Most of us have an intuitive understanding of negligence, at least as a colloquial term, but in a legal setting, it carries a very precise and technical meaning. If you’re guilty of negligent driving, and your negligent conduct causes actual harm to someone, you’ll legally be responsible for compensating that person for any damages resulting from your conduct.
But what exactly counts as negligent driving? How do courts and lawyers consider this? And what can you do to make sure that you don’t drive negligently in the future?
The Legal Concept of Negligence
The legal concept of negligence exists to hold people responsible for conduct that can conceivably result in harm to others. We already have a variety of laws and regulations meant to keep people safe, but negligence is a broader and more inclusive category. To be negligent is to breach a duty of care to prevent harm to others, and it can apply in a variety of circumstances.
A good lawyer can help you determine whether the injuries you sustained were a result of negligent conduct or not. They can also help you prove negligence in litigation or in court, as the evidentiary demands are sometimes quite high.
The Elements of Negligence
There are four main elements of negligence that you’ll need to prove to be successful. They are all tightly interrelated with each other, though they function as distinct components.
Arguably the easiest element to prove is duty of care. That’s because we all owe a general duty of care to each other to prevent unnecessary harm. In the context of driving, we all owe it to each other to drive safely and in ways that minimize the risk of injury.
Next, you must prove a breach of duty. You must show that a driver was negligent because they took an action or failed to act in a way that ultimately violated their duty of care.
After that, you need to show that the breach of duty caused harm. Without some form of harm, such as property damage or personal injury, there is no legally compensable negligence.
Finally, you must prove a chain of causation. You have to logically or through evidence show that the harm you received was a direct result of the negligent conduct.
Negligence Per Se
Negligence per se is a legal concept in the United States that allows legal authorities to presume negligent conduct when that conduct violates a law or regulation meant to keep people safe. In other words, if a person was breaking the law while driving, they are automatically deemed to be negligent unless they raise an effective affirmative defense.
Examples of conduct that qualify for negligence per se include:
· Speeding. Speed limits exist for a reason. Driving too quickly increases the risk of an accident and the severity of the resulting accident, as it both gives you less time to react and increases the force at which you’ll collide with another object.
· Driving without lights (when required). In some cases, you’re legally required to have your headlights on. This is mostly to make your car more visible to other drivers. If you’re driving with your lights off when they should be on, you could be found to be negligent.
· Intoxicated driving. Driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs is a violation of the law and is considered negligent driving.
· Certain forms of distracted driving. If texting while driving is illegal in your area, texting while operating your vehicle can automatically deem you negligent.
· Illegal movements. Many types of illegal movements can also lead you to be found negligent. These include things like running red lights, running stop signs, or making illegal turns.
Other Examples of Negligent Driving
Of course, you don’t need to be breaking the law to be considered a negligent driver. These are some examples of negligent driving activities that don’t include breaking the law:
· Driving while exhausted. Drowsy driving isn’t explicitly illegal, but it can be almost as dangerous as intoxicated driving.
· Driving incautiously in bad weather. You may be following the speed limit, but in inclement weather, even this is excessively dangerous.
· Other forms of distracted driving. Distracted driving is risky even if it isn’t explicitly illegal.
Fringe Cases
Not every negligent driving case is easy to decide. In some cases, there are extenuating circumstances, like a driver swerving to avoid a hazard in the road. In other cases, multiple parties may be negligent simultaneously. In any case, a lawyer can help you hash out the details and decide the best course of legal action moving forward.
Hopefully, you’ve already made a consistent effort to drive safely. We are all hypothetically negligent from time to time, but we owe it to ourselves and each other to conduct ourselves as safely as possible when driving.
