Can You Sue for An Accident Caused by Bad Weather?
Inclement weather – fog, freezing rain, whiteouts, black ice, high winds, sleet and hail – can present dangerous and unsafe driving conditions for even the most seasoned drivers. It’s no wonder that weather conditions can play a large role in collisions. According to the Canadian National Collision Database from 2023, 18.4% of Canadian collisions and an average of 374 fatalities per year between 2016 and 2021 involved bad weather.
Freezing rain can make entire stretches of roadway feel slick. Fog is particularly dangerous since it can form suddenly and cause condensation on the roadway, giving rise to black ice in colder conditions. Anyone who’s ever driven in a whiteout will remember the terror of not being able to see anything or anyone on the road ahead. But is bad weather the cause of the collision or can drivers still be held liable for crashes that occur during adverse weather?
Except for very rare circumstances (like inevitable accidents), drivers will be held responsible for collisions that occur in bad weather. The fault determination rules under Ontario’s Insurance Act stipulate that bad weather does not absolve drivers of responsibility in a crash – drivers will be found at fault even if poor weather or road conditions are at play: “the degree of fault of an insured is determined without reference to the circumstances in which the incident occurs, including weather conditions, road conditions, visibility, or the actions of pedestrians.”
Bad weather can greatly reduce visibility while also increasing the time it will take to bring your vehicle to a stop. A reasonable driver is expected to take poor weather, road, and driving conditions into account when operating a vehicle. Failure to do so could lead to a finding of liability in a civil lawsuit.
In addition to drivers being held responsible in lawsuits related to bad weather collisions, courts have also held the government and contractors responsible for on the roadway liable where winter maintenance was found to be substandard.
If you have been injured in a car accident during bad weather, it’s important to speak to a reputable personal injury attorney right away to investigate the fault of the other driver or the winter maintenance provider. The government needs to be made aware of any potential claim against it within 10 days of the accident, while other winter maintenance providers need to be made aware of the accident within 60 days.
Written By
As a partner at Oatley Vigmond, Lara Fitzgerald-Husek uses her empathy, creativity, and trial experience to connect with her clients and help them move forward after trauma. Lara focuses her practice solely on personal injury, and she is determined to get her clients the best possible outcome—the one they deserve.