Why the stakes spike right at 51%
Under M.G.L. c. 231, § 85, most of the time, an extra percentage point of assigned fault simply means a slightly smaller recovery. But for a claim where the facts genuinely put fault somewhere near an even split, that same single point takes on an entirely different weight: the difference between 50% and 51% fault in Massachusetts isn't a gradual change, it's the difference between a real, proportional recovery and nothing at all.
Where this argument actually comes from
The building blocks of a fault argument in Massachusetts are familiar: the narrative section of the police report, any recorded statement taken from the claimant, witness accounts, photos or video of the scene and vehicle positions, and any inconsistencies in how the incident has been described over time. A traffic citation can also play a role — it's treated as evidence of negligence for the jury to weigh, though not as conclusive proof on its own that the cited party caused the accident.
Why a recorded statement carries extra weight here
An early, informal recorded statement is worth genuine caution in any state, but the stakes are sharper in Massachusetts specifically because of the 51% bar. A phrase that shifts an adjuster's internal fault assessment from 45% to 51% doesn't just shrink the payout by six percentage points — it can eliminate it entirely. This is exactly the kind of detail that makes an offhand or imprecise statement far more consequential here than it might be in a pure comparative state.
Multiple defendants shift the math
Because Massachusetts compares a claimant's fault against the combined fault of every defendant involved, evidence establishing that more than one party shares responsibility can meaningfully change where a claim lands relative to the 50/51 line. Identifying every potentially at-fault party is therefore a genuinely strategic step in any Massachusetts claim where the numbers look close.
Who ultimately decides
If a case goes to trial, the jury compares the claimant's negligence against the combined negligence of the defendants. In the far more common scenario of a negotiated settlement, this comparison is effectively worked out between the parties, with each side arguing for the percentage that favors its position. See our Massachusetts comparative negligence calculator to see precisely how sharply the outcome changes on either side of that line.