{"id":6891,"date":"2022-06-27T17:07:51","date_gmt":"2022-06-28T00:07:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tariolaw.com\/?p=6891"},"modified":"2022-11-24T21:41:23","modified_gmt":"2022-11-25T05:41:23","slug":"washington-state-drivers-have-a-legal-duty-to-act-with-reasonable-care-on-the-road","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tariolaw.com\/washington-state-drivers-have-a-legal-duty-to-act-with-reasonable-care-on-the-road\/","title":{"rendered":"Washington State Drivers have a Legal Duty to Act with Reasonable Care on the Road"},"content":{"rendered":"

Washington State Resonable Care<\/p>\n

In Washington state, drivers have a legal duty to act with reasonable care on the road. The standard of care is important for determining fault\/liability and proving negligence in car accidents. In personal injury claims the following four elements must be proved for a successful claim:<\/p>\n

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  1. A duty to exercise reasonable care existed<\/li>\n
  2. This duty was breached through negligent action(s)<\/li>\n
  3. Injuries were caused by the negligent action(s)<\/li>\n
  4. Actual damages were suffered such as pain and suffering and medical bills<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The Legal Duty to Act with Reasonable Care on the Road in Washington State<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    Whether you\u2019re a commercial driver or a parent driving your kids to practice, you have a legal obligation to every other driver, passenger, cyclist, motorcyclist, and pedestrian on the road every time you get behind the wheel. The actions that a driver takes leading up to a car accident may be assessed for whether they met the standard of a \u201creasonable person\u201d in a similar situation. For example, if a driver runs a red light and crashes into traffic driving through a green light, it may be deemed that the driver acted negligently and failed to act with reasonable care on the road.<\/p>\n

    If it is determined that a driver\u2019s actions deviated from the behavior that would be expected of a reasonable person in a similar circumstance, then that driver may have acted negligently. Car insurance companies will use any evidence they can find to show that it was not their client\u2019s negligence that led to the accident. Experienced car accident lawyers have the skills to overcome arguments made by insurance companies. In a personal injury lawsuit, it is up to the jury to decide whether a person violated the standard of care.<\/p>\n

    What is reasonable care?<\/strong><\/p>\n

    While the term itself may sound vague, it is actually fairly simple to come up with a list of driving behaviors that fall outside the standard of care. Here are some examples:<\/p>\n