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Car Accident
Evil_Reaver
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
On my way to work this morning, a lady hit my car with her car. Here's the story:
I was turning left from an unprotected turn lane. I had pulled in to the intersection and was waiting for the intersection to clear so that I could turn left. My light turned to yellow, so I waited for the oncoming cars to stop at their line. Once I felt that both lanes were safe to cross, I began my turn. Unfortunately, a driver in the far left lane (as in, the furthest lane from me, but from her perspective, she was driving in the right-hand lane since she was driving towards me) decided to burn through the intersection at the last second. She hit my car on the right front quarter panel with the left front quarter panel of her car.
My car sustained major cosmetic damage but is still drivable. Her car sustained no damage since it is a giant SUV.
After making sure no one was hurt, we moved our vehicles from the intersection to a nearby parking lot. We exchanged insurance information and I made a claim with my insurance company as soon as I got to work. We did not call the police since no one was injured and both cars are operational. I took lots of pictures of both vehicles in the parking lot.
I know I'm probably going to be fucked on this since there were no witnesses and it's my word against hers, especially since I was turning left and it looks like I didn't yield. So, my question is: Is there anything I can do to swing this in my favor? She should have yielded since she had a yellow light AND I had already started my turn AND the light turned red .05 seconds after she entered the intersection. She wasn't at the line yet when I started my turn, so she had plenty of time to stop. Again, the problem is that I can't prove it and she doesn't have to defend herself since it looks like it's my fault. I don't even know what she's going to claim since there's zero damage to her vehicle, but it's LA, which means I'll probably be sued for everything I own.
I was turning left from an unprotected turn lane. I had pulled in to the intersection and was waiting for the intersection to clear so that I could turn left. My light turned to yellow, so I waited for the oncoming cars to stop at their line. Once I felt that both lanes were safe to cross, I began my turn. Unfortunately, a driver in the far left lane (as in, the furthest lane from me, but from her perspective, she was driving in the right-hand lane since she was driving towards me) decided to burn through the intersection at the last second. She hit my car on the right front quarter panel with the left front quarter panel of her car.
My car sustained major cosmetic damage but is still drivable. Her car sustained no damage since it is a giant SUV.
After making sure no one was hurt, we moved our vehicles from the intersection to a nearby parking lot. We exchanged insurance information and I made a claim with my insurance company as soon as I got to work. We did not call the police since no one was injured and both cars are operational. I took lots of pictures of both vehicles in the parking lot.
I know I'm probably going to be fucked on this since there were no witnesses and it's my word against hers, especially since I was turning left and it looks like I didn't yield. So, my question is: Is there anything I can do to swing this in my favor? She should have yielded since she had a yellow light AND I had already started my turn AND the light turned red .05 seconds after she entered the intersection. She wasn't at the line yet when I started my turn, so she had plenty of time to stop. Again, the problem is that I can't prove it and she doesn't have to defend herself since it looks like it's my fault. I don't even know what she's going to claim since there's zero damage to her vehicle, but it's LA, which means I'll probably be sued for everything I own.
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2) something like this?
if you were IN the intersection, past the traffic light, you had the right of way.
HOWEVER. Why did you not wait for all cars to stop before turning left?
You might be at fault
You're okay dude, trust me. I got in to a very similar situation. She slammed into you - you're not at fault.
In this case, that's really the biggest thing that matters: Right of way. If the insurance companies say she had the right of way, that's really where your case stops. On the other hand you said you waited until the oncoming cars had stopped? Was she also stopped, or just completely not there till the last second? If she was stopped and then at the last second decided to cruise through, you MIGHT be able to make an argument on that. Even so, though, she'd still technically have the right of way.
that's not how the law works, dudicus
pulling out in right in front of someone when they're coming down a road = WOOOOOOPS, not the other guy's fault
yes
do this
DO THIS
Read the OP again, he said he took a lot of pictures of both of the cars. But yes, pictures = good.
reading's for nerds
Damnit, you caught me, I'm a nerd.
Check your local laws, but I guess what I'm saying is... if you push this, you may be not only at fault for an accident (which you are, I almost guarantee), but you may also be getting a ticket for running a red light, or blocking an intersection.
Dunno what state whatever this was but from this instruction-book scenario, it is apparently not illegal and is stated to be very common
they're even talking about california!
however it really does seem like the OP either didn't see her from being blocked by cars or just didn't look
same for the woman
I CLAIM DOUBLEFAULT
Most insurance agents have advised against this and if you are at fault, the police will slap you with a ticket. If you fight it, you will be going against a prosecutor.
Most insurance companies won't process a claim unless there is a police report. O_o What insurance company says not to call the police? I wnt to make sure I avoid em. O_o
Edit: hell and if you can't solve this as reasonable adults well maybe the police are the least of your worries.
I have said my piece.
2nd edit: Hmm its a sig I found online, guess I didn't look at it to closely but then again all of this is OT and against the rules. P.S. I think that they are using two separate commercials is not the point.
just to let you know
your sig's quote isn't for that commercial's product. Fruit Tarts vs Berries and Cream
and you spelled "you're" wrong twice
And regardless he didn't have a protected left turn signal. At best they're both at fault, at worst she went through a yellow light and he didn't yield to oncoming traffic.
did you read the part about "MAJOR cosmetic damage"?
and not " my bumper got nudged"
his panel got smashed in from the side
chances are it's more than a little tap
Ask your insurance company whether or not you should call the police now.
