Contributory negligence

Contributory negligence is when the injured person’s own carelessness played some part in causing or worsening the accident.

Under section 12 of the Civil Law Act 1956, a court reduces the damages by the share of responsibility it thinks is fair, rather than refusing the claim altogether.^[1] Common examples in Malaysian motor cases include not wearing a seatbelt or a motorcycle helmet, which can reduce the award for injuries the safety gear would have lessened.

There is no fixed percentage for any situation; the reduction always depends on the specific facts and the evidence about how much difference your own conduct made.

How fault is worked out in a Malaysian claim explains what the evidence needs to show.