comparative fault rules, meaning a plaintiff's recovery amount is reduced by their percentage of fault. Skilled personal injury attorneys thoroughly investigate to pinpoint all viable responsible parties, given the nuances of each case. This protects clients' rights to just damages from all appropriate entities.
If you are involved in a car accident in Highland, Indiana, and believe another party is at fault, contact a local car accident lawyer. They can guide you through your legal options and help you navigate the claim process.
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