In many personal injury cases, the passengers in one vehicle often sue the driver in another vehicle for negligence. Yet, what happens if you happen to be a passenger in a vehicle where the driver happened to be negligent? Can you sue the driver of a vehicle for negligence?
A passenger who is suing a driver often has a more clear-cut case than passengers who are suing occupants and drivers in other vehicles. Why?
For one, liability is clear. Either the driver of the vehicle in which you were a passenger was liable, or the other driver was liable. There is little risk that a passenger will be held liable for an accident. Minnesota follows the 51 bar rule, meaning that if a plaintiff is 50% at fault or higher for an accident, the plaintiff can’t collect damages. Additionally, for any percentage a plaintiff is at fault, damages are reduced by that percent. Passengers generally won’t have to worry about their damages being reduced on account of this rule.
A passenger claim operates like any other car accident personal injury claim, with the exception that a passenger often makes a claim against both drivers involved in the accident. The only exception to this will be if one driver is clearly at fault, as in the case of drinking and driving rear-end collisions, or if only one car struck a stationary object like a wall or sign.
Passengers will likely initially make claims against each driver’s insurance company. Unfortunately, some insurers may underestimate the amount of liability each given driver is responsible for. So, if one insurer claims that car #1 was only 25% responsible and the other insurer claims that car #2 was also only 25% responsible, a passenger will only receive 50% of the total compensation he or she deserves. In a case like this, a passenger may wish to seek the skilled advice of a personal injury lawyer to ensure that he or she receives the full value of a claim.
In cases where liability is in question, it makes sense to make claims against both drivers, to ensure that both drivers are held responsible and victims receive the full amounts they are owed. Individuals who are seeking damages should also remember that it is against the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct for a lawyer to represent both a driver and a passenger if the passenger is suing the driver. If both passenger and driver are suing another party and the passenger isn’t suing the same driver, then a single lawyer can represent both the passenger and driver. Yet, if you, as a passenger plan to sue both drivers, everyone involved will likely have to find their own lawyer.
The Law Office of Martin T. Montilino is a personal injury firm in Minneapolis, Minnesota that strives to protect the rights of victims of car accidents. The firm works diligently to ensure that passengers aren’t left paying bills out of pocket due to either one or several insurance providers’ failure to properly assess fault.