Can I Bring A Claim If No Citation Was Issued?
Lucas Foust:
Hi, this is Lucas Foust from Foust Law Office, and I'm here to answer a quick question that I receive from people who were involved in a car crash, and the question is this: can I file a lawsuit or bring a claim if no citations were given in my accident. Well, I call them collisions, and the answer to that is absolutely, positively, yes, you may. Whether or not a citation is issued has little or nothing to do with whether you have a right to bring a claim. Citations are issued by law enforcement officers, and as a matter of fact, under Montana law, you may not introduce evidence of the automobile citation itself to show that the other party was negligent. That's a separate matter that is dealt with separately. So, that's a very long way of saying: if you were involved in a car crash and no one was issued a citation, as a matter of fact, even if you were the party issued a citation, yes, you can still bring a claim, and you have every right to do so. I encourage you to contact my office to answer any more questions, and I also strongly encourage you to download our book, Abandoned on the Road: A Guide to Insurance in Montana. At Foust Law Office, we believe that an informed client is a better client.