And I don't know what kind of crazy fucked-up state you live in where you're not only not encouraged, but not allowed to pull into an intersection to make a left turn, but it's wildly different from pretty much every state I've ever driven in.
it's legal to do it in CA
Electronic composer for hire.
I am agreeing with you.
even though you live in one that allows it
maybe this is over my head
As I stated in the OP, I pretty much figured that I'm fucked on this even though I maintain that it wasn't my fault for multiple reasons:
1. It was safe for me to make a left turn when I started the turn.
2. She entered the intersection after I started my turn.
3. She wouldn't have made it through the intersection before the light turned red. In fact, .5 seconds after she entered, it turned red, so I really think that if a police officer had been there, he would have been justified in giving her a ticket.
3.5. After reviewing the California DMV driver's manual, there is a section that clearly states that you should only enter an intersection on a yellow light if it is safe to do so. Even if the light is yellow, you don't have the right of way if it's not safe for you to go through the intersection, so I think I could argue that since I was already making my turn.
But, no one stayed to act as a witness, so I'm pretty sure it's going to go her way since she's A.) older than me and B.) a woman.
I'd be okay if this went to a double fault and the insurance companies decided we were both wrong. I'm going to have a severe problem with the situation if she makes a claim because there is absolutely zero damage to her vehicle. I have pictures to prove it, but I have a feeling she's going to push this because that's what you do in California. Does anyone have any experience with something like this? I'm pretty sure I can make the argument that she was looking for an accident since she clearly entered the intersection when she shouldn't have. It's all speculation at this point since I haven't heard back from my adjuster yet, but I'm trying to prepare for whatever they decide to throw at me.
It's also illegal to block an intersection here (even though people do it very often, you'd be surprised how many traffic laws people don't know they're violating). You have to be sure you can clear the intersection before you enter it. That seems really odd if it's legal in California.
And in the future, unless you don't plan to file an insurance claim, you should always call the police. Having a police report makes the claims process much easier.
If there's anybody else involved.
If not and you haven't damaged anybody else's property in the process then the police aren't necessary. ie, if you flip your car on the freeway and tumble all the way to the edge of the road without hitting anything else, the police aren't necessary. In all other situations, get the police involved, they're a good impartial witness and can also help take statements from on the spot witnesses.
My brother got into an accident doing the EXACT same thing as you. Only he called the police... the verdict was that they were both at fault and had to pay their own way: they also both got tickets for running a red light. This was in CO.
So it is very doubtful, without a police report, that you could get this pinned on the other driver but at least you didn't get a ticket... I'd say you've got about a 99% chance of having to pay for your repairs yourself (or just your deductible if you are making an insurance claim)
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Recently I hit another car, that doesn't make it my fault. Fucker pulled right out into my lane and failed to yield the right of way, which I had. Who running into who does not matter in the slightest in a case of yield right of way like this.
Now if the light was red and they both went through it, it might be both at fault, but there's no good way to prove that.
As for lights, and I assume this is the same in the US but might not be, the light is only to determine if you may cross the line and enter the junction. Once you have entered the junction, the light doesn't apply, and you may complete your turn even after the light has changed to red. Entering on amber is "acceptable", since amber means you should stop if it is safe to do so.
You're not in the UK so this may not apply at all, but here you would not have done anything wrong regarding the light. Turning across her lane is not nearly as easy though. If I were you, I'd argue that she saw the light turn yellow, should have stopped, but instead accelerated to make it through before the red, and as a result she was speeding. The only way it's her fault is if she was speeding or went through the red light.
and she hit you in the intersection...
Ergo... you were in the intersection when the light was red..
Facts regardless of state:
with no witnesses, the police will just write it up in a way to favor neither of you...and will not help your case, AND you will both more then likely get a ticket for running the light. Your insurance will more then likely cite you as part fault ...
The fact that she hit you is a minor point, as a portion of the fault will lie with you, as straight has the right of way over traffic crossing the lane.
Your insurance carrier will determine what they are going to do... either way, you are paying the deductable on your insurance for repair.
Your best bet would be to keep it out of the ins. hands as much as humanly possible and pay out of pocket..
Librarians harbor a terrible secret. Find it.
It sounds like you've accepted the consequences already, which is good; sorry about that whole situation, I've been there before, and it sucks. I just wanted to point out that it really wasn't safe for you to make the turn when you entered the intersection, since she ended up hitting you. Also, the fact that you were in the intersection first doesn't really matter, since she had the right of way. Regardless, though, it certainly wasn't totally your fault, but it might look that way to the insurance company. I really wouldn't worry too much, though; people get in accidents all the time. You'll probably be out some money, which you already know, but hopefully it'll be handled smoothly and you can move on.
How is waiting in the intersection to turn left not having control of your vehicle?
OP, in the future, call the police even if the damage is only cosmetic and no one was hurt. Having a third party write down statements and assess the situation can be immensely helpful if you get into a dispute later. Hopefully you won't need it this time around and your insurance will look at it as a double fault thing rather than entirely your fault.
And because I'm procrastinating:
From the California Driver's Handbook:
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/hdbk/pgs16thru17.htm#intersections
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/hdbk/pgs16thru17.htm#traffic_lights
sounds like the OP is in the wrong, as he crossed without waiting for the lady to slow down and started his left turn with her approaching close enough to strike his car