A Guide to Comparative Negligence Laws in Missouri

Comparative Negligence Laws in Missouri 

Missouri adopts a pure comparative negligence approach to liability. Provided someone injured in a motor vehicle accident was not the only person who caused the accident (not 100% at fault), then that person may recover a percentage of their total damages from the other at-fault party. The percentage of damages recovered will be proportionate to the percentage of fault the other party contributed to the accident.

Car crash fatalities have declined by about 3% nationwide between 2022 and 2023, according to reports from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). However, data reported by the Missouri Department of Transportation indicates that, while the total number of traffic fatalities in Missouri have also decreased, the traffic fatalities in Jackson County, particularly in Kansas City, have increased significantly. One report using NHTSA data estimates an increase of traffic fatalities in Kansas City of as much as 13%.

The chart below shows that from 2019 to 2024, there were 5,603 traffic fatalities in Missouri. Of the 114 counties in the state, Jackson County produced the most fatalities (661), and St. Louis County produced the second most (554). The City of Kansas City, alone, experienced 439 fatalities over the same period. Mark Chung, an executive vice president at the National Safety Council, described the traffic fatality crisis in Kansas City as “destroying our communities.”

* As of September 26, 2024

If you have experienced an auto accident in Kansas City, or anywhere in Jackson County, you may be entitled to compensation for any damages you may have suffered as a result. When determining compensation for car accident victims, different states apply different theories of liability. Missouri takes a “comparative negligence” approach. This means that even if you were partly at fault for your car accident, you still may be able to receive compensation for your injuries.

If you have been injured in a Missouri car accident, the award-winning car accident attorneys at Foster Wallace, LLC, are located right here in Kansas City and can assist you anywhere in the state. Call us today at 816-320-6979 or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free case evaluation.

What Are the Three Systems of Negligence for Determining Liability After a Car Accident?

There are three different approaches commonly taken by different states for determining liability after an accident:

• Pure Comparative Negligence.  In a pure comparative negligence state, a car accident victim may recover damages as long as they were not the only person who caused the accident (not 100% fault). 

• Modified Comparative Negligence. In a modified comparative negligence state, a car accident victim may recover damages as long as they were not more than 50% at fault for causing the accident (less than 50% fault).

• Contributory Negligence. Under a contributory negligence system of liability, someone injured in a car accident can only recover damages if they were not at fault for causing the accident in any way (0% fault).

What System of Negligence Does Missouri Use?

Missouri is one of about a dozen states that take a pure comparative negligence approach to imposing liability for negligently causing an accident or intentionally causing harm. So, in Missouri, provided you were not the only person who caused the accident, you still may receive some compensation for your injuries. The amount you receive will be determined by how much the other party involved in the accident was at fault.

The amount of each party’s fault will be determined either by a jury, if your case is not settled and results in litigation, or by filing an insurance claim and having your lawyer negotiate a fair settlement with an insurance adjuster. Either process can be stressful and can take a long time. However, the legal team at Foster Wallace, LLC, has nearly 50 years of combined experience successfully negotiating with insurance companies and winning significant jury awards for its clients using Missouri’s comparative negligence system. They can assist you after an adverse event like a Kansas City car accident.            

How Does Comparative Negligence Work?

If you were injured in a car accident but were not 100% at fault, comparative negligence will still allow you to be compensated for a percentage of your injuries. That percentage will be equivalent to the percentage of fault contributed by the other party who was also at fault. 

To determine this percentage using comparative negligence, either the jury or the claims adjuster will “compare” each party’s percentage of fault, and each party will be responsible for covering that percentage of the other party’s injuries. 

For example, suppose you suffer $100,000 in total damages after the accident and the other driver has $10,000 in total damages. If a jury determines that you were only 25% at fault for causing the accident, then you may be responsible for only 25% of the other party’s total damages, or $2,500. Likewise, the other driver, who was 75% at fault, will have to compensate you for 75% of your total damages, which is $75,000. 

As you can see, the trick to obtaining a maximum settlement or jury award after a car crash is to have an experienced car accident attorney who can prove fault and damages, which is precisely what the lawyers at Foster Wallace do best.            

How Do I Prove Fault?  

Proving that the other driver was at fault for causing your accident is an essential part of obtaining maximum compensation in your case. It requires collecting evidence from the scene of the accident to determine how the accident happened and what the other driver did that was negligent.

Proving negligence requires showing four elements:

• A duty of care.  A negligent party must owe a threshold duty of care to the injured party. In a motor vehicle accident case, that duty is to act reasonably and prudently while driving a vehicle on the roadway and taking appropriate measures to avoid any foreseeable harm that may occur under the circumstances.

• A breach of duty.  To be negligent, a person must breach or violate the duty of care they owe to others. A negligent driver usually breaches their duty of care by:

• Speeding;

• Driving while intoxicated, distracted, or fatigued;

• Texting while driving;

• Ignoring traffic signs or signals;

• Driving inappropriately under the conditions;

• Aggressive driving, and more.

