If you were injured in a Maryland car accident and realize you weren’t wearing a seatbelt, it’s easy to think the insurance company now has the upper hand. It’s a common assumption because people naturally link safety choices to legal responsibility, but it’s far from the truth.
Maryland law treats this issue very differently from what most people expect. If you were involved in an accident, failing to wear a seatbelt is not legally relevant to fault for the crash. In other words, it’s a legal non-issue that can’t be considered evidence of negligence on your part.
Therefore, if another driver ran a red light, rear-ended you or made an unsafe lane change, your right to pursue compensation is evaluated based on other facts of the crash, not whether you were buckled up or not.
Will it reduce your damages?
Your injuries may have been less severe if you had been wearing your seatbelt, but that can’t be used to reduce your damages. The law prohibits insurers from arguing that your compensation should be lowered even if it seems logical that certain injuries might have been prevented.
In the eyes of the law, the focus is solely on the actual cause of the accident. It’s also worth noting that if you contributed to the crash in any way, you can lose your right to recover damages entirely. It doesn’t matter even if you were 1% at fault.
If you have such questions or other concerns as a car crash victim in Maryland, professional legal guidance can help you understand your rights and build a claim focused on what truly matters. It can be just what you need to increase the odds of achieving the settlement you deserve.