Determining Fault in a Freeway Merge Accident

Who can you hold responsible for a freeway merge accident? The answer depends on your circumstances. You need to investigate the nature of your accident and determine who may be at fault for the incident. 

You don’t have to initiate an investigation into a freeway accident without help, though. You can work with Berry Law’s personal injury lawyers in Nebraska and Iowa to bring forward evidence of another party’s negligence. You can then use that evidence and the analysis thereof to determine fault for your recent crash.

The Benefits of Assigning Fault After a Merging Accident

It’s never fun to point fingers at another party after an accident. There are times, however, when doing so is essential to your quest for recovery and compensation. If you can assign fault for a merging accident, you can demand that the liable party help compensate for the losses they’ve forced upon you.

Categorizing a Merging Accident

How do you categorize a merging accident? These accidents tend to appear in civil court as personal injury cases. The case itself describes an accident wherein:

• One party owed the other a duty of care on the freeway
• One party violated that duty of care during a merge
• The violation of that duty of care resulted in one or more parties’ significant injury or losses

If you want to hold a particular party at fault for your losses in a freeway merge accident, you need to submit a case highlighting the above points before your statute of limitations expires. Nebraska Revised Statutes Section 25-207 generally gives you four years, while Iowa Code §614.1(2) typically caps your actionable time at two. Some exceptions may alter the deadlines in each state.

You can discuss how to make the most out of the time allotted for your investigation when you first meet with the personal injury lawyers in Nebraska or Iowa. 

Assigning Fault for a Merging Accident

The process of assigning fault for a merging accident requires you to break down the nature of your accident. You must have the means to look critically at the events leading up to your accident if you want to effectively argue that a particular party caused your losses.

When our attorneys begin the process of assigning fault for your accident, we:

Look at the Evidence

You can’t hold another party liable for your roadway losses without evidence. You need hard data to put that party’s negligence on display, particularly in the wake of a merging accident. If you want to gather this evidence in the days or weeks immediately following your crash, you can request that a personal injury lawyer gather:

• Video footage of your accident from dash cams, streetlights, and storefronts
• Photos of your accident
• Social media statements addressing your accident
• Police reports
• Emergency responder reports
• Black box data, if applicable
• Cell phone data
• Statements from bystanders
• Input from expert witnesses, including accident recreationists

Once we have this data, we can analyze it and compile it into a cohesive complaint. You, in turn, can more effectively provide a judge or jury t with proof of a liable party’s negligence at the time of a merge. 

Berry Law Can Help You Assign Fault After a Merging Accident

Don’t resign yourself to the bills that a merging accident can forcibly introduce to your life. If someone else’s inattention or negligence on the road led to your merging accident, you can work with the personal injury attorneys to hold those parties accountable.

Berry Law wants to help you fight for the compensation you need to recover from your accident. You can schedule a free case consultation with our car accident lawyers today to discuss how you can determine fault after a freeway merge accident. Contact us by phone or through Berry Law’s website for more information.