Victoria C. Swanson Personal Injury Law Blog on Lawyers.com

Colorado Springs Auto Accidents and Traffic Laws

Auto accident lawyers in Colorado Springs at Sears & Swanson, P.C., know the laws of Colorado’s roads.  If you are involved in an accident in which certain traffic laws were violated by the party in involved in the crash, you may be entitled to receive compensation for your injuries and the associated costs of those injuries.

Traffic laws are designed to make the roads safe for everybody.  Drivers have a special duty to behave responsibly when behind the wheel in order to ensure the safety of themselves, passengers, other automobiles, and also pedestrians and bicyclists.

Every state has traffic laws which govern how people should act on the roads, who is allowed to drive, and the consequences for not obeying the rules. A sample of some of the topics covered in the Colorado state statutes shows their breadth:

• Requirements for driver’s licenses and permits
• Rules for reporting accidents
• Registration and inspection requirements
• Restrictions on the use of equipment (horns, lamps, etc)
• Speed limits
• Rules for driving in school zones
• Driving under the influence of alcohol

Determining Fault for Accidents
Car accidents happen for many different reasons, including intoxication, distraction, inattention, reckless driving, and bad weather. If you are the victim of a Colorado Springs car accident, contact lawyers at Sears & Swanson to see if you could be entitled to compensation.

In order to receive compensation, you may need to prove that the other party is at fault for the accident. In some cases, such as driving under the influence of alcohol, this can be very clear. In other cases, an injured victim’s attorney may have to provide convincing evidence—either to the other party’s insurance company or to the court if a settlement cannot be reached—that the other party was negligent.

Determining negligence in Colorado is largely based on the principle of duty of care, which demands that drivers act reasonably. To collect from an injury, a victim of an accident has to prove that the driver did not exercise duty of care (i.e., the driver was careless) and that this carelessness caused the injuries

Modified Comparative Negligence in Colorado

Colorado state law institutes comparative negligence. Comparative negligence acknowledges that sometimes, both parties contributed to the cause of an accident or injury. In comparative negligence, the amount paid is proportional to the judgment of who is at-fault. Colorado follows a modified version of this principle by precluding parties who are more than 49% responsible for an injury from recovering any damages. Colorado Springs automobile accident Law

Sears & Swanson, P.C. - Colorado Springs car accident lawyers
First Bank Building
2 North Cascade Avenue
Suite 1250
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903