Determining fault after a car accident affects whether you can recover damages and how much compensation you may receive. Not seeing another vehicle is not a valid excuse for causing a crash. Drivers have a duty to make sure the road is clear before changing lanes or making other moves.
However, there are times when another driver’s actions or outside conditions may make it harder to see a possible danger. In these cases, fault may be shared among the people or parties who contributed to causing the accident.
Why Blind Spot Accidents Happen
Blind-spot accidents occur when a driver fails to perceive the risk of hitting an object in the road. A driver’s perception of roadway conditions may be inaccurate for any of the following reasons:
- Driver distraction
- Vehicle mirrors are improperly adjusted
- Vehicle design obstructs a driver’s view
- The driver fails to check all visibility angles
- Vehicle blind spot technology malfunctions
- Drivers of commercial trucks and buses can’t see objects in “no zones”1
No zones are significant areas around large, commercial vehicles where the driver is unable to see objects next to the vehicle. No zones exist on all sides of large vehicles. The no-zone on the right side is by far the largest. It can extend from the front of a semi-truck to the back of the trailer and three lanes over.
Unsafe Driving Behaviors Resulting from Blind Spots
Blind spots prevent drivers from accurately perceiving other objects in the roadway, leading to unsafe driving behaviors that can cause accidents.
Blind spot accidents frequently occur when a driver doesn’t see the other vehicle in the lane and attempts to change lanes or merge onto a roadway. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)2 reports that over 50,000 crashes annually have unsafe lane changes as a contributing factor.
Backing a vehicle without being able to see what is behind it contributes to about 9,000 accidents each year in Texas. Blind spots can also lead drivers to make unsafe turns, contributing to almost 12,500 crashes each year.
Because of their size and varying speeds of travel, pedestrians and cyclists are at the greatest risk of being caught in a driver’s blind spot.
How Other People Can Be at Fault for Blind Spot Accidents
Though the driver who did not see the other person or object in the roadway is primarily at fault in a blind spot accident, the behavior of other people can contribute to the circumstances, making them partially responsible for the result.
Behavior or conditions created by others that may result in fault for a blind spot accident can include:
- Driving, walking, or cycling persistently in a vehicle’s blind spot
- Unpredictable or erratic movement by vehicles or people, such as speeding or darting onto the roadway
- Distraction that prevents someone from recognizing the risk and taking reasonable action to avoid an accident
- An obstruction on private land causing a blind spot
- A blind spot resulting from an unexpected physical hazard on the roadway
In evaluating a blind spot accident, fault will be apportioned among all responsible parties.
Comparative Fault for Blind Spot Accidents
If a driver hits a pedestrian legally walking in the driver’s blind spot while making a right-hand turn, the driver is liable for the pedestrian’s injuries.
If it turns out the pedestrian was engrossed in watching a video on his phone and suddenly stepped into the roadway without noticing that the driver was making a turn, the pedestrian may have some fault for causing the accident.
Texas takes a modified approach to comparative negligence3 when it comes to an injured claimant’s ability to recover damages. If our pedestrian is found to be 20% at fault for the accident, he can still be compensated for 80% of his damages. If, however, the pedestrian is 51% or more at fault for causing the accident, he is barred from obtaining any recovery.
Sources:
1 https://cvsa.org/wp-content/uploads/OSD-Teen-No-Zones.pdf”>https://cvsa.org/wp-content/uploads/OSD-Teen-No-Zones.pdf
2 https://www.txdot.gov/content/dam/docs/division/trf/crash-records/2024/21.pdf
3https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/tab=1&code=CP&chapter=CP.33&artSec=33.001
