To make thing worse, her insurance said that she is 100% at fault for making an unsafe lane change (which is not true). However, there are no witness and the police report didn't state that she is at fault. Also, the other driver was killed in the accident. Will they put her in jail if she didn't have anything to pay the family?
2007-10-13 17:49:30 · 26 answers · asked by jim s. 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
If she has insurance, as another person said, her insurance will have to pay up to the maximum she is insured for. (This presumes that she is in fact found at fault in court.)
If she is sued for more than she is insured for, the court could order that a portion of her future earnings would go to pay down the debt. The court might take into account her worth in determining what the judgment might be also.
If there was no witness, then the only evidence would be the accident reconstruction, and I can't imagine that the interpretation is so solid as to have her insurance company state that she was categorically at fault.
If possible, and if her insurance company still maintains that she was at fault prior to going to court I might consider retaining her own lawyer. It might be that the insurance company simply doesn't wish to spend the money to take this to court, and is looking to offer the other party a settlement rather than taking their chances. They might be looking to take the easy way out, rather than doing what is best for your mother. Remember that the insurance company's lawyer is there to take care of the insurance company, not your mother. She should be represented in this as well.
2007-10-13 19:51:00 · answer #1 · answered by Deirdre H 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First did she stayed at the scene,or did she flee?. if she stayed she has half the battle won, now if and when she goes to court the first thing the judge is going to take a look will be the police report and what it says, then if they didn't find her at fault , I don't see how the insurance company could find her at fault, they are just using something called "presumption of the facts" which up to the point that I know doesn't carry too much weight in the law, at any rate tell your mom not to buy anything on her name and find out exactly what the police report says, hope I helped you a little
2007-10-13 18:08:46 · answer #2 · answered by sp4raulg 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most people can't pay the thousands of dollars when they're at fault. That's why most states require that they have insurance. So fault is not the issue in paying.
Still, let's supposed that her insurance was limited to $20,000 liability and she was successfully sued for $100,000. She'd still be liable for the remaining $80,000.
In the U.S. a person cannot be incarcerated for debt. You're confusing criminal law with civil law. Jail time is punishment for a criminal act. Lawsuits are to recover monetary claims and jail is not involved.
If she cannot pay the court judgement in a civil case (she has no assets), then her wages can be garnished up to a maximum percentage allowed by the law. Liens can also be placed against any assets she attains in the future IF the plaintiff becomes aware of them.
2007-10-13 17:58:49 · answer #3 · answered by Marc X 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
First, my prayers for all involved.
Now, this seems like a lawyer should be involved (and I'm assuming one is). Regardless of her assets, the insurance company should pay the claim - that is why we have insurance in the first place. If they do not, that is another matter entirely.
As far as jail, that would be up to the CRIMINALcourts if she was charged with a crime.
The lawsuit from the other family is a CIVIL court matter and if the insurance balks and your mother is ordered to pay damages, the CIVIL courts can do many things to make life difficult - liens, levy's, judgements, garnishment, etc but they cannot put someone in jail.
2007-10-13 17:58:38 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No they will not put her in jail for not being able to pay a lawsuit. There is no debtor's prisons. Since she has no assets, they cannot get blood out of a turnip. However, if she ever does in the future aquire any property or bank accounts that is not funded by her social security checks, as the courts cannot garnish a person's bank account and seize social security funding for a person's livelyhood. If she does get a tax refund, the check will be seized by the IRS and turned over to the attorney who has handled the case.
I cannot understand how this was judged in the favor of the other party without enough evidence to support the case brought against her. Usually a person's insurance carrier will help fight a lawsuit in the policy holder's behalf. The last thing they want to do is say their policy holder is guilty.
2007-10-13 17:54:44 · answer #5 · answered by Sparkles 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
1. how can you be sure the lane change charge is not true?
2. are you certain about the police report?
3. just what exactly does her insurance cover?
This is a very tough situation. It could be that your mother may face the charge of vehicular manslaughter. It will be up to the prosecutor to determine what, if any, criminal charges may be brought against her.
I'm sorry to hear about this. I gather that your family is of limited means. If criminal charges are brought against her, she will have a court appointed lawyer for her representation.
If the plaintiff, (the injured party) IE. the family of the victim, choose to pursue a civil action, it could very well be that you, and your siblings, if any, will eventually become wards of the court, if you, or they are minors. This may happen in either case, because a jury trial is necessary in a criminal proceeding.
A civil suit, and a criminal proceeding are two very different things.
I can only hope that you have the fortitude to stand by her in this most trying time of hardship. I wish you, and her well.
2007-10-13 18:29:59 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm not an attorney ... let me make that clear. Also, I am so sorry the other person died. I figure your mother will feel bad for the rest of her life on that. But if there were no criminal charges filed, she won't go to jail. If there is a judgement against her and she can't pay it and she has no assets, she can't pay it ... She'll still owe it, but I'm pretty sure they don't have debtor's prison anymore, at least in the U.S. Like the civil case with OJ ... he has probably paid some of the damages, but not all, and any time he gets anything worth anything, he may lose it ... like the money from the book.
2007-10-13 17:56:54 · answer #7 · answered by Mary L 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Isn't insurance supposed to pay if it's your fault? Isn't that why insurance premiums go up if you're a lousy driver and isn't that the whole point of having insurance? Most people don't have enough money to cover their liability if they get in a traffic accident that's their fault and the other driver is seriously injured or killed and their car is totaled. That's why there are laws saying that people have to have insurance - so the victims can get compensated.
2007-10-13 17:57:54 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If sued, they can't take things that your mom doesn't have. This happens a lot in auto collisions. Somebody will try to sue for damages, only to find out that the person can't pay and they get nothing. Since the other driver was killed, she could be charged with vehicular manslaughter. If convicted, that could result in spending time in prison. Since she wasn't arrested at the scene of the accident, she is unlikely to be charged for that, though.
2007-10-13 17:57:20 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
She will be liable to the limits of her insurance policy. There are no debtors prisons in the United States. If the matter goes to trial and a judgment is entered against her, they could proceed against whatever assets your mother has. In some states but not all, there is garnishment of wages.
In all probability the plaintiff's lawyers will settle for the policy limits on the insurance policy and it will not go to trial.
2007-10-14 06:32:37 · answer #10 · answered by Mark 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