I Might Have Been Partly To Blame – Can I Still Claim?
If you have suffered an injury as a result of a third party’s negligence then you can make a claim for compensation. This is because the law provides that members of society have a duty of care towards each other, for example, drivers to other road users, doctors to their patients and employers to their employees. Any breach of this duty of care entitles the claimant to make a personal injury claim.
Contributory Negligence – Whole or Part Blame
So what happens if the claimant is wholly or partially to blame for his or her injuries? If the claimant is wholly to blame then the third party has not been negligent and therefore there is no claim. If however, the claimant is partially to blame, for example a driver not wearing a seat belt, or a construction employee not wearing the protective clothing provided, then the amount of compensation that will be awarded to the claimant will be reduced either entirely or proportionally to take this into account and this is known as contributory negligence.
In order to successfully allege that the claimant was contributory negligent the defendant will have to prove that the claimant failed to take reasonable care for their own safety and that it was this failure that resulted in the injury.
Make a Personal Injury Claim
If you would like to make a personal injury claim then you should speak to a personal injury lawyer for Leeds. Your personal injury solicitor will be able to guide you on the merits (and de-merits) of your case including whether or not you were contributory negligent and how much compensation you are entitled to claim.
It is important that you chose an experienced personal injury solicitor** to deal with your case as the defendant’s solicitors or their insurers will often try and allege contributory negligence in order to save having to pay out large sums of compensation money. As experienced personal injury lawyers in Leeds, we will be best placed to argue that either the contributory negligence is not warranted or the reduction is too high.
Contact our Specialist Personal Injury Claims Solicitors for Leeds
Regardless of who is to blame; if you or a loved one has been injured in an accident contact us without delay. Call us on 01132 234 466^ You can also contact us online by completing our enquiry form.