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Can a Vehicle Cause an Accident and not be Involved in the Collision?

When a car runs a red light and hits a car that has a green light, the cause of the crash is fairly obvious. The driver that ran the red light and hit the other car caused the crash. This is important in our system of civil justice because the person who negligently causes an accident has to pay compensation to the victims.

But not all crashes are the same, and sometimes the cause isn’t as straightforward as it is in a typical crash.

Big Rig Leaking Fluid Causes Three-Car Crash

On October 15, 2019, three cars crashed into one another on Highway 99 just north of Merced near Franklin Rd. A big rig started leaking an unknown fluid which caused the three cars to slip and skid and ultimately hit one another. Fortunately, no one was injured but all three cars sustained property damage.

A California Highway Patrol officer at the scene said that the driver of the big rig stopped up the road and cooperated with police. The number two lane of the northbound lanes had to be closed while the substance was cleaned up.

Negligence and Causes of Crashes

To collect compensation in a personal injury suit, the victim has to show that the at-fault driver was negligent, and that the negligence caused the accident. In the case of a truck leaking fluids, if the leak was caused by some negligence of the driver or the trucking company, and the fluid caused the accidents, then there is enough of a direct link to the negligence and the collision.

Other types of indirect causes might be:

  • Mechanic negligent in repair of brakes,
  • Design defects
  • Defective tires
  • Improper or confusing road signs
  • Light Signal working improperly
  • Car swerves to avoid another car but doesn’t hit it.

Third Party Negligence

In any of these cases—and others—if a person or company that is not directly involved in a collision helped cause the accident because of their negligence, then that party can be make to pay for some or all of the injuries and damages.

This is called third party negligence, and the law will require anyone who has culpability in an accident to pay compensation. Since California is a comparative negligence state, then the cause might be divided between the parties and some on a third part. Each person will pay their share of the compensation based on their percentage of negligence.

Contact a Merced Injury Lawyer.

After any accident involving a serious injury, contact Merced’s Accident lawyer, attorney Martin Gasparian for a free consultation and case evaluation. Mr. Gasparian takes a hands-on approach to every case. He believes that every client should work directly with their lawyer, get honest advice and the personalized attention to detail their case deserves.

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