A San Antonio woman is being hospitalized following a multi-vehicle collision that occurred after she apparently lost control of her vehicle. According to officers who were on the scene, the woman was driving a sedan, and was traveling west on I-35, along with another sedan and an 18-wheeler truck. At this point, the woman lost control of her vehicle, and plowed into the back of the 18-wheeler. The driver attempted to get away from the truck and veered on to an access road where it struck another vehicle and resulted in a crash. The woman driving the sedan was transported to a local hospital for treatment, where it was determined that her injuries were not life-threatening. The police have not made any statement as to what caused the woman to lose control of her vehicle. It is unclear whether there was a malfunction with a component of the vehicle or if it was driver error that caused the vehicle to lose control.
Proving Negligence in Texas
Every state has a standard for establishing negligence in court. Texas uses a contributory fault model. Under this model, both parties’ fault in contributing to the accident is assessed. If the suing party is found to also have contributed in some way to precipitating the accident, their award money can be reduced by a percentage proportionate to their fault. For instance, if Driver A is driving distracted and rear-ends Driver B, who had one brake light out, a jury may find that Driver A was 90% responsible for the accident, and that Driver B was 10% at fault for not having fully operational tail lights. If the jury awards Driver B $10,000 in damages, Driver B will receive $9,000 ($10,000 – 10% liability).
Identifying Negligent Parties
If you have been in an accident that was not your fault, chances are it was somebody else’s. Although occasionally accidents happen due to circumstances entirely outside of our control, like the weather, in general, there was some degree of negligence involved. Sometimes the cause is clear, whether it was distracted driving, drunk driving, or driving recklessly. Other times, however, the cause of the accident is not as clear cut. For instance, in the case above, it is unclear whether the woman was the negligent party or a victim of another party’s negligence as well. The driver of the car is not the only possible negligent party. If there was an issue with a component in the vehicle malfunctioning, the auto manufacturer as well as the manufacturer of that particular component can also be held liable as parties to the damage. An experienced San Antonio personal injury lawyer can help you get to the bottom of who is really responsible for a crash. Lawyers can subpoena trucking companies for driver schedules to see if the company contributed to an accident by overbooking the driver and causing them to drive fatigued. Lawyers can also subpoena manufacturers for information on their products and components.
Talk to a San Antonio Personal Injury Lawyer
If you have been injured in a San Antonio car accident, contact the experienced Texas Personal Injury Lawyers at the Law Office of Eric Ramos. Call today to schedule your free consultation. There is no fee until we win.