Not every car accident has one driver who is entirely at fault. In many crashes, both parties made some kind of mistake. Wisconsin law accounts for this through a legal rule called modified comparative negligence, and understanding how it works can make a real difference in what you recover after a collision.
Under this rule, fault is assigned as a percentage to each party involved. Your compensation is then reduced by the percentage of fault assigned to you. If you were 20% at fault for a crash, your total damages get reduced by 20%. That part is fairly straightforward.
The part that surprises many people is the cutoff. Wisconsin Statutes Section 895.045 bars recovery entirely if you are found to be 51% or more at fault. In other words, if you are deemed more responsible for the accident than the other driver, you cannot collect compensation at all, regardless of how serious your injuries are.
What This Means in Practice
Say a jury determines your total damages, including medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering, amount to $100,000. If you are found 25% at fault, you walk away with $75,000. If the same jury finds you 51% at fault, you receive nothing.
This is why the fault determination process matters so much. Insurance companies know how this rule works, and they use it aggressively. Adjusters will look for any evidence that you contributed to the accident, including your speed, phone usage, lane position, or failure to brake in time. Even minor errors get amplified when there is money on the line. Common factors that affect fault percentages in Wisconsin car accident cases:
- Following too closely or tailgating
- Speeding even slightly over the posted limit
- Failing to signal before a lane change
- Distracted driving at the time of impact
- Not wearing a seatbelt, which can affect the damages portion of a claim
Why Evidence Makes or Breaks the Fault Calculation
The percentage assigned to each driver rarely comes from a neutral evaluation. It comes from whatever evidence is available, and whoever presents that evidence more effectively tends to come out better. Police reports, traffic camera footage, witness statements, and accident reconstruction reports all feed into the final number.
This is especially true in disputed cases where both drivers tell different versions of what happened. Without documentation supporting your account, an insurance adjuster has little reason to take your word over the other driver’s.
A Manitowoc car accident lawyer can help gather and present the right evidence before the fault determination process is over, not after. Waiting too long can mean key evidence disappears, witnesses forget details, and the narrative gets locked in against you.
When the Other Driver’s Insurance Company Contacts You
One of the most common mistakes injury victims make is giving a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company without legal guidance. Adjusters are trained to ask questions in ways that get you to accept more responsibility than you actually have. Anything you say can be used to push your fault percentage higher.
You are not required to give a recorded statement to the opposing insurer. Politely declining and speaking with an attorney first is a reasonable and legally sound choice. Hickey & Turim, S.C. represents injured Wisconsin drivers in car accident claims across the state.
If you were hurt in a crash and are concerned about how fault could affect your recovery, speaking with a Manitowoc car accident lawyer is a smart next step. Contact Hickey & Turim, S.C. to talk through the facts of your situation with an attorney who understands how Wisconsin’s fault rules play out in real cases.
