Determining Negligence in a Toronto Truck Accident Claim

Ontario is a contributory negligence province which means in the event that one driver is at fault for the accident, another driver could also be at fault or could have contributed to their own misfortune. That is what the law of contributory negligence stands for. It does not preclude another party from suing, it will simply allocate or apportion some degree of fault to that driver for their malfeasance. To have a better understanding of the role of negligence in your Toronto truck accident, you would benefit from the help of a Toronto truck accident lawyer.

Role of Contributory Negligence

Contributory negligence comes into play in motor vehicle accidents and Toronto truck accidents quite frequently. The best example is when two drivers are coming from two different directions and are approaching an intersection and one vehicle is attempting to make a left-hand turn. For the other driver, as they approach the intersection, the light turns yellow, and they decide to proceed through and in doing so, their cars collide.

The driver making the left hand turn would obviously be found to be at fault for the accident. However, if the driver was going through the intersection and decided to speed or enter the intersection when the light was just turning red, there may be a finding that they were contributorily negligent. If any claim was brought, a court may apportion some fault to that driver because they could have stopped prior to entering the intersection but choose to speed through the intersection when the light was turning red.

Accident Prevention

As is the case when operating a motor vehicle, transport trucks are larger than the most other vehicles. For that reason, everyone should take extra care when they are around trucks under any circumstances. People that are operating anything other than a transport truck should make sure that they provide the truck with sufficient room to navigate.

Driving defensively and making sure that their vehicle is not in the path of a transport truck is essential. People should always be cognizant that it takes longer for trucks to stop given their weight and load, and a person should never cut off trucks, they should drive carefully around trucks.

Factors Determining Liability

The circumstances of every case have to be analyzed when determining liability and negligence in a Toronto truck accident. The facts and evidence that give rise to any determination of liability are considered by a judge or jury and/or the lawyers, or the insurance company. The factors that lawyers consider are the circumstances that surround an accident and as previously indicated, they have to look at exactly how the accident occurred. Examples of certain factors that are considered include:

Weather conditions
Location of the car
Mechanical condition of the car
Whether the cars lost control
Speed of each car
If one, both, or all the cars were speeding or were traveling below the speed limit
In what direction the vehicles were traveling and/or whether or not both vehicles were traveling in the same direction
Whether the driver was distracted for any given reason which includes but is not limited to texting and driving
Whether the driver stopped or yielded at the traffic light, a stop sign or for some other reason

Toronto truck accident lawyers look at what the police accident report states, and whether or not one or both the drivers were given tickets or charged. Other factors to help determine the role of negligence after a Toronto truck accident include what each driver was doing just prior to the collision and whether or not they followed the rules of the road under the Highway Traffic Act. An experienced lawyer and claims adjusters from the insurance company and their defense lawyers will consider all the factors that determine who is truly at fault.

Working with a Truck Accident Lawyer

A lawyer will help build what is required to establish a solid foundation based on the claim of negligence in their Toronto truck accident case. Toronto make sure that the foundation of the person’s case is built on bedrock and that it has a sound footing. Some of the footings are able to be developed in a manner that is persuasive and is supported by the evidence. Lawyers will provide direction to the person so that they can access substantial amount of benefits, certain types of healthcare, and most importantly, access to the court system where the person would have to take their claim in order to receive compensation for pain and suffering due to the negligence they experienced.