• Causation.  To be liable for negligence, the other person’s sub-standard behavior must directly and proximately cause the plaintiff’s injury or harm.

• Direct causation.  The cause is “direct” if the defendant’s injuries were not caused by any other factor except the defendant’s behavior; if the defendant had not acted the way they did, the plaintiff would not have suffered any damages.

• Proximate cause.  The cause is “proximate” when the harm that results from the defendant’s behavior was reasonably foreseeable.

• Damages.  The plaintiff must suffer “actual” harm or injury as a result of the defendant’s breach of duty.

How Do I Prove Damages?

Proving that you suffered actual damages as a result of the defendant’s negligent behavior requires demonstrating to the court, or convincing an insurance adjuster, that you experienced, or will experience in the future, some injury or harm for which the negligent party should be held financially responsible. You must then demonstrate the value of your damages and prove that you should receive financial compensation of that value.

Damages suffered as a result of a motor vehicle accident typically include:

• Property damage (to your vehicle, accessories, or other property);

• Physical injuries (head trauma, neck injuries, broken bones, cuts, bruises, lacerations, etc.);

• Medical expenses (ambulance, hospital, tests, procedures, medicine, rehabilitation, etc.);

• Emotional or physical pain and suffering (pain, depression, distress, counseling, etc.); and

• Financial consequences (loss of income, out-of-pocket expenses, lost salary, etc.).

There are two types of damages:

• Economic.  Tangible injuries or harms that can be assessed accurately and attributed a definitive and demonstrable value.

• Non-economic.  More intangible or qualitative injuries or harms that each person may experience differently and, therefore, may be measured by degree and more subjectively.

            Proving economic and non-economic damages requires not only demonstrating the harms but attributing values to them. To do this, you will need the experienced Kansas City personal injury lawyers at Foster Wallace, LLC, who know how insurance adjusters operate, how juries think, and exactly what evidence is required to maximize your recovery.

What Evidence Do I Need to Prove Fault and Damages?

In most motor vehicle accident cases, fault is demonstrated by facts and circumstances that occurred or were present at the scene of the accident and that point toward the negligence of the other party. This evidence usually consists of:

• The defendant’s statements.  During or immediately after an accident, the defendant may make statements to you, a witness, a police officer, or even themselves, in which they confess their fault or demonstrate their state of mind.

• Witness statements.  Anyone who was present or observed what happened at the scene or is knowledgeable about events and circumstances leading up to the accident can provide statements or testimony to you or police that are relevant to proving fault. Be sure to locate any possible witnesses and obtain all contact and other relevant information. 

• Physical evidence.  Proof of fault and damages often requires physical evidence obtained at the accident sight. Some evidence will be tangible items that you or law enforcement can collect or document at the scene of the accident. Other evidence may be less tangible and may need to be photographed. Physical evidence typically includes:

• Damaged property (vehicle parts, private property, clothes, safety gear, accessories, items in the cabin or trunk of the vehicle, vehicle damage);

• Physical injuries (broken bones, bruise, cuts, lacerations, etc.);

• Faulty equipment (tire damage, inoperable head lamps or tail lights, rear-view mirrors, etc.).

• Circumstantial evidence.  Evidence depicting the circumstances at the time of the accident can be relevant. This may include photos of the environment (weather conditions, road conditions, visibility, traffic signals) or evidence of behavior (intoxication, road rage, motor skills, speech patterns, etc.).

• Documentation evidence.  So much relevant evidence will be documented and submitted with an insurance claim or to the court. This almost always includes:

• Police reports;

• Insurance policies and contracts;

• Medical records;

• Photographs (of the scene, vehicle damage, injuries);

• Estimates and receipts (car repairs, out-of-pocket expenses, recovery and rehabilitation expenses, medical bills, etc.).

• Expert reports and testimony.   Medical professionals, environmental or physical engineers, accident reconstruction experts, forensic scientists, lab technicians, occupational accountants, etc.) may be helpful in explaining the accident scene, providing measurements, estimating probabilities, describing standards of care, explaining lab results, and describing medical conditions. Any such evidence may be relevant to both fault and damages.

Because so much relevant evidence arises at the scene of the accident, it is critical that you contact an experienced personal injury attorney immediately after an accident, if possible, and that you always accept or seek medical attention immediately after the accident. The sooner you and your attorney collect relevant evidence, the easier it will be to prove your case.

Discuss Your Car Accident Case for Free with the Kansas City Car Accident Attorneys at Foster Wallace, LLC

We hope you are always safe whenever and where ever you drive, and we hope you never need a car accident attorney. But the traffic fatality statistics for Missouri, Jackson County, and Kansas City are real. If you or someone you love is injured in a motor vehicle accident in Missouri, the award-winning Kansas City personal injury law firm of Foster Wallace is always ready, willing, and able to serve you. Call us today at 816-320-6979 or complete our online contact form to schedule a free consultation. You pay nothing unless we win