Joint tortfeasors

Joint tortfeasors are two or more people whose careless acts combine to cause the same accident and the same injury, such as two drivers whose separate manoeuvres collide in one crash.

Each joint tortfeasor can generally be held liable for the whole of the loss, which matters if only one of them is insured or traceable, since the injured party is not forced to chase each driver for a separate share. This situation comes up often in a multi-vehicle pileup.

Working out how the tortfeasors later share the cost between themselves is a separate question from your right to be paid in full.

For example, one driver overtaking dangerously and a second driver braking suddenly ahead can both be found jointly responsible for a resulting crash. Naming every possible tortfeasor early keeps your options open as the claim develops.