Can I Still Recover Compensation If I Was Not Wearing A Seatbelt?

Jed Dietrich, Esq., Recognized as a Super Lawyer and American Institute of Trial Lawyers Litigator of the Year, is Committed to Defending the Rights of Car Accident Victims Across Upstate New York. If You or a Loved One Has Been Injured in a Car Accident That Was Not Your Fault, You Deserve Effective, Aggressive Representation and an Attorney Willing to Fight for Your Rights.

You should never have to pay for an accident that was not your fault, but securing compensation after a crash is often easier said than done. Even though you do not have to be blameless to sue another driver, forgetting to fasten your seatbelt before a collision could come at a steep cost when it comes time to take your case to trial. Defense lawyers and insurance companies know that seatbelts often mean the difference between a minor injury and life-altering disability, which is why they would not shy away from trying to pin your damages on your mistake.

You cannot always escape the consequences of New York’s pure comparative negligence rule, but you do not have to take chances with your right to a fair recovery.

A recognized U.S. News & World Report Best Law Firm, the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. has spent decades filing, fighting, and winning high-stakes personal injury claims. We know what it takes to build the kind of compelling, evidence-based case needed to overcome even the strongest defense, and we have the results to prove it. Call Jed Dietrich, Esq., today at 716-839-3939 to speak to a car crash lawyer and schedule your 100% free, no-obligation consultation as soon as possible.

Every state has its own laws on seatbelts.

Compared to states like New Hampshire, the only one in the country that has no universal seatbelt law for adults, New York takes a strict approach to safety.

Under NY Vehicle & Traffic Law § 1229-c:

1. The operator of a motor vehicle must always wear a seatbelt;
2. All occupants of a motor vehicle, including front- and rear-seat passengers, must always wear a seatbelt; and
3. Children under the age of four must be restrained in specially designed safety seats.

Breaking New York’s seatbelt law could lead to penalties and a citation, but it is not necessarily a bar to filing a personal injury lawsuit. In general, you can sue a negligent driver for accident-related injuries as long as you were no more than 50% at-fault for the crash.

However, just because you can sue does not mean you should expect the defense to settle without putting up a fight.

The person who files a lawsuit is called the plaintiff, whereas the person on the receiving end is termed the defendant. Plaintiffs and defendants alike have certain rights and responsibilities. After a lawsuit is served, the defendant’s legal team will sometimes start exploring the viability of various affirmative defenses. In the legal field, an “affirmative defense” is an evidence-based argument that, if proven true, would either reduce or eliminate the defendant’s liability.

The so-called “failure to mitigate” defense is a common affirmative defense raised in car crash claims. The failure to mitigate defense suggests that, even if the defendant’s negligence caused the crash, the plaintiff still had a duty to minimize foreseeable harm. Since seatbelts have been repeatedly proven to reduce the likelihood of sustaining accident-related injuries, a good defense lawyer will probably try to argue that your failure to use a seatbelt led to a worse outcome.

If the court accepts this argument, the defendant might still be liable for your injuries, but your settlement or award could be reduced significantly and in proportion to the amount of harm you could have avoided had you worn a seatbelt.

The Dietrich Law Firm P.C. could help you overcome the seatbelt defense and other affirmative defense strategies by taking steps including, but not limited to, the following:

1. Launching a full-scale investigation of your crash to ensure that your side of the story is backed up by evidence and facts;
2. Securing the evidence necessary to show that, even if you failed to mitigate certain damages, the at-fault driver still bears responsibility for the crash; and
3. Challenging the legal applicability of the seat belt defense to your case.

Notably, the seatbelt defense itself is fairly controversial. Although New York is one of about a dozen states that allow for the introduction of seatbelt-related evidence, there is still substantial and wide-ranging disagreement about the legal validity of this defense. The failure to mitigate doctrine, for instance, usually relates to actions that accident victims take after a crash not before it. Similarly, even though failing to wear a seatbelt could be considered negligence, you do not necessarily have a legally-binding duty to anticipate that somebody else’s mistake could leave you injured and disabled.

The seatbelt defense can be difficult to overcome, but an experienced car accident lawyer could help you reduce your share of liability and walk away with a larger settlement than if you accepted the defense’s seemingly common-sense counterargument without question.

If you overcome the seatbelt defense, you could be entitled to a wide range of damages.

Your damages, in legal parlance, are compensation for the hardship and loss you have sustained as the direct result of an accident. They could include compensation for any one or more of the following:

1. Your hospital bills;
2. The costs of future or continuing care;
3. Physical rehabilitation;
4. Therapy and mental health services;
5. Paid co-pays and deductibles, including for medication;
6. Lost income from work;
7. Diminished earning potential;
8. Pain and suffering;
9. Disfigurement; and
10. Death.

New York does not cap damages in most personal injury claims, but it does enforce strict statutes of limitations. If you wait too long to file a claim, key evidence could go missing, or the statute of limitations could lapse. Should either happen, you could lose your rights on a technicality, forcing the judge to dismiss your case without ever giving you your day in court.

Do not let pressure from the defense and legal deadlines come at the expense of your rights. Call Jed Dietrich, Esq., today at 716-839-3939 to speak to a car crash lawyer and find out how much your case could be worth.

Call the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. immediately at 716-839-3939 so that our aggressive, tenacious, and hardworking personal injury lawyers can fight to obtain the best result for your personal injury claim in Buffalo, New York. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and there is never a fee until we WIN for you!