Traffic accident

In an accident that occurred on a local road , a female driver was riding a moped and was not wearing the mandatory helmet. At that moment, a car brushed her sideways while overtaking legally, and the woman fell to the ground. The outcome was very serious as the moped driver died from severe head trauma.

The deceased's family sued the insurance company of the car to claim compensation . In the first instance, the court ruled partially in their favor, as it understood that the two drivers contributed to the accident and its outcome. Therefore, it applied a concurrent fault (shared fault) and established a 50/50 split, thus reducing the compensation by 50% because it was proven that not wearing a helmet influenced causally in the death.

The Provincial Court confirmed that decision and maintained the 50% of responsibility for each party, insisting that the link between the absence of a helmet and the fatal outcome was proven.

The family appealed to the Supreme Court (SC), defending two ideas, that in collisions between a car and a moped with head injuries, the car usually bears more responsibility, and that not wearing a helmet should not "weigh" more than 25% , citing decisions from some provincial courts. The insurance company, on the other hand, requested to maintain the 50/50 split.

The SC dismissed the appeal and confirmed the split . The law allows to reduce the compensation for concurrent fault when the victim contributes to the damage (up to a maximum of 75%), and there is also a presumption of contribution when not wearing a helmet worsens the damage . It also emphasizes that there is no fixed percentage for not wearing a helmet, it depends on the specific circumstances. In this case, the Supreme Court considers 50/50 reasonable because the vehicle overtook without sufficient lateral separation , the contact was minimal, the road could be confusing due to its "Y" shape, excessive speed or particularly dangerous behavior was not observed, and the helmet probably would have prevented such a serious impact and, consequently, the fatality.

If you feel harmed and in a position to demand accountability for any damage suffered as a result of a traffic accident, our professionals can assist you in pursuing your claims