The Uniform Apportionment of Tort Responsibility Act WE NEED YOUR HELP DEFEATING HB 813. Contact your State Senator and ask him or her to Vote NO on HB 813. For more information and sample letters to senators, visit www.dontraisemyinsurance.com.
• House Bill 813, already passed by the House, is before the North Carolina Senate.
• Pushed by plaintiff's attorneys, this bill changes the way accident and injury cases are handled in our state's civil courtrooms (also known as our "tort system"). "Contributory negligence" Is the current system. HB 813 changes our tort system to one called "comparative fault."
• Under contributory negligence, plaintiffs cannot recover damages if their own carelessness contributed to causing the accident or loss. Comparative fault permits a plaintiff to recover from a defendant if his negligence does not exceed that of the defendant.
• Adopting comparative fault means more people are likely to sue, and all consumers will end up paying more for insurance.
• Actuarial studies show that states with comparative fault systems have higher automobile insurance rates than states that use contributory negligence.
• Rates for automobile insurance will need to increase 3-16% to cover increased costs according to a study performed for the NC Rate Bureau.
• $150 million will come out of consumer's pockets if rates rise 5%. Homeowner's insurance, small business coverage and other property and liability rates are also likely to increase.
• North Carolina families are hurting. Our unemployment rate is high. Our housing market is soft. Household budgets are stretched thin. Consumers are trying to hold the line on all expenses.
• 81% of people polled said their family had "hit the limit" when it comes to paying taxes and higher household expenses. 85% agreed the state legislature should oppose any new laws that increase the cost of living on our working families, including laws that increase insurance costs.
• Now is not the time to heap more costs on families.
• Our current system for determining liability and awarding damages to accident and injury victims is not broken. It gives people fair access to courts and results in fair compensation to victims.