What is negligence and how is it relevant to a personal injury claim?

Personal injury accidents can happen in many different ways and cause serious injuries and losses to victims. When a Cleveland resident is involved in a motor vehicle accident or slips and falls on the property of another person, they may have rights to seek compensation for their losses based on the negligence of the responsible party. Negligence is an important legal concept in tort law and this post will generally discuss its elements. As with all of the posts on this blog, no one should interpret the contents of this article as specific legal advice. It is informational in content and all questions about negligence and personal injury claims should be directed to trusted legal professionals in the personal injury field of law.

The elements of negligence claims

Negligence happens when a person fails to act reasonably in the situation they are in. For example, when a motor vehicle driver chooses to read an email on their phone while driving down the highway, they may be negligent because a reasonable driver in their situation would choose to keep their eyes on the road rather than allowing a distraction to affect them. When a person acts negligently and breach is their duty of care to another individual, they may be liable for any injuries that individual suffers due to the others negligence.

Generally, individuals have a duty to act reasonably for the benefit of others. Reasonableness is a standard that is often at the heart of personal injury claims. If, though, a victim can show that another party acted unreasonably, breached their duty of care, and was the cause of the victim’s losses, they may be successful in their personal injury claims for damages.

Negligence and the recovery of losses

Negligence is supremely important to many personal injury claims because it is a recognized legal concept that gives rights to victims to pursue their damages. Damages are the losses that a victim experiences when they suffer harm due to the actions of others. Medical bills, lost wages, and even intangible losses like pain and suffering often can be compensated through damages related to negligence claims.

Negligence is important to personal injury claims. Proving all the elements of a negligence claim is imperative to the success of a personal injury accident victim. Dedicated personal injury attorneys can support the legal needs of their clients as they pursue their damages through negligence-based litigation.