Car accident fault

[Farang]

Have you ever aggressively merged in traffic? I do this all the time. Once you poke your head in, the other driver really has no choice but to let you in.

So I was merging about 100 feet before a red light. I put the front of the car in between two cars to force my way in. The other guy is having none of it and keeps pulling forward. Stopping for a moment, then pulling forward. And again. I pull forward and stop, blocking him. Then he pulls forward and scrapes my car. Damage was to his front and my front left fender, underneath the headlight.

Good for him, he didn't back down. One way to look at it is I crashed into him while trying to merge. Another way is that he ran into me in traffic while I was stopped (all traffic was at a standstill at a red light). My car might have been at an angle in the lane, but it was in the lane.

How do you think an insurance company might look at this? I'm fired if I'm at fault (valet) but I probably won't know until Monday.

 

[OCGuy]

Aggresive driving in a company vehicle?


I'll give you one thing, you are dedicated.

 

[Crusty]

Let me guess, you were in a right turn only lane and wanted to go straight after passing a bunch of cars on the right?

 

[highland145]

He's on the inside lane and you're merging in? He's got the right of way, imo.

 

[dougp]

It's your responsibility to check traffic to determine if it was safe to merge - did y'all call the cops? If so, how the cop wrote it down will probably determine who's at fault.

Honestly though, I hope you're at fault - it's people like you that cause the traffic, backups and other accidents because you can't wait in line like everyone else.

 

[Farang]

Aggresive driving in a company vehicle?


I'll give you one thing, you are dedicated.

I'm not extremely aggressive. But I have a job to do, and if the light is red cars are lined up blocking the driveway. I'm taking a right turn at the light so to wait for it to go green and let all the cars pass before merging isn't practical. If I do that, often enough pedestrians will be using the crosswalk at the right turn that it'll be another light cycle before I have the chance to take it.

 

[Farang]

It's your responsibility to check traffic to determine if it was safe to merge - did y'all call the cops? If so, how the cop wrote it down will probably determine who's at fault.

Honestly though, I hope you're at fault - it's people like you that cause the traffic, backups and other accidents because you can't wait in line like everyone else.

Actually traffic backups are caused by pussies who stop at yield signs and don't know how to merge properly. Merging properly means being aggressive, if you aren't aggressive it means you are so slow you have to wait for somebody to waive you in.

 

[Duder1no]

I'm fired if I'm at fault (valet) but I probably won't know until Monday.

i can tell you right now you are fucked

 

[Farang]

i can tell you right now you are fucked

Not really, its ski season and I am already approved for a previous unemployment claim. But yea I tend to agree, I never really got to tell my story (and push the idea that I was stopped and he was moving) so I assume they'll put me at fault.

 

[Cookie]

Actually traffic backups are caused by pussies who stop at yield signs and don't know how to merge properly. Merging properly means being aggressive, if you aren't aggressive it means you are so slow you have to wait for somebody to waive you in.

A merge sign and a yield sign are two different things.

I hate people who yield at merge signs as much as the next guy, but you aren't supposed to merge at a yield sign, you are supposed to yield.

After you get fired you should think about taking some driving lessons.

 

[Pardus]

So I was merging about 100 feet before a red light. I put the front of the car in between two cars to force my way in.... Then he pulls forward and scrapes my car.

Was your turn signal on while merging, it sounds like your fault since you "forced your way in". Best to use hand signals and turn signals in this case.

A scrape is going to be less than your deducible, learn to live with it. Learn to have to patience while merging.

 

[CVSiN]

You're a giant impatient douche.
I cannot fucking stand assholes like you and will ride someones bumper just so drivers like you have to wait your fucking turn..
Your time is no more valuable than mine..
so get in fucking line fucktard.

 

[Farang]

Not really looking to be lectured. This is a downtown, heavy traffic environment. Waiting for no cars to enter a lane is simply not possible at times. You wait for a gap big enough to force your way in, or bag a lunch and prepare to spend the day in your car.

I imagine a lot of you would be upset that I thread the needle in through pedestrians at right turns, too. But that's how you (and everyone else) drives in downtown Seattle or else traffic would come to a standstill.

 

[ShawnD1]

Actually traffic backups are caused by pussies who stop at yield signs and don't know how to merge properly. Merging properly means being aggressive, if you aren't aggressive it means you are so slow you have to wait for somebody to waive you in.

