In most Missouri personal injury cases, the defendant is negligent if he or she failed to use ordinary care. This means the defendant should have done what an ordinarily careful person would do under similar circumstances. It’s a fairly broad definition and gives people pretty wide latitude on what qualifies as negligence. To win a case, you would need to show that the defendant did or didn’t do something that everyone else would or would not have done in that situation.
For Missouri car crash cases, the standard is different.
Missouri law requires that drivers use the highest degree of care, not just ordinary care. This means the defendant driver must have used the same degree of care that a very careful person would use under the same or similar circumstances. If the driver wasn’t being very careful when he or she caused a crash, they are liable for any injuries they case.
There are many things that cause a driver to not use the highest degree of care:
- Fatigue
- Physical limitations
- Weather
But the most common cause of a driver’s carelessness: distraction.
Missouri law requires that drivers pay attention behind the wheel of a car. Any time you take your eyes off the road, you are not acting with the highest degree of care. If you cause a crash because of your distraction, you will be liable for all the damages you cause.
Almost all of our car crash cases involve some sort of distraction. As a Kansas City personal injury lawyer handling many car crash cases, the most common cause of a crash is a driver’s failure to keep a careful lookout because of distraction. Distracted driving is most certainly not the highest degree of care. Take care out there. And if you have questions or think you may have a case, feel free to contact our office at 816-867-8611 for a free consultation.