There are several reasons a person may file a personal injury claim. The first may be negligence. Another might include strict liability. Intentional wrongs committed by one party are another common reason.
In a case involving negligence, the individual claims that he or she was hurt as a result of another person’s negligence. For example, a driver who was texting and caused a crash was being negligent at the time of the collision.
In a strict liability case, the claim is made to hold someone accountable without needing to prove negligence. For instance, if you’re bitten by a dog, the owner may be held strictly liable for the animal’s behavior. That means that you won’t need to prove the owner was negligent to make your claim.
Finally, you can file a personal injury claim if you were intentionally harmed. A good example of this would be if you were dancing at a party with a friend and a person intentionally kicks your legs out from under you. If you fall and hurt yourself, you can file a personal injury claim against that individual for his or her intentional behaviors. Even practical jokes can fall under intentional wrongdoing, giving you a right to a claim.
Everyone has different reasons for wanting to file a personal injury claim, but there is one unifying factor: they’ve all been hurt because of another person. It’s important that those who are injured have a chance to get the compensation they need to pay for their medical bills and other financial losses, since their injuries weren’t a result of their own behaviors or actions.
Source: American Bar Association, “Personal Injury,” accessed Sep. 29, 2017
