Negligence tort is typically defined as the failure of a party to take reasonable responsibility when his or her property comes into contact with another person.
Negligence tort is unintentional by nature; someone who is negligent causes harm through carelessness, not through intentional harm.
In a personal injury claim, negligence tort is anything but a vague concept; in order to prove fault and establish negligence, 4 requirements must be met.
We’ve written a detailed article examining the ins and outs of negligence and how it is determined in your case. Here’s a quick rundown of the 4 requirements needed to prove negligence in your personal injury claim.
1. There was a duty of care
Duty of care means that if someone could possibly be injured on another’s property, there is a responsibility of the property owner to do what they can to prevent an accident from happening.
For example, a business has a duty of care to warn customers of a wet floor by putting down a wet floor sign.
2. The duty of care must have been violated
Failing to put down the wet floor sign is an example of a duty of care being violated. A property owner fails to take all precautions necessary in order to prevent visitors from having an accident.
Another example: drivers have a duty of care to obey traffic laws, especially common carriers like bus drivers or taxi drivers. If a driver fails to yield, is in an accident, and a passenger is injured, the driver has violated his or her duty of care.
3. This violation directly caused injury
Going back to the driver example, the injured person must be able to prove that the driver’s failure to yield directly caused the injury in question.
This means that any conditions the victim may have had beforehand must be ruled out as potential causes for the injuries.
4. The injury resulted in loss
To proceed with a personal injury claim, the injured party must be able to prove that the injuries caused by a negligent accident have caused significant financial loss.
In order to receive compensation, injuries must have caused enough financial strain to warrant receiving damages.
Each of these four elements of negligence must be present in order to prove fault and have a successful personal injury claim.