What to do after a South Carolina car accident to protect your rights and build a strong injury claim.
On average, 134 people are injured or killed each day on South Carolina roadways.¹
South Carolina is a traditional fault or “tort” state. This means you can pursue compensation from the at-fault driver after a car accident, without having to first rely on your own insurance. Most car accident victims start by filing a claim against the other driver’s insurance company.
Here’s what you need to know about South Carolina traffic laws and vehicle injury claims.
What to Do After a South Carolina Car Accident
Drivers who violate South Carolina car accident laws are risking fines, traffic citations, and potential imprisonment, depending on the violation. Here are five steps you can take after a car accident to comply with South Carolina laws and start building a strong insurance claim.
1. Stay At the Scene and Exchange Information
South Carolina drivers are required to stop and remain at the scene of an accident involving injury or death. Leaving the scene of an accident involving injury is a felony offense.
Drivers must provide their name, address, and vehicle registration number to the other driver and display their driver’s license upon request.
2. Call 911 and Help the Injured
In South Carolina, drivers are required to report an accident to the police in the quickest way possible. Drivers also must render reasonable assistance to the injured, including arranging transport to the nearest medical facility if the person asks or they’re obviously injured.
Calling 911 to report the accident and request an ambulance can satisfy your legal obligation, provided an officer arrives on the scene. If the police do not respond to investigate, you must file a form to report the accident.
3. Seek Prompt Medical Treatment
The impact of a collision can leave you stunned or cause a surge of adrenaline, especially if you have loved ones in the car. Shock and adrenaline can mask symptoms of serious injury. The worst thing you can do is wave off the paramedics on the scene.
Refusing or delaying medical care not only endangers your health, it also gives the insurance company an excuse to deny or minimize your claim. The adjuster can say your injuries didn’t happen in the accident or you didn’t mitigate your losses.
Allow medics to examine you at the scene. Let them transport you to the hospital if that’s what they think is best. If you aren’t taken to the hospital by ambulance, arrange to go to an urgent care center on your own, preferably on the same day as the crash.
Tell your medical provider about every injury and symptom, not just the most painful one. You’re entitled to compensation for all your injuries, even the minor ones.
4. Gather Evidence From the Scene
Because South Carolina is a traditional fault state, you have to prove the other driver is at fault for the accident before their insurance company will accept your claim. You need to gather evidence to prove the other driver did something wrong or failed to do what any reasonable person would do to prevent the accident.
The police crash report is strong evidence of fault, especially if the other driver was cited for a traffic violation. Other types of evidence include:
- Photographs and video of the crash scene
- Names and contact information from witnesses
- Your personal notes about the accident
5. Notify Both Insurance Companies
Unless you’ve decided to hire an attorney to handle your claim, it’s up to you to notify both your own insurance company and the at-fault driver’s insurer as soon as possible after the accident.
There’s no need to wait until you’re completely healed before notifying the at-fault driver’s insurer of your injury claim.
Expect to get an acknowledgment letter with a claim number and the adjuster’s contact information. Don’t be surprised if you get a call from an adjuster offering a fast settlement, but watch out. Adjusters have plenty of tactics they use to get rid of claimants fast and cheap. The more money they save for the company, the bigger their bonus.
It’s almost never in your interest to settle your claim while still recovering from your injuries. Just tell the adjuster you’ll get back to them when you’re ready to discuss settlement.
Why Notify Your Own Insurance Company?
Your personal auto policy is a legally binding contract that includes a “notification and cooperation” clause. This clause means you’re required to notify your insurance company in a timely manner of an accident, no matter who’s at fault. In return, your insurance company has an obligation to defend you against lawsuits arising from the accident.
You could lose that protection if you fail to notify your insurance company of an accident or don’t cooperate with their investigation.
Severe injury claims are best handled by an experienced personal injury attorney. Your attorney will protect you from allegations of shared fault, gather critical evidence to prove your case (that you might not be able to get on your own), and identify all potential sources of compensation.
