Key Takeaways
- You Can Still Get Money: Even if you were partly at fault, you can still recover—as long as you were less than 50% responsible.
- Your Percentage Matters: If you were 20% at fault, your recovery gets reduced by 20%. If your damages are $100,000, you'd get $80,000.
- Insurance Companies Use This: They'll try to blame you for part of the accident to pay you less. Don't accept their percentage without question.
Maybe you were going a little over the speed limit when the other driver ran the red light. Maybe you didn't have your headlights on at dusk when someone rear-ended you. Maybe you were checking your phone for a second when another car cut you off.
Accidents are rarely 100% one person's fault. If you were partly at fault, you might think you can't recover anything. That's not true in Oklahoma. But the rules are important to understand.
Oklahoma's "Comparative Fault" Rule
Oklahoma uses what's called "modified comparative fault." Here's what that means in plain English:
You can recover money as long as you were less at fault than the other person.
More specifically, if you're 49% or less at fault, you can still get compensation. If you're 50% or more at fault, you get nothing.
The amount you receive gets reduced by your percentage of fault. So if a jury decides you were 30% at fault and your damages are $100,000, you'd receive $70,000.
How Fault Gets Decided
In a lawsuit, a jury looks at all the evidence and assigns a percentage of fault to each person involved. They might decide the other driver was 80% at fault and you were 20% at fault. Or 60-40. Or any other combination that adds up to 100%.
In a settlement negotiation (which is how most cases resolve without going to trial), the insurance company will argue about fault percentages to lower what they have to pay.
The more fault they can pin on you, the less they pay. So they have every reason to exaggerate your responsibility.
Common Ways Insurance Companies Blame You
Insurance adjusters are trained to find ways to shift fault to you. Here are tactics they use:
"You were speeding." Even if you were going 5 over the limit, they'll argue that contributed to the accident or made your injuries worse.
"You weren't paying attention." They'll try to get you to say you were looking at your phone, changing the radio, or talking to a passenger.
"You could have avoided it." They'll suggest you should have braked sooner, swerved, or taken some other action.
"Your injuries are worse because you weren't wearing a seatbelt." In Oklahoma, not wearing a seatbelt can reduce your recovery for injuries that would have been less severe with a seatbelt.
"You had a pre-existing condition." They'll argue your back pain was from before the accident, not from the crash.
How to Protect Yourself
First, don't accept blame unnecessarily. At the accident scene and in conversations with insurance adjusters, avoid saying things like "I'm sorry" or "I should have seen them." Anything you say can be used against you later.
Second, gather your own evidence. Photos of the scene, witness statements, and the police report all help establish what really happened.
Third, understand that the insurance company's fault assessment isn't final. Just because an adjuster says you were 40% at fault doesn't make it true. Their job is to pay you less.
Fourth, talk to a lawyer before accepting any settlement. Personal injury attorneys understand how comparative fault works and can push back on inflated fault percentages.
What If I Was More Than 50% At Fault?
If you were mostly at fault for the accident, Oklahoma's rule is harsh: you can't recover anything from the other person.
But before you assume you were mostly at fault, consider:
- What evidence actually exists?
- Was the other driver violating any traffic laws?
- Were there road conditions, visibility issues, or vehicle defects involved?
- Has an attorney looked at the facts?
Insurance companies benefit when you believe you were mostly at fault, even when you weren't. Don't take their word for it.
Real Example: How This Works
Let's say you were rear-ended at a stop light. Clearly the other driver's fault, right? But then it comes out that your brake lights weren't working. The insurance company argues you were 30% at fault because the driver behind you didn't know you were stopped.
Your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering add up to $50,000. Under Oklahoma's rule:
- If a jury agrees you were 30% at fault, you'd receive $35,000 (your $50,000 minus 30%)
- If a jury decides you were only 10% at fault, you'd receive $45,000
- If they decide you were 0% at fault, you'd get the full $50,000
That percentage matters a lot. It's worth fighting for the right number.
Being partly at fault for an accident doesn't mean you can't get compensated—but it does affect how much you receive. Don't let the insurance company assign you more blame than you deserve.
At Addison Law, we help accident victims navigate fault disputes and fight for fair compensation. If you've been in an accident and the insurance company is trying to blame you, contact us for a free consultation.
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This article is for general information only and is not legal advice.
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*This article is for general information only and is not legal advice.*