When an accident occurs, you must be inclined to admit fault or apologize for an accident out of courtesy and human decency. While this may seem like the right thing to do, it can have serious ramifications on your ability to claim compensation afterward. In this post, as your New York car accident lawyer, the team at Alex Yadgarov & Associates will tell you why admitting fault is a costly mistake and what you can do to protect your rights and prevent the other party from shifting the blame to you.
When a car accident occurs in New York, the injured party is allowed to claim compensation for all the damages they’ve suffered in the accident from the liability insurance of the party at fault for the incident. At the same time, there can also be accidents where both parties involved share the blame for the accident to some degree. In these types of cases, the concept of comparative fault is considered, and the fault is distributed between parties involved to properly reflect the extent of their fault in the incident.
In New York, the concept of comparative fault is enforced through the pure comparative negligence rule. According to this rule, when the individuals involved in an accident share the blame, their compensation will be reduced to reflect the extent of their blame. Since New York operates under the “pure” comparative negligence rule, this means that a person can still claim compensation, even if they are mostly to blame for the accident.
Let’s consider a situation where X and Y have been involved in a car accident and both parties are now claiming $50,000 in damages. The accident investigation finds that at the time of the accident X was aggressively speeding and Y was texting while driving. As a result, 70% of the blame is placed on X, and 30% of the blame is placed on Y. In this situation, with the involvement of pure comparative negligence, X would only walk away with $15,000, while Y would walk away with $35,000.
At the start, we mentioned that admitting fault or even a simple apology can negatively impact your ability to claim compensation. It can literally cost you thousands. This is because everything you do after the accident will be closely scrutinized, and anything you say to the police or the insurance adjuster can and will be used against you during the compensation negotiations.
Determining the cause of the car accident and who bears the responsibility are far less straightforward than you might think. Any statement you make would be based on your own perception, which might not necessarily be the true cause of the accident. Admitting fault or apologizing when you don’t have all the facts is like shooting yourself in the foot, and you might prevent a proper investigation that would have gotten to the bottom of the mystery.
When it comes time to claim compensation, you are already at a disadvantage if you have apologized or admitted fault. At the end of the day, your insurance company is not your friend and will do everything in their power to reduce your payout. They would gladly latch on to your apology or admission and justify a reduction in compensation, and it will be hard to argue against it.
When you're involved in an accident, apologizing or admitting fault might seem like the decent thing to do. Unfortunately, since your actions after the accident always come under close scrutiny, a seemingly harmless apology can significantly impact your ability to claim compensation afterward. Therefore, to protect your claim to compensation from fault, you will need the help of the best car accident lawyers in NYC.
Alex Yadgarov & Associates has been one of the most sought-after personal injury law firms in New York. From car accidents to slip and falls and more, our team of experienced lawyers will take the burden off your shoulders and fight to get the compensation you deserve. Schedule a free consultation, tell us your story, and focus on your recovery—we won’t let you down.
