Who is At Fault for a Sideswipe Accident?
Sideswipes are common accidents on the freeway, especially as one driver tries to merge with the flow of traffic. Suddenly, two cars strike each other while going in the same direction, and one or both could go flying off the road, leaving motorists with major injuries.
Sideswipe accidents raise complicated questions: who is at fault for this type of accident? Is fault shared between both drivers, or is one driver totally to blame? These questions are tricky to answer. Contact Karnas Law Firm, PLLC, to talk with a Tucson car accident lawyer about your sideswipe accident.
Why Sideswipes Are Challenging Cases
Fault is always tricky to analyze because lawyers and insurance adjusters were not there to witness a crash. We are trying to piece together what happened based on often imperfect evidence: witness testimony, grainy photos, a police report, and so on.
Furthermore, both drivers tend to tell a self-serving story. One driver will claim the other is to blame, and the other driver points the finger right back. How can people who didn’t even observe the accident choose between these stories?
Fault matters enormously with car accidents. If a driver isn’t at fault, then they don’t owe you a dime. It doesn’t matter how injured you are. You could be paralyzed from the neck down. But if the driver doesn’t have any fault for a crash, then you will not get any compensation. For this reason, your car accident lawyer needs to fully analyze all available evidence.
What the Law Says
Car wrecks are personal injury cases, with most cases based on negligence. You can receive compensation if you prove another driver failed to operate their vehicle with reasonable care. That’s the negligence standard.
However, the rules of the road provide some meaningful, concrete detail about a driver’s duties.
Here is what Arizona’s laws say about drivers:
- Vehicles entering the freeway must yield to those already on the road. (ARS § 28-771)
- A motorist must drive at a reasonable and prudent speed under the circumstances. (ARS § 28-701)
These and other rules might come into play with a sideswipe accident in Tucson.
Evidence for Sideswipe Accidents
A good lawyer recognizes the importance of evidence and strives to fully grasp what happened. Our firm can:
- Review the police report written by the officer who swung by the crash site.
- Talk with witnesses about what they observed. With luck, you spoke with witnesses after the accident and got their name and a method of contacting them. If not, the police report should have their names.
- Inspect the vehicles, if they have not already been repaired. There might be clues on the vehicles.
- Visit nearby businesses to see if they have security cameras pointed at the road. Maybe a car dealership or gas station camera recorded the accident. We can ask to see the footage.
- Review photographs of the vehicles involved in the crash. You hopefully took photographs after the crash.
This evidence can help us review whether either driver failed to operate their vehicle with sufficient care. Often, these cases turn on whether a motorist yielded the right of way or whether a driver was going so fast they collided with another driver.
Two Sideswipe Scenarios
Let’s look at two sideswipe accidents to see how to analyze fault:
(1) Samantha is trying to merge with the freeway, but she is distracted and doesn’t even look to see if there is room to merge. When she pulls into traffic, she slams into the side of Ben’s car. In this example, Samantha did not drive with sufficient care because she was looking at her phone instead of focusing on the road. She drove negligently, so she is liable for the crash.
(2) Samantha sees that there is plenty of room to merge on the highway, so she uses her blinker and pulls into the open lane. However, Ben is fast coming up behind her by driving 30 miles over the speed limit. By the time Samantha pulls into the lane, she and Ben collide. In this example, Ben is at fault. Samantha waited until there was room to merge, but Ben was going so fast he surprised her and caused a wreck.
Either driver in a sideswipe could be to blame. That is what makes these cases very complex.
Fault Can Be Shared
Arizona also has a comparative fault law which states fault can be shared between the person bringing a legal claim and the defendant. If so, then a victim’s compensation is reduced by their degree of fault.
This law is sometimes helpful. In other states, fault is “all or nothing.” If a person is even 1% to blame, they lose the ability to receive any compensation from the other driver. They could be 99% blameless, and it doesn’t matter. They will end up with no compensation for even a tiny bit of liability for the collision.
Arizona’s law is useful in certain sideswipe accidents. After reviewing all the evidence, it might not be clear which driver is mostly at fault for the crash. In that case, insurance companies might try to split fault between the drivers, 50/50. That means you would still receive something, although not as much as if you were 0% at fault.
Our job is to increase the other driver’s share of fault, which increases your compensation. Call us as soon as possible so a Tucson car accident attorney can begin gathering evidence and protecting your rights. We might work with a reconstruction accident expert to fully grasp what happened. They can be persuasive witnesses when it comes to negotiating a settlement or even going into court.
We Have Won Millions for Clients—Contact Us Today
Were you injured in a sideswipe? Call Karnas Law Firm, PLLC to schedule a consultation with a car accident lawyer in Tucson. We want to know what you remember about the accident. Based on this information, we can more effectively advocate for your right to fair compensation from a negligent driver who caused a sideswipe accident.