A common question which is always asked here at The Injury Lawyers is “If was a passenger in a car accident, will this affect my chance of a claim for compensation?”
The answer to this, as I’m sure you’ll be pleased to know, is no – not in the slightest!
If you are a passenger in a car which has been involved in an accident and you fully believe the consequences are down to someone else’s negligence, you have every right to seek compensation.
In fact, as a passenger, it’s likely you have a definite successful claim. It would be very unlikely that as a passenger you could have been to blame for the accident!
There are a multitude of circumstances where a passenger can claim for damages after a traffic accident. Commonly road accident compensation claims involve collisions; whether it be a rear end shunt or a side on collision, so long as liability is proved, the passenger can claim for compensation just the same as the driver can.
A car accident passenger can claim compensation for:
- Physical harm
- Loss of earnings
- Inconvenience
- Travelling expenses
- Care and assistance
- Any other losses incurred
It is similarly important to understand that if you ever find yourself to be a passenger in a car at the time of an accident, where the accident has been caused as a direct result of the person who is driving the car you are travelling in, you still have every legal privilege to seek damages against the person driving the car at the time.
All road users are under a legal obligation to not only drive in a safe manner as to protect civilians and other road users from harm, but they are also legally responsible for anyone who travels in the car with them at any given time.
With this in mind, if the driver is found to be negligent in their actions, whether it be going through a red light or proceeding incorrectly from a minor road onto a major, causing potentially serious harm and danger, then it is only right that they be held legally accountable for their actions.
Therefore the ability to bring a claim against them as a passenger is not only legally vital but also morally correct to ensure the overall preservation of societal justice and integrity.