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Failure to Wear a Seat Belt and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident

Florida law requires you to wear a seat belt.  All front seat passengers must wear a seat belt and all minor children between the ages of 6-17.  Certain restraints must be used for children 5 and under and children 3 and under must ride in a separate carrier with an integrated seat belt.  When you meet with your Palm Beach County car accident attorney, you should know whether your seat belt is fully operational.  A defendant may raise your failure to wear a seat belt as an affirmative defense and argue that you should be held comparatively negligent for the accident.  If the defendant proves  you had a seat belt available, then you must prove it was not operational to avoid it affecting your damages award.  In determining whether you are comparatively negligent, the Court will will first determine the percentage of fault attributable to the defendant for causing the accident and then reduce it by percentage of the plaintiff's damages caused by not wearing a seat belt.

It is important that you wear your seat belt to avoid serious injury or death and a potential reduction of your damage award.  If you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident and were not wearing a seat belt, make sure to discuss this with your West Palm Beach auto accident attorney so that he/she may protect you from a possible reduction of your damages award.