When you are in a car accident in Texas, you might be able to use video footage from traffic lights or dash cams as evidence of how the accident occurred. It can be very helpful to have video footage to help determine the circumstances around the crash.
In many Texas car accidents, there is a question as to who is actually at fault. With help from video footage, lawyers, insurance companies, and judges have a much easier time determining who is at fault and why.
If you’ve been in a Texas car crash and need help obtaining video footage, reach out to a Fort Worth car accident lawyer from Patterson Law Group. We can help you obtain and use video footage.
Video Footage Can Show How Your Accident Occurred
Video footage can be used to show how your accident occurred. Texas tries car accident cases on a modified comparative fault rule. This rule makes it very important that you know exactly who is at fault in an accident.
If you are proven to be more than 50% responsible for your accident, you will not be able to recover compensation for what you have lost in your accident. Video footage can provide the necessary evidence that proves you are less than 50% at fault.
Video footage from a traffic camera might show approximately how fast cars were going or if a car ran a red light. A dashcam could show that a car acted illegally or caused your accident.
Video footage is helpful because it provides a moving, real-time record of what happened in the moments leading up to the accident. This footage will be used by lawyers to develop a strong and compelling case for you.
However, video footage cannot prove everything. In some cases, lawyers and judges may find witness statements more reliable than video footage. Video footage can only catch one angle of an accident, while witness statements can offer multiple points of view.
How Would Someone Obtain Video Footage After an Accident?
In many cases, obtaining a video of an accident or injury is challenging. Unfortunately, this is true even when you are confident that it exists. Sometimes, securing a copy of it as evidence is only possible with the assistance of an experienced personal injury attorney. Here are some of the ways you or your lawyer could obtain it:
- Ask for the video. The simplest—and in some cases the most successful—option is to ask the owner of the footage for a copy. The success or failure of this approach will largely depend on who owns it. For example, a private citizen might be more willing to provide a copy of security or dashboard camera footage than a company.
- Request it during discovery. If the video is in the possession of a defendant in your case, it might be possible to obtain it through discovery. Discovery is part of a personal injury case where both sides provide each other with any evidence they might have.
- Seek a subpoena. If the party possessing the relevant video is not involved in the lawsuit, the court could require them to turn it over. This is possible if you seek a subpoena for a copy of it. A judge will consider the request. If they determine it is reasonable, they will issue a subpoena ordering a neutral third party to provide the evidence.
- Submit a form. There are also times when the video footage you need was captured by a publicly owned camera. This could include anything from security footage on public property to cameras mounted on traffic lights. In that case, you can request a copy by submitting a form to the appropriate government agency.
How Your Lawyer Can Prove Your Case Without Video Footage?
Even though video footage is extremely helpful for determining what happened in a particular case, it is not a necessity for your car accident attorney to win your case. There are many other types of evidence that can be used in a car accident case.
Your car accident lawyers may use evidence such as:
- Medical bills and records – these can explain what sort of injuries you suffered and link how your car was impacted to your specific injuries.
- Witness statements – these statements are some of the most important pieces of evidence that you might have in a case. If you are ever in an accident, do your best to get witness statements and contact information on the scene so you can use this evidence to help establish what happened.
- Photographic evidence – photos of injuries and damage to vehicles can be helpful to determine what happened in a crash. If you are physically able to, you should take some photos at the accident scene to give to your lawyer later.
- Police reports – it can be helpful to have official reports from the police regarding the circumstances of the accident and what statements witnesses made.
- Expert testimony – lawyers may call upon car wreck experts to help decide exactly what led to the circumstances surrounding your case.
When you are involved in a Texas car crash, do your best to gather as much of this evidence as possible. This evidence will be extremely important for your lawyer, regardless of whether your lawyer has video footage from the accident scene or not.
Your lawyer will use all of this evidence to paint a full picture of what happened to you in your crash and what compensation you deserve. When your lawyers can successfully prove you are not at fault, you can be compensated for injuries, emotional distress, lost income, loss of life enjoyment, etc.
Why Is There Video Footage That Can Not Be Used For Evidence?
There is certain video footage that can not be used as evidence in a Texas car accident. Any video footage used as evidence must be relevant to the case; that is, it must provide evidence/knowledge that would be unknown without it.
If you are using a dashcam that includes audio footage obtained without the passenger or speakers’ permission, your video may not be permitted in court.
You’re also not allowed to record videos of pedestrians or other drivers without permission. Depending on the contents of your video, the footage may not be eligible to be used in court.
Your lawyer may simply decide your video footage doesn’t help your case and is irrelevant evidence. In this case, you will not be able to use any video footage to prove fault in your case.
Contact Patterson Law Group For A Free Case Evaluation
If you have been in a Texas car accident, you likely have many questions about your future. You are probably concerned with gathering evidence, proving you were not at fault, and what you should be compensated for your losses.
Our Patterson Law Group lawyers are here for you. We have decades of experience finding evidence to help our clients obtain the compensation they deserve. We will fight to ensure justice is done in your case, regardless of whether or not we have video footage to use as evidence.
We will gather the records, bills, and statements we need to prove that you were not at fault for the damages done to you. Our sincere desire is to help you recover as quickly as possible from the injuries you suffered in your accident.
If you’ve been in a crash recently, reach out to Patterson Law Group our Fort Worth personal injury attorneys will give you a free case evaluation today!