South Carolina Fault and Liability Rules
South Carolina is a traditional fault state, meaning you can pursue compensation from any parties that may be liable for your injuries. But regardless of who caused your injuries, in a fault or “tort” state, you bear the burden of proving fault.
Parties at fault can include the other driver, the vehicle’s owner, and the driver’s employer if they were on the job when the accident occurred. Sometimes the vehicle’s manufacturer might be liable for car accident injuries.
South Carolina Shared Fault Rules
South Carolina is a modified comparative fault state, also called the 51 percent rule. This rule means you can seek compensation from the other party so long as you are not more to blame than they are. Your payout will be reduced by your percentage of shared fault.
Example of Modified Comparative Fault in South Carolina
Kim was driving along North Oak Street in Myrtle Beach, with her windows down and the radio turned up. She already had a few drinks and was ready to party. Bob was also traveling on North Oak Street, following behind Kim’s vehicle.
Kim saw a carload of friends approaching in the opposite lane. She slammed on her brakes, honking and waving at her friends. Bob did not expect the car ahead of him to stop so suddenly and plowed into the back of Kim’s car.
Both drivers were injured, especially Kim who was not wearing a seatbelt and was hanging partly out the window when the crash occurred. Bob was ticketed for following too closely and Kim was cited for DUI.
Kim’s insurance claim was denied, so she sued Bob for her injuries. At trial, the jury determined that Bob was 45 percent to blame for following too closely, Kim was 55 percent to blame for stopping suddenly, not wearing a seatbelt, and drunk driving, thus her behavior was the primary cause of her injuries.
Because of South Carolina’s 51 percent rule, Kim left the court empty-handed.
South Carolina Car Accident Compensation
The average settlement for a moderate car accident claim in South Carolina is $35,199, with average payouts ranging from $8,872 for minor injuries to $718,630 for severe injuries.
Injury settlements in South Carolina can vary widely, depending on the circumstances surrounding the crash and the severity of the victim’s injuries.
For example, look at these two rear-end accident cases with low and high payouts:
- In Charleston County, Logan-Mcgee v. Spillson, 2002-CP-004963, the plaintiff was awarded $5,250 for neck and back pain from a low-impact collision.
- In Greenville County, Thomason v. Experience Trucking, 7:15-cv-02391-MGL, the parties settled for $575,000 for lumbar injuries requiring fusion surgery.
Factors that impact South Carolina car accident compensation:
- Injury severity
- Shared fault
- Available insurance coverage
- Number of vehicles involved
- Number of injured victims
Commercial vehicles, like buses, delivery trucks, and tractor-trailers, carry higher levels of liability insurance than most personal vehicles. Accidents caused by commercial drivers in large vehicles often result in more severe injuries and higher payouts.
South Carolina State Minimum Insurance Requirements
South Carolina is a mandatory insurance state. Vehicle owners must carry insurance liability limits of at least $25,000 per person/$50,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $25,000 for property damage.
South Carolina drivers must have uninsured motorist (UM) coverage equal to the minimum required liability coverage. Policyholders must be offered uninsured motorist (UIM) coverage, but are not required to purchase it.
How to Calculate a Minor Injury Settlement
You can estimate the settlement value of a mild to moderate injury claim by adding up your economic damages, like medical bills, out-of-pocket expenses, replacement services, and lost wages, then adding one to three times that total to account for your non-economic damages, better known as pain and suffering.
The amount the insurance company will pay for pain and suffering depends on how much your injuries disrupted your life after the accident. A multiple of one is reasonable for a few days on the couch with a heating pad. A multiple of two or three is justified for a knee injury that limited your activities for several months.
Serious injury claims should be handled by an experienced car accident attorney for the best results, including fair compensation for your past and future medical expenses, lost earning capacity, and the pain and suffering that arises from disabling or disfiguring injuries.
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