California...a friend is changing lanes on the freeway to prepare to exit. She moves over to the right lane, (she thought safely) and was hit from behind by another car( bumper came off) this hit sends her spinning across the lanes to the left and she is again hit in the passenger rear door by a second vehicle. Whos at fault and who pays for which cars repairs.?
2007-11-27 18:41:50 · 22 answers · asked by Barbara M 2 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Safety
any time you get rear ended, it's the other guy's fault. The police would have to determine if the first wreck was enough to cause the second. She could still get failure to maintain. Probably not, though.
2007-11-27 18:46:36 · answer #1 · answered by harvardbeans 4 · 0⤊ 4⤋
Sounds to me that your friend may have made an "Unsafe Lane Change" causing her rear quarter to hit the fender of the vehicle maintaining its lane - basically a P.I.T. maneuver.
In the world of no-fault insurance it is no big thing - if the CHP placed his/her investigation into the body of the text I would guess that your friend is at fault.
This depends on the requirements under California Law - in NY as a highway patrol officer and if I saw what you have stated I would give inattentiveness to the lane changer and place fault on her, for further review by the insurance investigators - if there were serious injuries the investigation would then just conclude with our AIS.
People need to understand that first off your friend sounds as if she was the one who actually hit the vehicle maintaining the lane - secondly, a vehicle rear-ending another vehicle (this is not the necessarily case here, is NOT always at fault). Vehicles have been known in front to drive recklessly and actually are able to get a vehicle to rear end them in order for insurance cons - so don't buy into that theory, it's wrong!
Many years as a highway patrolman I handled thousands of accidents, and rear ending is not always an open and shut case - this was a side-swipe not a rear-end encounter - thus the spin out.
2007-11-28 08:03:02 · answer #2 · answered by ? 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
She is at fault, unless she can prove that the car that rear ended her was violating a traffic law (speeding,etc).
Assuming she can't prove the first car was breaking a law, here is how it works:
The car already in the lane has right of way, and the car changing lanes is required to make sure they are not getting in anyones way and are also traveling at the correct speed. She was either going too slow or changed lanes without looking correctly, so got rear ended, causing her to hit the third car.
I'm pretty sure she will have to pay all the damages.
2007-11-28 03:18:27 · answer #3 · answered by .x 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Interesting but sad. Your friend is at fault because she was changing to a different lane probably too closely and therefore the accident couldn't be avoided by the other driver. Her car was not under her control so I believe that all of it is her fault. Sorry. Hope she's okay. You must keep a safe distance, pass with caution and have your car under control. I would say that she will have to pay all of it unless the second driver was at anyway at fault and could have stopped. The police check skid marks and how the cars ended up along with the damage and the adjuster assesses damage. The police report will tell you more info.
2007-11-28 02:54:08 · answer #4 · answered by luv2seashore1 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Unless the first driver that hits her was travelling really, REALLY fast, then the collision was probably your friend's fault, for making an unsafe lane change.
Even IF your friend used a turn signal, it is still up to her to make sure there is enough space to SAFELY make the change into someone else's lane.
2007-11-30 15:34:13 · answer #5 · answered by Vince M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
She is at fault. Cars already in a lane ALWAYS have right of way over cars changing into that lane. It is the responsibility of the car changing lanes to do so safely, and without hindering automobiles already in the lane.
The driver who hit her from behind would be at fault IF she was already in the lane.
2007-11-28 02:54:02 · answer #6 · answered by crookmatt 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Friend is responsible for at least the first collision; it is always the responsibility of someone changing lanes to be sure that it is safe to do so. Since friend's imputed negligence caused the first collision, friend is probably responsible for the others also. The insurance adjusters will work out the gory details.
2007-11-28 02:46:01 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Well under English law your friend sounds like she's at fault it could be that the car she hit was on her blind side as for the second vehicle it would probably been impossible to do anything about that from his side so i would say its your friends fault from what you have told me.
2007-11-28 02:48:52 · answer #8 · answered by paulcryo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well normaly they say the one who gets hit in the rear get paid but in this case it sounds like a mess. i would think your friend may be at fault for the whole thing. if it is proved she was unable to get over and was the cause of the wreck then she will be liable for all 3 cars. if the other driver is proved to be at fault he will be liable for all 3.
2007-11-28 02:46:12 · answer #9 · answered by MR 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the car that bumped her was speeding, its his fault. But your friend has to prove her signal lights were on, she was not speeding as well and did her lane changing properly. If she's not at fault, he pays or his insurance will. All insurance for all vehicles concerned will cover it.
2007-11-28 02:46:02 · answer #10 · answered by Equinox 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
If any car hits someone in the back it is their fault automatically for being inattentive and or driving too close. Even though your friend is more than likely at fault. They do not view it that way.
2007-11-28 02:52:20 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