Anytime anyone is involved in an auto accident, it is important to figure out exactly who is at fault. This is often determined by negligence, or carelessness. Some accidents are easy to understand exactly what person involved violated the rules or laws of the road. It could be a driver, pedestrian or cyclist. Typically, a Houston accident attorney will look for official support such as a police report or other indicator to reach a conclusion as to who is at fault.

A Police Report

Police are typically called to the scene of most vehicular accidents, especially if parties were injured. In all likelihood, they wrote an accident report that can be obtained by the police department tracking division. Many times, the police officer at the scene will plainly indicate an opinion declaring the one that violated a certain traffic rule or law that caused the accident. The officer can issue a citation at his or her discretion. Some reports only make mention of the careless negligent behavior.

Traffic Laws

A Houston car accident lawyer will also search for official support as to who caused the accident by reviewing state laws that have been set in place to govern driving. These usually involve the state’s statutes regarding vehicle code. Nolo.com indicates that these “Rules of the Road” are typically available at the Motor Vehicle Department offices in most states, including Texas[i].

There are many types of accidents where there is obvious liability from a driver that has caused the accident, such as rear end collisions. The basic rules of driving indicate that drivers that follow behind other vehicles must be far enough behind to stop safely. A rear end collision is typically the fault of the driver that hit the other, no matter what reason the driver in front had for stopping.