You swerve to avoid a vehicle drifting into your lane. Your car strikes a guardrail, but the other driver continues without stopping. When law enforcement arrives, yours is the only damaged vehicle at the scene. You may worry that the police officer or insurance company will assume you caused the accident.
However, one damaged vehicle does not always mean one responsible driver. Although a single-car crash involves only one vehicle in the collision, another driver, a defective part, negligent repairs, or dangerous road conditions may have contributed. Determining liability requires looking beyond the final impact and examining what caused you to lose control.
Before accepting fault or assuming you cannot recover compensation, consider speaking with a West Palm Beach car accident lawyer about the circumstances surrounding the crash.
At a Glance
- One damaged vehicle does not always mean one responsible party.
- Another driver, manufacturer, repair shop, or government agency may share liability.
- Florida law may reduce or bar compensation when an injured driver shares fault.
- Camera footage, vehicle data, and physical evidence can disappear quickly.
What Is Considered a Single-Car Accident?
A single-car accident occurs when only one vehicle strikes an object, overturns, or leaves the road. Examples include a car that:
- Hits a tree, guardrail, median, utility pole, or building
- Rolls over after leaving the roadway
- Strikes road debris or an animal
- Encounters a pothole or damaged pavement
- Leaves the road to avoid hitting another vehicle
- Crashes after a tire, brake, or steering failure
Only one car may sustain damage, but that doesn’t establish what caused the collision. External factors can contribute even when no other vehicle makes contact.
For example, a distracted driver may cross the center line and force you to swerve. If you hit a concrete barrier while avoiding a head-on collision, the other driver’s negligence may have caused the accident despite the lack of contact between the vehicles.
Is the Driver Always Liable for a Single-Vehicle Accident?
Drivers involved in one-car accidents often face an initial assumption that they made a mistake. Distracted driving, speeding, fatigue, impairment, and failure to adjust to weather conditions are common causes of these crashes.
However, liability depends on why the driver lost control, not merely how many vehicles were damaged. Another party may be held liable under a negligence, product-liability, or other legal theory when the evidence connects that party’s conduct or defective product to the crash and resulting losses.
An insurance company may focus on driver error because assigning full fault to the injured motorist can limit what it must pay. A closer investigation may uncover contributing causes that were not apparent when the police report was prepared.
Who May Be Liable for a Single-Car Accident?
Identifying all potentially liable parties is particularly important when medical expenses, lost wages, and other costs exceed available insurance benefits.
Another driver who did not make contact
A phantom vehicle is an unidentified vehicle that contributes to a car accident without making physical contact. Its driver may cut you off, enter your lane, run a traffic signal, or force you onto the shoulder before leaving the scene.
Proving another driver caused the crash can be difficult when there was no impact between the vehicles. Useful evidence may include witness statements, dash-camera recordings, traffic-camera footage, nearby surveillance video, tire marks, and a description or partial license plate number.
If the driver is identified, that person’s liability insurance may cover accident-related losses. If the driver cannot be located, uninsured motorist coverage may apply depending on the policy and supporting evidence.
A vehicle or component manufacturer
Mechanical failures such as tire blowouts, defective brakes, or steering issues can cause a driver to lose control. A manufacturer or component maker could bear liability when a defect contributes to the accident.
Potential defects include:
- Tires that separate or fail during ordinary use
- Brakes that do not respond properly
- Steering components that break or malfunction
- Accelerator systems that become stuck
- Airbags or seat belts that fail
- Designs that increase the chance of a rollover
Do not allow the vehicle to be destroyed, salvaged, or substantially repaired before the potential defect has been investigated. The car and its components may provide the most persuasive evidence of what happened. Repair records, recall information, and electronic vehicle data may also help establish the cause.
A repair shop or mechanic
Not every mechanical failure begins at the factory. A repair facility may be responsible if improper work makes a vehicle unsafe. For example, liability may arise when a shop incorrectly installs a tire, fails to tighten a wheel, performs faulty brake work, or overlooks a serious problem during an inspection. Service invoices, communications with the shop, replaced parts, and the vehicle itself may help prove negligence.
The timing of a breakdown alone does not establish liability. The evidence must connect the repair shop’s work to the failure and resulting injuries.
A government agency responsible for the road
Hazardous road conditions can contribute to a single-vehicle crash. Examples include deep potholes, missing guardrails, poor drainage, standing water, defective traffic signals, obscured warning signs, unsafe shoulders, or unmarked construction zones.
