While not every teenage driver is guaranteed to be reckless or careless behind the wheel, drivers under the age of 18 are more likely to be involved in wrecks than older adult drivers. Teen drivers also tend to drive vehicles they neither own nor insure personally, which can significantly complicate the financial recovery process for someone who suffers injuries in a wreck that a teen caused.
Fortunately, a knowledgeable auto accident lawyer can help you handle teen driving accidents in Woodbridge as proactively as possible. The team at Fredson Statmore Bitterman, LLC has years of experience achieving results from cases much like yours in the past, and they can provide both small-firm attention and big-firm resources in pursuit of the restitution you deserve.
Recovering Damages From Wrecks Caused by Teen Drivers
In legal terms, the age of a driver involved in a traffic accident has no bearing on whether they can be held civilly liable for the accident. Since all drivers in New Jersey have the same duty of care to act responsibly and lawfully behind the wheel regardless of how old they are or how much driving experience they have, a teen driver can bear fault for causing a car crash just like an adult could if they committed a traffic violation, drove while distracted, or acted recklessly or carelessly immediately before the wreck.
That said, teen drivers also rarely have much in the way of personal assets or insurance coverage to compensate a person injured in a car crash, and they are also often driving vehicles owned by their parents. Lawsuits and settlement demands over teen driving crashes in Woodbridge typically name the teen driver’s parents as primary defendants rather than the teen themselves.
How Comparative Fault Could Affect Your Recovery Efforts
A court can determine that the injured person is partially at fault for causing their injuries if they acted negligently in some way leading up to the incident. In this scenario, a court or an insurance company acting with knowledge that a court would support them if needed may assign a percentage of comparative fault to that person for their injuries and reduce the total compensation available to them by that same percentage.
Even worse, New Jersey Revised Statutes § 2A:15-5.1 prohibits anyone who is more than 50 percent at fault for their own injuries from recovering damages. This is just one of many potential roadblocks to recovery that a seasoned legal representative can help overcome after a traffic collision in Woodbridge involving a teen driver.
Work With a Woodbridge Attorney After a Teen Driving Accident
The idea of filing suit against a teenager might understandably feel less than appealing, even if that teenager caused you serious injuries and losses through a preventable car accident. With that said, taking this kind of legal action can be key to protecting your long-term best interests in the wake of a wreck like this. It is equally important to ensure that those responsible for the teenager are held accountable for their misconduct on the road.
Teen driving accidents in Woodbridge often involve complex civil claims that are challenging to handle on your own. Call today to learn how the experienced car accident lawyers at Fredson Statmore Bitterman, LLC can help you get paid fairly for your losses.
