You and your passengers should always wear a seatbelt when driving in South Carolina. Not only will it make your ride far safer, but you will also not violate the law. But what happens to your right to file a lawsuit if you were injured in a car accident while not wearing a seatbelt?
The good news is that nothing happens to your right to sue. The police can pull you over and fine you for failing to wear a seatbelt, but it cannot be used to prevent you from filing a lawsuit. This fact cannot even be used against you in an insurance claim or trial as evidence of your contributory negligence. However, insurance companies often balk at paying victims who were not wearing a seatbelt. If the one in your case does, we can go to trial, where that fact can have no influence.
Contact our South Carolina car accident attorneys at Burriss Ridgeway Injury Lawyers today at (803) 451-4000 for your free case review.
Can I Still File a Lawsuit if I Did Not Have My Seatbelt on During a Car Accident in South Carolina?
Every driver and occupant of a motor vehicle in South Carolina must wear a seatbelt, according to S.C. Code Ann. § 56-5-6520. Most people understand that this is the law in the state, so it would be reasonable for you to assume that not wearing one during a car accident might prevent you from suing.
However, failing to wear a seatbelt will not prevent you from pursuing damages in a lawsuit. In fact, it cannot even be used as evidence against you if the case goes to court, despite South Carolina’s comparative negligence rules. If the insurance company uses it as an excuse to push back against settling your claim, our Columbia, SC car accident lawyers will fight back. Our team will show them we are willing to settle the matter in a trial if they refuse to pay you the compensation you deserve.
Comparative Negligence and Seatbelts
In almost every instance, your own carelessness can be held against you in a legal claim under § 15-38-15. The law will not prevent victims from filing a lawsuit but will deny them compensation if they are more than 50% responsible for the collision. If the plaintiff is 50% at fault or less, they will lose compensation proportional to their share of liability. Fortunately, evidence that you were not wearing a seatbelt cannot be used in this assessment, even if the police cited you for it.
According to § 56-5-6540(C), a violation of the law above is inadmissible as evidence in a legal claim and cannot be used as evidence of contributory negligence. Not wearing a seatbelt is also not negligence per se, a concept in civil law whereby the violation of a traffic law is evidence of negligence in and of itself. Negligence per se can be applied to speeding violations and citations for running traffic lights but not seatbelt violations.
An Insurance Claim vs. a Lawsuit
Just because the law specifically states that not wearing a seatbelt cannot be used against you does not mean insurance companies do not try. South Carolina is an at-fault insurance state, so you typically start a car accident claim by filing with the at-fault driver’s insurance provider. Most insurance companies are loathe to pay claims where the victim did absolutely nothing wrong, let alone ones where the claimant was not wearing a seatbelt. If you do not have legal counsel, they will likely cite it as a reason to lower their settlement offer or deny your claim.
The insurance company is much less likely to attempt this when you work with our attorneys. They know that argument will not stand up in court if your claim goes to trial, so instead, they spend their time looking for other evidence to use against you, like witness testimony and camera footage. However, we will also conduct our own investigation and evidence gathering, including working with expert witnesses to sort out complex questions of liability. If the insurance company still refuses to settle the claim, we will put the case before a judge or jury in a trial.
Will I Face Criminal Penalties for Not Wearing a Seatbelt in South Carolina?
The police have the power to pull you over and cite you for failing to wear a seatbelt. However, a seatbelt violation is not a criminal offense, so the worst punishment you can face for not wearing a seatbelt is a fine, according to § 56-5-6540(A). The first fine cannot be more than $25, and subsequent fines cannot exceed $50. Seatbelt violations must also not be included in your DMV motor vehicle record or the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division’s (SLED) criminal records database, as per § 56-5-6540(A)(1). Violations also cannot be reported to an offender’s vehicle insurance carrier under § 56-5-6540(A)(2). Still, you should always buckle up even though the legal consequences for not doing so are minimal.
How Long Do I Have to File a Car Collision Claim in South Carolina?
Do not let the fact that you were not wearing a seatbelt keep you from filing your lawsuit. South Carolina’s statute of limitations gives car accident victims little time to file a claim, providing three years from the date of the collision, according to § 15-3-530(5). This is not nearly as much time as you might think.
If you do not pursue your claim because you fear what not wearing a seatbelt will mean for your case, you might end up losing out on receiving any compensation for your losses. The court will not allow lawsuits filed after the statute of limitations to continue and will dismiss them. It is always best to err on the side of caution and let our team assess your case.
Contact Our Car Accident Lawyers in South Carolina to Help Prove Liability in Your Case
Call Burriss Ridgeway Injury Lawyers at (803) 451-4000 for a free case analysis with our Sumter, SC car accident lawyers.
