Car Accident Legal Terms Glossary

Quick Answer. Legal and insurance terms describe different parts of a claim. Use these definitions to understand a document and ask better questions; the actual policy, statute or court rule controls its meaning in your case.

Responsibility and Evidence

Negligence: a failure to meet an applicable standard of care. A claim also needs a connection between the conduct and harm; a traffic accusation alone does not answer every issue.

Causation: the required connection between conduct and a loss. Ask whether the dispute concerns who caused the collision, what caused an injury or both.

Comparative negligence: a rule addressing the injured person’s contribution to the harm. State approaches differ; Connecticut’s statute, for example, sets a comparison and a reduction framework. Connecticut: Section 52-572h

Damages: the legally recognized losses claimed. Economic damages concern financial loss; noneconomic damages concern harms such as pain. A claimed expense still needs supporting evidence and an applicable legal basis.

Coverage and Payment

Liability coverage: insurance addressing covered responsibility for harm to others. Collision coverage: insurance for qualifying damage to the insured vehicle from a collision, subject to the policy.

Deductible: the part of a covered loss borne by the policyholder under the policy. Limit: the maximum applicable coverage amount, which may be expressed per person, per accident or in another form. These basic coverage concepts are explained in the NAIC consumer guide. NAIC: Consumer Auto Insurance Guide

PIP or no-fault benefits: specified first-party injury benefits payable without first proving another driver’s fault, subject to eligibility and conditions. New York’s statute illustrates that eligible people and exclusions must be checked. New York: Insurance Law 5103

UM/UIM: uninsured/underinsured-motorist coverage. Ask whether the issue is no applicable coverage, insufficient coverage or an unidentified driver; do not assume all three situations have identical requirements.

Documents You May Receive

Declarations page: a policy summary identifying items such as insured persons, vehicles, coverage and limits. Read it with endorsements and policy wording.

Reservation of rights: a notice that an insurer is preserving possible coverage defenses while addressing a matter. Ask which provision and facts are at issue.

Release: an agreement giving up specified claims. Read who is released and what losses it covers before treating a payment as limited to one issue.

Subrogation or reimbursement: concepts involving another party’s recovery or repayment rights after it has paid a loss. Ask who asserts the right and how it affects the proposed settlement; do not assume every bill is paid finally and without conditions.

Timing and Court Procedure

Statute of limitations: a legal time limit for bringing an action. Accrual: the event that starts that period. Tolling: a legal rule that can suspend or affect time in qualifying circumstances; it is not an automatic extension.

Service: formal delivery of legal documents through an authorized procedure. Reporting a crash or sending a settlement demand does not necessarily accomplish filing or service. New Jersey Courts cautions that selecting the applicable limitation period requires analysis of the claim. New Jersey Courts: Limitation Periods

Related Guides

• How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Claim?
• Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage Explained

Official Sources

• Connecticut: Section 52-572h
• NAIC: Consumer Auto Insurance Guide
• New York: Insurance Law 5103
• New Jersey Courts: Limitation Periods

Attorney advertising. AutoAccident.co is not a law firm. This guide provides general information, not legal or medical advice. Coverage and legal options depend on the facts, policy and applicable law.