$50M+ RECOVERED FOR CLIENTS
A traffic citation after a crash often raises immediate concerns about your rights. However, the impact of tickets on your personal injury case in Clearwater depends less on the citation itself and more on the conduct that led to it. If you received a citation, that alone does not defeat your injury claim. Likewise, if the other driver received one, that alone does not prove your case. During a free case evaluation with Herman & Wells, our car accident attorneys could explain where a ticket fits within the larger claims process so you know what it does and does not determine.
A traffic citation reflects a law enforcement officer’s allegation that a driver violated a traffic rule based on what information he had. It is not the same as a civil finding of fault. In a personal injury case, the central question is whose careless conduct caused the crash and the resulting injuries with a preponderance of the evidence. State law recognizes this distinction and limits how a citation affects your injury claim in Clearwater. Under Florida Statutes § 316.650, the court generally treats traffic citations as inadmissible at trial with limited exceptions. As a result, you usually cannot present a ticket to the jury as proof that a driver caused the collision.
Since a citation alone usually does not establish civil fault, the investigation surrounding the crash becomes central. The court limits the influence of a citation on your injury case in Clearwater, so you must support your claim with reliable evidence beyond the ticket itself. This proof often includes:
This evidence, taken together, provides a more complete account of what happened before and during the collision. A citation alone rarely captures all of the relevant facts. Therefore, we examine the full circumstances of the crash rather than treating a ticket as the conclusive determination of liability, and we review how the collision happened and whether the facts support your insurance claim or lawsuit.
The state follows a modified comparative negligence system under Fla. Stat. § 768.81. Since the 2023 changes under House Bill 837, a jury that finds you more than 50 percent responsible for your injuries bars you from recovering damages. If the jury finds you 50 percent or less at fault, the law reduces any recovery by your percentage of responsibility.
This is why the conduct underlying a citation matters so much. A ticket you receive does not automatically mean you are more than 50 percent at fault. Similarly, a ticket that the other driver receives does not automatically make them fully responsible for the crash either. Insurers often argue about fault percentages because even a small adjustment affects the value of a claim. As a result, careful case preparation is critical. We identify facts that support your position and address facts an insurer may use against you while we assess the consequences of a citation on your injury case in Clearwater.
If you received a traffic citation after your crash, you should understand the impact of tickets on your personal injury case in Clearwater before you accept blame or rely too heavily on the other driver’s citation. We offer clear guidance, personal attention, and experienced legal representation.
Contact Herman & Wells to discuss the citation and the evidence that may support your injury case.