Patent ID: 7702529

Claim:
A method, comprising: associating, in a memory of a computer system, one or more numerical factor shifts with one or more values of a speed factor, wherein the value of the speed factor is based on a comparison between a specified speed of a reacting vehicle with a speed for avoiding, wherein the specified speed is an actual speed, a safe speed, or a speed limit for an accident, wherein the speed for avoiding is an approximate speed that allows a reacting vehicle to avoid an accident; storing claim data for one or more claims relating to a vehicle accident under consideration in a claims reporting database in a first data memory, wherein the claims reporting database is associated with claims reporting software; copying the claim data from the claims reporting database in the first data memory associated with claims reporting software to a liability estimation database in a second data memory associated with a system for estimating liability in a vehicle accident, the second data memory being located on a computer system for estimating liability; accessing the claim data on the liability estimation database associated with the system for estimating liability in a vehicle accident; assessing an opportunity to avoid the vehicle accident under consideration, wherein assessing the opportunity to avoid the vehicle accident under consideration comprises: estimating a speed for avoiding for the vehicle accident under consideration, wherein the speed for avoiding is an approximate speed of the reacting vehicle that would allow the reacting vehicle to avoid the vehicle accident; the computer system comparing a specified speed of a reacting vehicle in a the vehicle accident under consideration with the estimated speed for avoiding for the vehicle accident under consideration, wherein the specified speed is an actual speed, a safe speed, or a speed limit; and determining, for the vehicle accident under consideration, a value of a speed factor; and estimating liability for at least one party in the vehicle accident under consideration using the accessed claim data, wherein estimating liability comprises the computer system applying, to a base liability for the party, at least one of the one or more numerical factor shifts in the memory, wherein the applied at one factor shift is associated with a value of the speed factor that matches the value determined for the speed factor for the vehicle accident under consideration.