How Accident Compensation Works in North Dakota

North Dakota is a “no-fault” state for car accidents. This means that after a crash, you file a claim with your insurance provider no matter who is at fault. However, fault is still important and has a big impact on crash compensation. If your damages exceed policy limits or you have losses that are not covered by insurance, you need to know who is at fault and liable for the rest of your crash compensation.

In North Dakota, the “modified comparative fault” law is applied to car accident compensation. Fault is divided among those involved in the accident and compensation is reduced by an individual’s percentage contribution to the crash. For example, if someone is 10 percent at fault and has $100,000 in damages, their compensation would be reduced by 10 percent to $90,000. With a few exceptions, if a person is 50 percent or more at fault in a crash, they cannot file a car accident injury claim.

Collecting car accident compensation in North Dakota can be complicated if more than one person is at-fault. Most states will let you collect full damages from a single liable party. But in North Dakota, when there are multiple liable parties, an injured crash victim cannot collect full damages from a single involved party. Liability for your compensation is split in proportions equal to their percentage of fault. For example, you have three drivers in an accident – the victim and two negligent drivers. Fault is divided between the negligent drivers – one is 70 percent at fault and the other is 30 percent at fault. If the victim has $100,000 in damages, they would need to collect 70 percent of it ($70,000) from one driver and 30 percent of it ($30,000) from the other.

To legally drive in North Dakota, drivers must purchase car insurance. The minimum plan is 25/50/25 - $25,000 in bodily injury coverage per person per accident, $50,000 total per accident, and $25,000 for property damage. North Dakota also requires drivers to purchase Uninsured Motorist (UM), Underinsured Motorist (UIM), and Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. 

The following is a list of the required and optional types of car insurance that North Dakota drivers purchase.

• Bodily injury (BI) pays for other people’s injury expenses like medical bills and lost wages in an accident you caused. Minimum coverage is $25,000 per injured person with up to $50,000 per accident.   
• Property Damage (PD) pays for damage to other people’s vehicles after an accident you caused. Minimum coverage is $25,000.
• Uninsured Motorist (UM) pays for your bodily injuries and property damage if you are involved in an accident caused by an uninsured driver. The minimum required is $25,000 per injured person per accident with a total of $50,000 per accident.
• Underinsured Motorist (UIM) pays for your bodily injuries only. The value of a driver’s UIM must be equal to their UM, which is at least $25,000 per accident up to $50,000 per accident.
• Personal Injury Protection (PIP), otherwise known as no-fault insurance, pays for medical costs, partial missed wages or replacement services (like childcare). You, the members of your household, passengers in your vehicle, and pedestrians struck by your vehicle are all covered. The minimum requirement is $30,000 coverage.

Including: 

• Collision pays to repair physical damage or replace your vehicle after an accident. Lenders typically require people with car loans to carry collision and comprehensive insurance.
• Comprehensive pays for physical damage to your vehicle that occurred due to things other than a collision. 
• Gap (loan/lease payoff) helps pay the difference between your vehicle’s value and how much you still owe on the loan.  
• Towing pays for costs, usually up to a specific amount, if your vehicle becomes disabled on the side of the road, aka roadside assistance.
• Automobile Death Indemnity, Specific Disability, and Total Disability Benefits provides compensation for death, dismemberment, specific disabilities, and total disability that results from a crash.

You can, but most car accidents can be settled with the insurance company without having to file a lawsuit. Suing the other driver means you are stepping outside of North Dakota’s “no-fault” crash system. The most common reason to do this is if you sustained a “serious” injury as legally defined by the state and your damages exceed policy limits. North Dakota considers the following types of injuries serious: traumatic brain injury (TBI) with lasting damage, death, dismemberment, permanent disfigurement, permanent disability or if medical treatment exceeds $2,500.  

If the insurance company won’t make you a substantial settlement offer, a lawyer can file a lawsuit to demand results. 

North Dakota requires car accident and other personal injury or property damage lawsuits to be filed within 6 years of the crash. When a fatal car accident happens in North Dakota, the victim’s loved ones have 2 years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit. If these statutes of limitation expire, any legal action taken regarding the crash will likely be dismissed.

While it may seem like a lot of time 6 years, even 2 years, is a short window to file a lawsuit. That’s because evidence like surveillance video and witnesses that caught the crash may not be available years later. The sooner a lawyer starts investigating your accident and collecting evidence the stronger your case will be.

The severity of your injuries, the impact they have had on your life, and available insurance coverage all have an impact on the value of your claim. Injured accident victims are typically entitled to two types of damages – economic and non-economic.

• Economic damages are losses with defined costs like medical expenses, emergency medical fees, rehabilitation therapies like physical therapy, missed wages, and car repairs, among other things with stated costs. 
• Non-economic damages are losses where there is no pre-determined value, like emotional anguish, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment.

Experienced car accident attorneys in North Dakota know how to calculate your losses at the highest value. They engage in aggressive settlement negotiations for maximum compensation.

What if the other driver doesn’t have insurance?

You are still entitled to file a claim with your insurance provider. PIP as well as your UM and UIM coverage pay for expenses caused by uninsured and underinsured motorists as well as hit-and-runs.

Never accept a settlement from an insurance company before consulting an attorney. North Dakota car accident lawyers offer free case consultations. They can let you know how much your case is worth – which is almost certainly a lot more than what the insurance company is offering. Car accident attorneys typically work for a contingency fee, which means there is no out-of-pocket expense for their services. And if they don’t win, you don’t pay. An experienced North Dakota car accident lawyer can take on the insurance company and fight for your compensation while you focus on healing.