Can I claim personal injury if it was my fault​?

Yes, in most cases. Tennessee law lets you pursue a personal injury claim even if you were partly at fault for an accident, as long as your share of the blame stays under 50%. A Tennessee personal injury lawyer at Weir & Kestner Injury Lawyers can help you understand where your personal injury case stands.

How does Tennessee’s modified comparative fault rule work?

Tennessee’s negligence rule is called modified comparative fault, sometimes shortened to the 50% rule. You can recover compensation as long as you’re less than 50% at fault for the accident; once your share of fault reaches 50%, Tennessee law bars you from recovering anything. 

That’s different from a handful of states that use pure comparative negligence, where you can recover something even if you were 99% responsible. It’s more forgiving than the few states that still use contributory negligence, where any fault at all, even 1%, bars you from recovering anything.

How much does your percentage of fault reduce your compensation?

Your compensation gets reduced by whatever percentage of fault you’re assigned, not eliminated. If you won a claim worth $100,000 but were found 10% at fault, you’d recover $90,000, the same claim, just reduced by your share. That reduction applies whether your case settles with the insurance company or goes in front of a jury.

Who decides how much of the accident was your fault?

No single document decides who gets held responsible for a car accident. Police reports and photos get weighed as evidence, along with witness statements and medical records, but an officer’s report is not a legal finding of fault. It carries weight, but it doesn’t bind your insurance company or a court.

Insurers often open with a number that favors them, arguing you were contributing to the accident more than you actually were, because a higher fault percentage lowers what they owe. That opening number isn’t final. It’s more of a negotiating position, and a personal injury lawyer can push back on it with stronger evidence. If your claim doesn’t settle, a judge or jury decides fault at trial instead. 

If you’re not sure whether you should admit fault at the scene or how your own insurance factors in, get that sorted out before you talk to the other driver’s insurer.

What damages can you still recover in a shared-fault case?

Shared-fault injury claims aren’t valued any differently under Tennessee negligence law; only the size of your recovery changes. You can pursue medical bills and lost wages, along with pain and suffering and any property damage, the same categories anyone recovers in a personal injury claim. Being partly at fault reduces the total. It doesn’t take any of these categories off the table.

Don’t assume fault ends your case; call Weir & Kestner Injury Lawyers

Whether you think you share some of the blame or caused the crash outright, that doesn’t mean you’re out of options. Weir & Kestner Injury Lawyers was founded by Joe Weir and Tony Kestner, who spent years working on the insurance side before representing injury victims, so they know how adjusters argue fault percentages. The firm works on a contingency fee basis, so you pay no attorney’s fees unless it recovers compensation for you.

Call (615) 220-4180 or contact us online to schedule your free consultation.