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Contributory negligence is where the person or organisation
we are claiming against in respect of your accident is to
blame to some extent, but you may be found to have been partially
to blame also.
Whilst there are circumstances where we can claim against
another person or organisation for not ensuring our safety,
we must also take some responsibility for our own safety.
Contributory negligence is usually expressed in terms of
a percentage - e.g. the other party is 75% to blame and you
are 25% to blame.
The effect of this on your claim is that you will still
have won for the purpose of being awarded compensation and
for
the other party having to pay your legal fees. However, your
compensation will be reduced by the percentage you
are found to be to blame - in other words, if you were to
be awarded, for
example, £2000, but were found to be 25% to blame then
you would only receive £2000 less 25% = £1500.
The percentage will vary according to the circumstances of
an accident. A common example is in a road traffic accident,
where a seatbelt has not been worn. The accident may have
been another driver's fault, but your injuries have been made
worse by failure to wear a seatbelt.
It is possible for a court to make a finding that
a claimant was 100% contributorily negligent, in which
case
no compensation or legal fees would be awarded, but this
is rare.
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