By Raleigh + Durham Worker’s Compensation Attorneys at Hyland, Padilla & Fowler, PLLC
Video Transcription:
Hi, I’m Chris Hyland with Hyland, Padilla & Fowler, PLLC Attorneys.
One question that we get a lot is: “What happens if I’m some percentage at fault or the insurance company has told me that I’m somewhat to blame or the police officer told me that partially it was my fault?”
Unfortunately, if you live in North Carolina, you are at risk at having your claim denied completely because North Carolina is one of the very few states remaining that relies on contributory negligence for injury cases. Even if the other driver was negligent, if you were negligent in any way, then the insurance company could gather enough information to deny your case, and if you litigated it in front of a jury because it was denied and a jury did find that you were negligent, you would actually recover nothing.
There are other states where you get a recovery based on the percentage or you may win or lose your case if you’re more or less than 50% negligent. But in North Carolina, unfortunately, if the insurance company believes you are 1% at fault, then you are at risk of having your case completely denied. If you have any other questions, please give us a call.
If you need assistance with your injury claim, or the insurance company is denying a claim you feel should be covered, give Hyland, Padilla, & Fowler a call today to discuss your situation with one of our Raleigh + Durham personal injury attorneys.