Two people suffered injuries in a vehicle collision that occurred around 6:30 a.m. on a Monday morning at Gorton Road and Judge Road in Alabama. A truck and a SUV reportedly crashed after one of the vehicles ran a stop sign. Which vehicle was at fault for running the stop sign has yet to be disclosed.
Both drivers were injured in the collision. However, when officers arrived on the scene, the man driving the pickup truck was out of his vehicle, while the woman driving the SUV was trapped within hers, which was turned upside down on its hood. Both drivers involved in the truck accident were transported to nearby hospitals and their injuries are not believed to be life threatening. Drivers involved in truck accidents like these might consider filing personal injury lawsuits.
Which driver will be determined at fault for this accident is crucial in this case if either one of the drivers are planning on suing the other one for their medical expenses. In order for people to file personal injury lawsuits, they need to be able to prove that their injuries were caused by or contributed to by the negligence of the other person involved. However, there is something known as contributory negligence that can prevent people from being able to sue for personal injury when they are involved in an accident.
Contributory negligence mandates that if a person is injured in an accident due in part to their own negligence, then he or she is not eligible to collect personal injury damages. For example, in this case, if the woman driving the SUV was the one who ran the stop sign, she typically would not be entitled to compensation for the injuries she sustained from the crash. However, some juries have overturned this rule, and some judges use a comparative negligence equation to hold each party responsible for the percentage of the accident for which each is deemed at fault. Anyone wishing to file a personal injury lawsuit might want to seek the counsel of a personal injury lawyer who may help them determine whether or not they have the grounds to file such a case.
Source: //thedailynewsonline.com/, “Two injured in two-car crash in Alabama”, Virginia Kropf, May 13, 2013
