Fault feels like something announced — by police, by an adjuster, by the other driver’s confidence. It’s actually something built: from physical evidence, vehicle-code rules, and Pennsylvania’s comparative negligence math. Understanding the building process is how you stop accepting announcements.
The Raw Materials
- Physical evidence — damage locations and crush patterns, skid and yaw marks, debris fields, and final rest positions reconstruct geometry that testimony can’t argue with.
- The police report — influential, not binding: officers document and sometimes opine, but civil fault is decided by the evidence, and reports get rebutted.
- Video and data — doorbell and business cameras, dashcams, and vehicle event data recorders; the fastest-vanishing and most decisive category.
- Vehicle-code violations — running the stop sign, improper lane changes, texting: violations are evidence of negligence, which is why the citation record matters.
The Math: Comparative Negligence
Pennsylvania assigns percentages. You recover if you’re not more than 50% at fault, reduced by your share — our comparative negligence explainer covers the doctrine. The practical consequence: adjusters assign you inflated percentages as a negotiating tactic, because every point is money. Their number is an opening position, not a finding — NHTSA crash-causation research and honest reconstruction answer it.
Common Scenarios, Common Presumptions
Rear-end crashes presume the rear driver’s fault (with exceptions); left-turning drivers usually bear fault against through traffic; parking lot exits and multi-vehicle chains get fact-specific fast. Presumptions start the analysis; evidence finishes it.
Frequently Asked Questions
The police report blames me. Is my case over?
No — reports are evidence, not verdicts, and they’re rebutted with reconstruction, video, and witness work regularly. It’s a headwind that investigation answers.
The other driver admitted fault at the scene, then their insurer denied. How?
Standard practice — the insurer isn’t bound by the driver’s candor. Your photos and any witnesses who heard the admission become the answer.
Does a citation against the other driver win my case?
It helps substantially as evidence of negligence, but civil fault and damages still get proven separately. No citation doesn’t doom you either.
Questions about your own crash? Call (215) 464-4600 or contact us online — free, confidential consultations, contingency-fee representation.