Responsibility may rest with the City of West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, the Florida Department of Transportation, or another agency, depending on who controls the road. A claim may require evidence that the agency knew or should have known about the danger and failed to address it within a reasonable period.
Claims against Florida government entities have special procedures under Florida Statutes § 768.28. Road-maintenance records, prior complaints, inspection reports, and photographs may be important to the claim.
A business, contractor, or property owner
A private party may create a road hazard without controlling the roadway itself. A construction company might leave materials in a travel lane. Cargo could fall from a commercial vehicle. Property owners may allow vegetation or another obstruction to block motorists’ view.
Liability depends on who created or controlled the hazard and whether reasonable action could have prevented the accident.
How Does Florida Comparative Negligence Affect Your Claim?
More than one party can share fault for the same car accident. A driver may have been traveling too quickly for wet road conditions while poor drainage allowed water to collect in the lane. Both circumstances could contribute to the collision.
Under Florida’s comparative negligence law, compensation is reduced according to the injured person’s percentage of fault. For negligence claims arising on or after March 24, 2023, a person found more than 50 percent responsible for their own harm cannot recover damages in an applicable negligence action.
Suppose your losses total $100,000 and you are found 30 percent responsible. Your compensation would be reduced by 30 percent, leaving $70,000. If you were found 60 percent responsible, Florida’s modified comparative-fault rule would prevent recovery in that claim.
This rule gives insurers a financial incentive to place as much blame as possible on the injured driver. Evidence showing that another party contributed can affect both your ability to bring a claim and the amount you may recover.
What Insurance May Cover a Single-Vehicle Accident?
Available insurance depends on what caused the accident, who was injured, and which coverages were purchased. No single type of coverage pays every loss.
Personal Injury Protection
Florida requires vehicle owners to carry Personal Injury Protection, commonly called PIP coverage. PIP applies regardless of fault and may help the driver or qualifying passengers after a single-vehicle accident.
Under Florida Statutes § 627.736, PIP generally covers 80 percent of qualifying medical expenses and 60 percent of qualifying lost wages, subject to statutory requirements and policy limits. It may help pay ambulance charges, hospital bills, diagnostic testing, and other medically necessary services.
However, you must obtain qualifying initial medical services within 14 days of the accident to receive PIP medical benefits. The amount available may also depend on whether a qualified provider determines that you had an emergency medical condition.
PIP does not cover pain and suffering or vehicle damage, and it may not pay all medical bills or lost income.
Collision and uninsured motorist coverage
Collision coverage may pay for damage to your car when it strikes an object or overturns, even if you caused the accident. Payment remains subject to the deductible, policy limits, and vehicle value.
Uninsured motorist coverage may become relevant when an unidentified or uninsured driver forced you to take evasive action. Because the insurance company may dispute whether another vehicle caused the crash, independent evidence can be especially valuable.
What If You Were a Passenger?
Passengers injured in one-car accidents may have claims separate from those available to the driver. Depending on the circumstances, a passenger may seek PIP benefits and pursue a liability claim against:
- The driver of the car
- Another motorist who caused the crash
- A vehicle or component manufacturer
- A negligent repair facility
- A government agency
- Another party responsible for a road hazard
You may feel uncomfortable bringing a claim when a friend or one of your family members was driving. In many cases, the claim is handled through insurance rather than paid personally by the driver.
Severe accidents can cause broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, internal injuries, or spinal cord injuries. When PIP does not cover all medical costs and lost wages, identifying every available policy and responsible party becomes especially important.
Florida limits when an injured person can receive compensation for pain and suffering arising from a motor vehicle accident. Under Florida Statutes § 627.737, the injury must meet a statutory threshold, such as permanent injury, significant permanent scarring or disfigurement, significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function, or death.
What Evidence Can Establish Liability?
A police report provides useful information, but it doesn’t always reveal every contributing factor or decide civil liability. The responding officer may not know that a tire was defective, a repair was performed incorrectly, or another driver left before anyone identified the vehicle.
Evidence may include:
- Photographs of the road, debris, skid marks, signs, and surroundings
- Dash-camera, traffic-camera, or surveillance recordings
- Witness names and contact information
- Electronic vehicle data
- Maintenance and repair records
- The failed tire or mechanical component
- Recall or product-design information
- Road inspection and maintenance records
- Prior complaints concerning the same hazard
Some evidence is temporary. A business may overwrite its recordings, a road hazard may be repaired, and the damaged car may be sold for salvage. Prompt action can make the difference between suspecting another cause and being able to prove it.
What Should You Do After the Crash?
