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Personal injury cases come in many forms, and proving fault is not always straightforward. Whether the accident involved a pedestrian struck at night, a cyclist hit by a turning vehicle, or a workplace injury caused by someone outside the employer, the question of liability can quickly become complicated. Below, the Rock Rapids personal injury attorneys at Walker, Billingsley & Bair explain how fault is determined in these types of cases and what compensation may be available.
Pedestrian Accidents and Comparative Fault at Night
A pedestrian struck by a car in Rock Rapids can hold some degree of liability for the accident, at least partially, if he or she was partly responsible for what happened, though it remains a hazy area of the law. According to the National Highway Transportation Administration National Center for Statistics and Analysis, a majority of pedestrian accidents occur at night. If a pedestrian fails to take safety precautions, such as wearing light clothing or carrying a light while walking after dark, it could be construed as negligence on his or her part.
Careless Pedestrian Behavior
In a pedestrian-car accident, both parties will be assigned a certain degree of fault for the accident. Attorneys, insurance companies, and courts examine all the facts surrounding the accident before determining fault. In some cases, it is clearly one party who is at fault, while in other situations, both parties may be partly responsible.
Failing to Use a Crosswalk
A pedestrian who does not use a designated crosswalk may bear some responsibility for a resulting collision.
Crossing on a Don't Walk Signal
Crossing against a traffic signal is a factor courts and insurers weigh when assigning fault.
Walking or Running Into Traffic
Entering the roadway suddenly, without giving a driver time to react, can shift a portion of liability onto the pedestrian.
Skipping Nighttime Precautions
Not wearing reflective or light colored clothing, or not carrying a light while walking at night, is another factor that can be weighed against a pedestrian.
Pedestrians and Iowa Negligence Law
Iowa follows what is known as the comparative negligence rule, in which even if a person was partly to blame for an accident, up to 50 percent at fault, he or she can still seek compensation for the injuries. However, the settlement award will be reduced by that individual's degree of fault. This is why proving liability in a pedestrian-car accident claim is so important, since compensation is directly affected by how fault is assigned. When fault is blurred or uncertain, Rock Rapids accident victims will want to contact an attorney as soon as possible to begin collecting evidence and proving fault.
An attorney can help by uncovering the facts surrounding the accident, protecting the client's rights, and working to lessen the client's degree of fault. An attorney will also help calculate the full extent of the damages involved and push for the highest and fairest settlement available.
Proving Liability in a Right Turn Bicycle Accident
When a car turning right strikes a bicyclist in Rock Rapids, it is often referred to as a "right hook" accident. This commonly happens when a cyclist is riding on the right shoulder of the road or in a bike lane alongside a car. In these types of accidents, it is usually the driver's fault, but proving that they were liable for the resulting injuries requires proper evidence of their negligence.
How Right Turn Bicycle Accidents Occur
- When a bicyclist and a car approach an intersection and the car turns right, the driver often fails to see the bicyclist until it is too late.
- When a bicyclist attempts to overtake a slower moving car by passing on the right, unintentionally putting themselves in harm's way if the car then turns right.
- When a bike and a car are waiting at a light, and once the signal allows traffic to move, the car turns right, cutting off or striking the cyclist.
Liability for a Right Turn Bicycle Accident
To prove that the driver was primarily at fault for causing a right turn accident, rather than the cyclist, several types of evidence become necessary. A police report will detail the accident scene and the events as described by the responding officer, including notes of any citations issued to either the driver or the cyclist.
Eyewitness accounts are perhaps the most valuable type of evidence, since they can reveal what the bike and the car were doing immediately before the collision. A driver can be proven negligent, and thus liable, if they were speeding, failed to use a turn signal, or abruptly changed lanes. Likewise, if witnesses report that the bicyclist was swerving between lanes, riding too close to vehicles, or ignoring a traffic control device, that evidence may be used as a defense by the driver. Video or photo evidence can also be valuable, since many intersections have traffic cameras, and nearby businesses sometimes have surveillance cameras that may have captured the crash.
Avoiding Right Turn Bicycle Accidents
When riding near a vehicle, it helps to keep a safe distance behind so there is time to anticipate when the vehicle is turning or changing lanes. As a cyclist approaches an intersection, checking mirrors for nearby vehicles can help avoid a collision. It is also best to avoid passing a car on the right unless necessary, and when doing so, to make sure there is enough space to swerve out of the way if a car turns right unexpectedly.
When a Third Party Contributes to a Rock Rapids Work Accident
If you were injured in a Rock Rapids work accident, you may be able to pursue a third-party claim in addition to workers' compensation. A workers' compensation attorney can evaluate the case to determine who was negligent and whether the accident involved someone outside of the place of employment.
Any employee injured while on the job is entitled to receive workers' compensation benefits. However, the situation becomes more complicated when another party, someone other than the employer or a coworker, is involved. This is why it is important to seek legal help after a Rock Rapids work accident.
Overview of a Third-Party Claim
Employees generally cannot sue their employer for injuries that occur at work if they accept workers' compensation payments. Employers are protected from lawsuits once those benefits are paid, even if the employer was clearly negligent and directly caused the injury. However, in some cases, an injury may have been caused by another person or company unrelated to the employer. This may lead to what is known as a third-party claim, where a party outside of the employment relationship is found negligent for part or all of the injuries.
Liability in a Third-Party Claim
| Scenario | Who May Be Liable | Type of Claim |
|---|---|---|
| Injury caused by a defective product on the job | The product manufacturer | Product liability claim |
| Injury while working at another company's site | The property owner | Premises liability claim |
| Injury while driving a company vehicle and struck by another driver | The at-fault driver | Personal injury claim |
A third-party claim can become complicated and time-consuming, which is why it is important to work with an attorney who handles both workers' compensation and personal injury cases.
Compensation in a Third-Party Claim
Workers' compensation benefits cover medical expenses and lost wages, but a worker cannot receive other types of damages, such as pain and suffering or mental anguish, through that system alone. Punitive damages, which relate to cases involving extreme recklessness or intent to harm, are also unavailable through workers' compensation. With a third-party claim, however, an injured worker may be able to recover damages that go beyond medical expenses and lost wages. This becomes especially important in cases involving severe injuries, since there are limits on how much compensation workers' compensation alone can provide.
Pursuing a workers' compensation claim can already take time, and adding a third-party claim will delay the process further. Still, it may be worth pursuing if the injuries are severe, since a worker may be limited in the type of compensation available through workers' compensation and may have other damages that are strictly the responsibility of a third party.
Protecting Your Rock Rapids Personal Injury Claim
Whether an accident in Rock Rapids involves a pedestrian struck at night, a cyclist hit by a right-turning vehicle, or a workplace injury caused by a third party, determining liability is often the most important step toward securing fair compensation. These cases can be fact intensive, and even a small piece of evidence can shift how fault is assigned. An experienced personal injury attorney can help gather the necessary evidence, deal with insurance companies, and pursue the full range of compensation a victim is entitled to.
Free Book at No Cost
If you are not ready to speak with an attorney yet but would like to learn more about Iowa injury cases including tips about how you can avoid making common costly mistakes request a copy of our Iowa Personal Injury book which includes 14 myths about Iowa injury cases and 5 things to know before hiring an attorney.
If you have specific questions about your injury matter feel free to call our office to speak with our Injury team at 641-792-3595 or use our Chat feature by clicking here 24 hours a day/7 days per week. Your information will remain confidential and there is no cost or obligation.