What to do after a car accident: shared fault

An insurer may say you were partly to blame. That sentence is not the end of the file. Comparative fault is the state rule that decides whether shared fault cuts the award or closes it.

Texas

Chapter 33 is titled proportionate responsibility. Section 33.001 says a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent.

If you are not barred, section 33.012 says the court reduces the damages by a percentage equal to the claimant's percentage of responsibility. The fact finder assigns whole-number percentages to each claimant, defendant, settling person, and designated responsible third party.

New York

For a long time, New York's main comparative-fault statute, CPLR 1411, let a claimant recover a reduced amount even when that claimant was mostly at fault.

Part EE added CPLR 1411(b). In a personal injury action subject to Insurance Law Article 51, the claimant's culpable conduct bars recovery if it is greater than the culpable conduct, or combined culpable conduct, of the person or persons against whom recovery is sought.

Part EE also takes the 90-of-180-days category out of the serious injury definition, has the jury decide fault before it decides serious injury, and sets a $100,000 cap on non-economic damages for certain at-fault drivers. New York's 2026 car-crash lawsuit rules quotes those lines.

Actions started before the date Part EE took effect follow the earlier text.

Other states

Some states still let a mostly at-fault driver recover a reduced amount. A few still bar any recovery if the claimant is even slightly at fault. This page does not list every state. The statute where you would file is the one that matters.

How long you have to file is a separate clock. Shared fault does not extend it. What to do in the first hours is the work that fills the file before anyone argues percentages.