Address immediate safety concerns first. Move away from traffic if you can do so safely, and call 911 when someone is injured or the accident creates a roadway hazard.
Florida requires immediate notice to law enforcement when a crash causes injury or death or apparent vehicle or property damage of at least $2,000. The appropriate agency may be the local police department, county sheriff, or Florida Highway Patrol. After addressing immediate dangers:
- Seek medical attention promptly, even if the injuries initially seem minor.
- Photograph the vehicle and scene from several safe positions.
- Document debris, damaged pavement, construction work, and missing safety devices.
- Gather evidence from witnesses and nearby cameras.
- Preserve the vehicle if mechanical failure may have contributed.
- Notify your insurer without speculating about fault.
- Keep medical bills, wage records, receipts, estimates, and insurance correspondence.
- Obtain legal guidance before accepting a settlement or admitting responsibility.
How Long Do You Have to Bring a Claim?
The deadline depends on who may be responsible and the legal basis for your claim. Under Florida Statutes § 95.11, you generally have two years to file a negligence claim against another driver, repair facility, contractor, or property owner. The two-year period applies to negligence claims arising on or after March 24, 2023; claims arising before that date may be subject to Florida’s former four-year deadline.
A claim involving a defective vehicle or component may have a two-year deadline when based on negligence, while certain other product-liability claims may have a four-year filing period and a separate statute of repose. A claim against a Florida government entity generally must be filed within four years, and written presuit notice must be provided within three years. For a wrongful death claim against a government entity, both the filing deadline and the presuit notice period are two years.
Because the applicable deadline depends on the cause of the crash and the party responsible, do not assume you have two years, or that an older claim is already too late. Waiting can also weaken the evidence. Camera footage may be erased, witnesses can become difficult to locate, and the vehicle may be repaired or destroyed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the driver automatically at fault in a single-car accident?
Although driver error causes many one-car crashes, another motorist, defective component, negligent repair, dangerous road condition, or other hazard may have contributed. Liability depends on why the driver lost control.
Can another driver be responsible without hitting my car?
Another driver may cause you to swerve, brake suddenly, or leave the roadway without making contact. Witness accounts, camera footage, and physical evidence can help prove the other vehicle’s involvement.
Does PIP cover a single-car accident in Florida?
PIP may cover qualifying medical expenses and part of your lost wages regardless of who caused the accident. You must obtain initial medical services within 14 days. Benefits remain subject to Florida law, policy limits, and other coverage requirements.
Can a passenger recover damages after a one-car accident?
An injured passenger may qualify for PIP benefits and may have a liability claim against the driver or another responsible party. Available claims depend on how the accident occurred and the insurance policies involved.
Can I recover if I was partly responsible?
You may be able to recover if you were 50 percent or less responsible and another party’s conduct contributed to your injuries. Your compensation would be reduced according to your share of fault. For negligence claims arising on or after March 24, 2023, Florida law bars recovery when the claimant is found more than 50 percent responsible for their own harm.
Do Not Let an Insurer Decide You Caused the Crash
You may be dealing with painful injuries, mounting medical bills, and time away from work while an insurance company treats the absence of a second damaged vehicle as proof that you caused the accident. But you know what happened before your car left the road, and that part of the crash should not be ignored. Evidence may show that another driver forced you to swerve, a mechanical problem caused you to lose control, or a dangerous roadway left you without a safe way to respond.
For more than 30 years, West Palm Beach car accident lawyer Deirdre DiBiaggio has represented injured people throughout Palm Beach County. As a solo practitioner, Ms. DiBiaggio takes a personal interest in each client. She can listen to your account, investigate what caused your crash, address the insurance issues affecting your claim, and explain your options under Florida law.
Contact DiBiaggio Law today by calling (561) 473-9800 or completing the confidential online form to schedule your free consultation. There are no upfront attorney’s fees, and the firm only collects fees if compensation is recovered.
Before your free consultation, we invite you to read testimonials from the people Ms. DiBiaggio has helped.
Copyright © 2026. DiBiaggio Law. All rights reserved.
The information in this blog post (“post”) is provided for general informational purposes only and may not reflect the current law in your jurisdiction. No information in this post should be construed as legal advice from the individual author or the law firm, nor is it intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter. No reader of this post should act or refrain from acting based on any information included in or accessible through this post without seeking the appropriate legal or other professional advice on the particular facts and circumstances at issue from a lawyer licensed in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate licensing jurisdiction.
DiBiaggio Law
605 Belvedere Road, Suite 17
West Palm Beach, FL 33405
(561) 473-9800
https://www.dibiaggiolaw.com
