After a car accident in Oklahoma, injury victims must prove the liability of the other driver(s) involved in the collision in order to recover compensation for their injuries. Generally, the parties who are at fault for a motor vehicle accident will be required to pay others involved to cover the cost of medical bills and lost wages, among other expenses.
However, suppose another factor was fully or partially responsible for causing a car accident that resulted in injury: Poor road conditions. Is it possible, if the presence of a pothole or other road damage contributed to an accident, that the entities in charge of road maintenance can be held liable?
PROVING NEGLIGENCE
As is the truth with any car accident, the negligence of the at-fault party must be proven by a plaintiff to recover damages. This is true even in cases where a pothole may have caused a collision.
The presence of a pothole alone is not enough evidence to prove negligence on the part of the people responsible for repairing roads (such as city government). To demonstrate negligence, an injured person must prove that responsible parties were aware of the issue for an extended period of time, and failed to do anything to repair the road conditions. For example, if a stretch of road is known to have several potholes and has been reported multiple times for damaging cars and causing injury, yet no attempts have been made to fix it, the city government may be found negligent.
Even with this proof of negligence, it is still possible that a driver can be held fully or partially liable for their own injuries. The state of Oklahoma follows at-fault negligence laws, so the liability of each party is considered in accident cases. If a driver was negligent in some way (e.g. by swerving to avoid a pothole or driving right over an easily avoidable pothole, resulting in injury), their fault can affect the compensation they receive.
Every collision case is different, and minor details of an accident can affect liability. Our lawyers can help you understand the circumstances of your case, and recover the compensation you are entitled to.
For assistance with building your car accident case, call 918-492-7674 or use our contact form to reach the team of talented attorneys at Richardson Richardson Boudreaux, PLLC.
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