If you got hurt in an accident and believe it was someone else’s fault, you can sue for damages. This is true even if someone argues that you may have made mistakes yourself, like not wearing a seatbelt. We all know that we should wear a seatbelt, but not wearing one shouldn’t preclude you from claiming compensation with the help of our Westchester County auto accident attorneys. There are still some ways that this decision could affect your case though.
Can I Recover Damages If I Wasn’t Wearing a Seatbelt?
Yes, you can still recover damages even if you weren’t wearing a seatbelt. Even though New York laws require drivers and passengers to use a seatbelt, not wearing one does not magically make the fault of another driver disappear. If someone ran a red light, ignored a stop sign, or engaged in other dangerous behavior that caused you harm, you are still owed compensation.
Is Not Wearing a Seatbelt Considered Negligence?
In New York, you can still sue for damages if you are partly responsible for a car accident. So does not wearing a seatbelt mean that you share more of the blame for the crash? The answer is no.
Not wearing a seatbelt is not considered negligence here, even if it is “negligence per se” according to the law. You do not go from zero percent fault for the accident to 10 or 20 percent fault just because you didn’t wear a seatbelt. This does not mean that your actions will not affect how much compensation you can receive though, because the other side can still try to pin some of the fault for your own injuries on you.
How Will This Affect My Compensation?
So not wearing a seatbelt doesn’t affect your liability, but it may affect your total payout. The reason for this is simple. A seatbelt is designed to keep you safe in a crash. A lawyer or insurance company for the other driver may be able to credibly argue that your injuries were made worse by your decision not to wear one.
This means that the other side won’t disagree that you are owed compensation. The amount of money you should receive will be the sticking point. Suppose they can successfully argue that your or your passenger’s injuries are significantly worse solely because you weren’t strapped into your seat safely. In that case, that can reduce how much they are willing to pay out in damages.
Should I Hire a Lawyer?
This is why we recommend hiring a lawyer in a situation like this. Your lawyer can defend you from accusations of wrongdoing or fault and help you fight for maximum compensation. They can help you argue that the severity of your injuries is unrelated to whether or not you used a seatbelt.
Contact Our Firm Today
If you were hurt in an accident and believe that you are owed compensation, we want to hear from you. Contact Hausman & Pendzick to schedule a consultation with our team.