Four key elements of negligence must be present for a plaintiff to have a legitimate claim. The first element is the duty of care. Every driver has a duty to operate their vehicle with reasonable care and avoid the unreasonable risk of harm to others. The second element is known as a breach. A defendant is in breach of duty if they put others at risk of harm by failing to drive carefully.
Element three is causation, and element four is harm. The defendant must have caused the plaintiff actual harm in the accident. If the plaintiff suffered their injuries in an incident unrelated to the defendant’s negligence, they might be ineligible to bring a claim against the defendant.