Generally, a personal injury claim is a claim in which one individual sues another individual or a group for causing injuries against them. Usually, the injured party is seeking a financial compensation (generally called “damages”) for their injuries, but not always.
There are many different types of personal injury claims that can be filed, including:
- auto accident
- slip and fall
- medical malpractice
- product liability
- mesothelioma (cancer from asbestos exposure)
- and others
Statute of limitations for North Dakota
If you are seeking to file a personal injury claim in North Dakota, it is important to know that there is a time period from the date of the accident/injury in which your case must be filed. The time period is known as the statute of limitations (SOL). If you fail to file within the time period, you may forever be prohibited from doing this. Generally, the SOL in North Dakota is six years from the date of the incident; for wrongful death claims, it is two years after the date of death.
Required auto insurance for North Dakota
In North Dakota, the following minimum auto insurance coverages are required:
- Bodily Injury liability with a minimum coverage of $25,000 per person
- Property Damage liability with a minimum of $25,000 per accident
- Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury with a minimum coverage of $25,000 per accident and $50,000 per person
- Basic No Fault with a minimum coverage of $30,000 per person.
Fault regulations in North Dakota
North Dakota is a no-fault state for auto accidents. Each driver’s insurance company is required to pay for the injuries of their respective driver, up to $2,500. If you are injured in a car accident in North Dakota, you should first file a claim with your own insurance company as opposed to that of the other driver.
Generally, if an individual files an auto accident claim in North Dakota, a court will determine what percentage of fault both parties have in the incident. If the plaintiff violated a traffic rule, was distracted during driving, or any other such factor, he or she will be assigned a percentage of fault. Therefore, the amount of damages that the plaintiff can be awarded is reduced in proportion to the amount of fault. If the plaintiff was found to be speeding, for example, he or she might be found to be twenty percent at fault for the accident. The eligible amount for damages will then be reduced by twenty percent. If a party is found to be fifty or more percent at fault, their right to receive damages is taken away.
Damage caps in North Dakota
In North Dakota, there are generally limitations placed upon the amount of money you can receive in a personal injury claim, which is known as a damage cap. For pain and suffering in medical malpractice cases, the damage cap is $500,000. There are no damage caps for auto accident claims. However, any amount over $250,000 may be reviewed by a court to assess whether or not this amount is reasonable to the court in proportion to the injuries sustained. Nonetheless, if you have suffered a personal injury due to the actions of another party, such as an injury from a slip and fall incident or a car accident, you should consult with a North Dakota personal injury attorney to discuss how to recover any losses you may have incurred.
