Contributory negligence is a doctrine in common law that if a person was injured and this was their own fault, in part or in full, that personal is not entitled to collect any damages from another party. Contributory negligence has been used by the personal injury claims industry for a long time. It’s an issue that needs to be considered at the beginning of any claim. However, so long as primary liability can be established, the defendant is entitled to financial compensation and contributory negligence will not apply.
If you believe that contributory negligence may affect your claim, the only way to find out is by contacting online solicitors for compensation claims for advice.
Contributory negligence in practice
In practice, contributory negligence works like this – if the claimant was partly responsible for an accident, the issue of contributory negligence can be raised by the other party. In most cases this is done so to reduce the amount of compensation that may be awarded. The parties involved then usually negotiate a fair level of compensation and to seal the deal, a split liability agreement may be created with a 50/50, 50/75 or 25/75 split.
However, often a deal is made that if the claimant is found to be 20% liable for the accident, then their initial compensation figure will be reduced by 20%. For example, if initial damages were £10,000, the payout would be reduced by £2,000.
Battling against the contributory negligence card
It is common for the contributory negligence card to be played in personal injury cases. To combat this, it is essential that you have an experienced solicitor who will be able to collect the necessary evidence to prove who is at fault. If for example a claim is for a road traffic accident, then CCTV recordings may be needed to throw out contributory negligence. Or if you had a workplace accident, then health and safety reports may need to be collected.
Finding the best legal advice is essential with contributory negligence
Sometimes, though, there simply isn’t enough evidence to support your claims. In this case, the best move may be to accept contributory negligence and settle for a lower payout. In either case, it is essential that you receive expert legal advice to help you make the right decision. Accident Advice Helpline specialises in all areas of personal injury law and may be able to take on your case if the issue of contributory negligence is likely to be raised. Talk to their expert personal injury claims advisors today – simply call Freephone 0800 689 0500 or give them a call from your mobile on 0333 500 0993 to get the claims process started.