Me and the car in front of me make the same lane change. However, as soon as the driver in front of me changes lanes, they realize the car in front of them is stopped. They slam on their brakes and hits the car in front of them lightly, causing no damage. I then rear end the car that hit the first guy. Am I at fault for following too closely? Would the police take into consideration the more sudden stop a collision creates? Perhaps that 3 or 4 inches further they would have traveled by just hitting the brakes and not hitting something would have meant I didn't hit them at all.
2007-11-12 12:22:00 · 12 answers · asked by sjr 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Safety
If I made the lane change into a lane where there was a safe distance, and the other car changed lanes into the area of the 'safe distance', thereby creating a following too closely condition, then slam their brakes on to avoid the car in front of them, why would I be at fault?
2007-11-13 09:45:53 · update #1
Yes, you would be at fault. You should be far enough from the car in front of you that if it comes to a dead stop, you can brake in enough time to where you do not hit it. If not, you're following too close. It's called the 2 second rule (longer if roads are wet).
2007-11-13 02:32:15 · answer #1 · answered by ~♠♥CJ♥♠~ 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You're not going to like this, but this one is on you. You're responsible. It sucks, I know. When you said you had the stop sign, I had a pretty good idea. When you said you started to make your turn, I knew for sure. When you're at a stop sign, it's your job to make sure the way is clear before proceeding. And if you can't see to be sure the way is clear, it's still your responsibility no matter what. You're taking a gamble when you pull out over the white line. You gambled, and this time you lost. It sucks because it's not like the other guy was driving perfectly himself. He cut the corner too tight and forgot to signal. But you had the stop sign, so you're responsible. That's how it is when one driver has a stop sign and the other doesn't. If you want to be sneaky (I'm not here to judge), you could try insisting that you were stopped behind the white line the whole time, and that he cut the corner too tight and hit your stopped vehicle. With his lack of English, you might have the advantage of providing a better detailed story. Of course you'd be lying and getting caught in a lie would be much much worse than this, but maybe there's a chance you'll get away with it. Unlike me, the law and the insurer can be very judgemental. I'm just letting you know the options, the rest is up to you. Don't beat yourself up. I know you didn't want this to happen, and I know there were contributing circumstances that were not within your control. That's why they call these things accidents.
2016-04-03 21:43:24 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
there were two collisions here. The car in front of you (car B) makes an unsafe lane change and hits the car in front (car A). You are following in car C and rear-end car B because you're following too closely. Both you and the driver of car B are at fault here.
2007-11-13 09:25:38 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well to be exact. There were two accidents that happened. Driver number 1 (you) and driver 2 car in front of you are at fault. Depending how they write up the accident, whether 1 or two accidents. You are at fault though for the second accident. And following to close does have laws to say what is a safe distance to drive behind someone.
2007-11-12 12:33:06 · answer #4 · answered by Dave W 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Just make sure you aren't tailgating the car in front of you and that your call has enough room to brake effectively (aka if you have a bigger, heavier car like an SUV, you should space yourself out more because you will be less effective when you brake). If you follow this, then you shouldnt end up in that situation.
2007-11-12 12:36:52 · answer #5 · answered by Justin 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you had been following at a safe distance, you would not have had a collision, regardless of the "sudden stop"
YOUR FAULT!
2007-11-12 15:10:59 · answer #6 · answered by Trump 2020 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. You have to be able to anticipate such things happening. Hitting the car in front of you is your fault.
2007-11-12 12:39:42 · answer #7 · answered by TedEx 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
you are at fault for hitting the second guy and the second guy is at fault for hitting the first guy (who was stopped)
sorry but better luck next time. I know what you mean but life sucks. it happened to me too.
2007-11-12 12:28:42 · answer #8 · answered by David S 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Unless you are physically pushed from behind, you are at fault whenever you hit something.
2007-11-13 13:04:40 · answer #9 · answered by Firecracker . 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
THIS WILL BE YOUR FAULT BECAUSE THE LAW STATES THAT YOU MUST BE IN CONTROL OF YOUR VEHICLE AT ALL TIMES NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS.
THEY WILL SAY THAT YOU WERE FOLLOWING TO CLOSE OR NOT IN CONTROL.
2007-11-13 01:25:49 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