Elements of Negligence in a Personal Injury Case

A personal injury can be a traumatic and stressful experience. While people mainly focus on the result of a personal injury, you should also consider the elements vital to prove your injury in court. If you meet all the elements of negligence in your injury case, you are entitled to the compensation you claimed. 

To understand the essential elements of negligence in a personal injury case, contact a personal injury attorney who can help you get the compensation you deserve.

Elements of negligence in a personal injury case

There are four primary elements of negligence that are considered by the jury in a personal injury case. If you meet all the four elements and convince the jury, you will be rewarded compensation.

• Duty 

Each driver on the road has a duty of care. If you face a car accident, the existence of a duty is the first point to consider in your negligence claim. In such cases, your lawyer must prove that the at-fault party owes a duty to you. 

Usually, this aspect of the case is easy to prove as the only requirement is that the victim is in the same area as the suspect and at some point come in contact with each other. 

For example, during a windstorm, someone’s beach umbrella sitting in their garden is carried away by the strong wind and comes in the way of your car resulting in an accident. The jury will decide whether the owner of the umbrella could have prevented it from flying out. And then they will pass the judgment.

• Breach of duty

The second essential point is that the other party was not careful enough and compromised their duty as a driver. Suppose someone was texting while driving, talking on the phone, driving under the influence of alcohol, or not following the driving rules. The jury will analyze this breach of duty during your negligence claim.

• Causation

The next step is to determine the cause of the accident that resulted in your injury. It is essential to identify that it was because of the negligence of the other party that caused damages and injuries to you. Once this is proved, the jury will move on to the last part, which is the damages you faced during the accident and their severity.

• Damages 

After approving all the above factors, the jury will evaluate the damages and injuries you faced during and after the accident and grant you the claim to recover from your injuries.