- If there are two cars involved in a road accident and it is not clear which driver is at fault, in this situation, it is a liability of the insurance company to determine whose fault was it.
- And, yes! The car owner can demand compensation or damage caused to him from the other party.
- In India, it is mandatory to have your car insurance first. Firstly, it helps you in taking care of your car from any absolute damage or even from a no-fault liability. Taking Third Party Liability (TPL) car insurance coverage is mandatory in India. The TPL policy covers you against the legal ramifications of an accident caused by you. For example, if you happen to cause an accident that results in damages to another person’s property or injuries to another driver/pedestrian, the insurance will pay for their treatment and save you from the legal repercussions of the case.
- The concept of Contributory negligence shall be applicable in this case. Contributory negligence arises when the plaintiff’s failure to exercise reasonable care for their safety. Contributory negligence could reduce the plaintiff’s compensation if their actions increased the likelihood of the incident occurring.
In general, only those failures that contribute, with the defendant’s negligence, in bringing about the plaintiff’s harm constitute contributory negligence.
CASE LAW- This has been the common law rule since Greenland v. Chaplin, an English case decided in 1850.
“The defendant’s steamboat negligently collided with the steamboat in which the plaintiff was a passenger. The collision caused the anchor of the steamboat carrying the plaintiff to fall on the plaintiff’s leg, breaking it. The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the plaintiff should not be allowed to recover for negligently placing himself so close to the anchor, holding that only negligence of the plaintiff that contributes to the cause of the accident can bar the plaintiff from recovery.