Driving too fast for the prevailing conditions can cause a car accident. If that happens, then the driver responsible should pay for your damages even if they didn't exceed the speed limit. After all, the driver's liability hinges on the fact that the law expects all motorists to drive at safe speeds, irrespective of speed limits. A safe speed is a speed that allows drivers to maneuver around obstacles and negotiate curves.

Examples of Conditions That Call For Slow Driving

Here are some of the driving conditions that call for good speed management.

Slippery Roads

The contact between the tires and the road reduces if the road surface is slippery. The reduced traction means the car won't respond accurately or quickly enough to your steering controls. You can easily lose control of a car under such conditions.  

Poor Visibility

Poor visibility means you only have a short time to react to road dangers. For example, you won't have time to react to potholes, road debris, and stalled cars, among other things. Thus, you need to slow down during a rainfall, if the environment is foggy, or during a dust storm.

Roads Under Construction

Roads under construction are dangerous for two main reasons. First, the road surface will be uneven. Secondly, there will be construction debris all over the road. Lastly, the road will be crowded. All these increase the risk of accidents at high speed.

Proof of Liability

As is the case with any type of auto accident, you or your auto accident lawyer need to prove what makes the other party liable for your damages. Here are some of the factors that will affect liability.

The Cause and Contributing Factors to the Accident

Most accidents have one major cause, along with a few contributing factors. For example, an intoxicated driver can veer out of their lane and crash into another motorist. In this case, the loss of control (due to intoxication) is the main cause of the accident.

Contributing factors can be things like the condition of the tires, the nature of the road surface, and the relative speed of the cars involved in the crash, among other things. if the speed of the car contributed to the crash, then the fact that the driver was driving too fast for the conditions will come into play

The Prevailing Conditions

The court will also consider the conditions that existed at the time of the crash. Both the nature of the existing conditions (fog, dangerous road surface, or high-density traffic) and their severity matter.

For example, a few drops of rain doesn't mean you have to slow down too much. However, a heavy downpour makes driving dangerous — and you definitely need to slow down (or even stop) in torrential rain.