This. A few months ago I posted about how some retard came to a full stop on the on-ramp to a major high traffic highway. That one idiot put everyone else's life at risk because now we're forced to try to get up to speed in a very short distance. My little toy car only has a 4 cylinder so I only got up to maybe 70km/h by the time I merged and that was pedal to the floor the whole time. Speed limit on that road is 110km/h.

 

[DingDingDao]

I'm not totally following your OP. Were you working at the time? Was this a customer's car? If so, you should have been driving more responsibly since it's not your car, and you're and the reason why I never valet if I can help it.

If it was your own car, maybe next time you'll learn to yield, since saving yourself 10 seconds isn't worth getting into an accident and losing 20 minutes and a getting an insurance premium hike.

 

[Cookie]

This. A few months ago I posted about how some retard came to a full stop on the on-ramp to a major high traffic highway. That one idiot put everyone else's life at risk because now we're forced to try to get up to speed in a very short distance. My little toy car only has a 4 cylinder so I only got up to maybe 70km/h by the time I merged and that was pedal to the floor the whole time. Speed limit on that road is 110km/h.

You are talking about a merge situation, where I agree, you should not be stopped (unless some asshat stops in front of you).

He is talking about a yield sign (in his third post), where you need to stop and yield to traffic before you proceed.

One includes sufficient space to get up to the proper speeds, one does not.

In my jurisdiction there is shared responsibility for both vehicles when there is a Merge sign. The vehicle merging needs to ensure there is sufficient space, and the other vehicle needs to give them sufficient space.

If you are just cutting in front of people and changing lanes (not at a merge sign), you are at fault.

 

[amdhunter]

He had the right of way. Jerk.

 

[CVSiN]

This. A few months ago I posted about how some retard came to a full stop on the on-ramp to a major high traffic highway. That one idiot put everyone else's life at risk because now we're forced to try to get up to speed in a very short distance. My little toy car only has a 4 cylinder so I only got up to maybe 70km/h by the time I merged and that was pedal to the floor the whole time. Speed limit on that road is 110km/h.

and Impatient fuckwads like the OP are the same type of asshats that don't want to merge early and wait in the line for the onramp either.. they are the types that wait to the last second and then push thier way into the front of the line and by doing so cause the slowdowns that you are complaining about.

I don't have many pet peaves that flat out enrage me.. but this is one of them..

 

[JulesMaximus]

You're a giant impatient douche.
I cannot fucking stand assholes like you and will ride someones bumper just so drivers like you have to wait your fucking turn..
Your time is no more valuable than mine..
so get in fucking line fucktard.

I lane split here when I ride my motorcycle.

Fuck waiting in line.

 

[SlowSpyder]

I'm not extremely aggressive. But I have a job to do, and if the light is red cars are lined up blocking the driveway. I'm taking a right turn at the light so to wait for it to go green and let all the cars pass before merging isn't practical. If I do that, often enough pedestrians will be using the crosswalk at the right turn that it'll be another light cycle before I have the chance to take it.

If I am reading this correctly, you were pulling out of a driveway but didn't want to wait for the cars that were blocking you in because it would take too long? So you pushed out into a small space between cars, and you and another car hit each other?

If that is the case, I would think you are going to be at fault. You have to yield right of way to those driving on the street and not pull out until you have clearence that allows it safe to do so. If there was a big space and you pulled out, were stopped then the guy hit you, my guess is it would not be your fault. But the way I am reading this you are in fact at fault.

 

[Farang]

I'll make one last defense of myself then leave this to be a thread for people to vent their anger at the world.

This is not Bumfuck, Iowa. This is rush hour in downtown in a major American city. There is no "waiting your turn," there are no turns, because the cars never stop flowing. There is no back of the line or front of the line, there is just a line.

Moreover, parallel parked cars block the view coming out of the driveway making any entrance into flowing traffic dangerous when traffic is flowing at 30+ mph.

The best time to enter traffic in such a situation is when it is stopped at the light. When it is stopped at the light you can put the front of your car into a gap and establish yourself in the lane while all other vehicles are at a standstill.

That's what I did. The other driver thought this infringed on his manliness so he decided to continue to pull forward and run into me.

SlowSpyder: The other driver was stopped when I initially pulled in front of him to establish myself in the lane. I did not cause him to slam on his brakes or anything like that.

 

[Duder1no]

I lane split here when I ride my motorcycle.

Fuck waiting in line.

and that's why so many motorcyclists are killed

 

[CVSiN]

I lane split here when I ride my motorcycle.

Fuck waiting in line.

The difference is your smaller and faster than the cars.. and therefore aren't causing the same backups as a soccer mom trying to force her 800000 lb Escalade into the line on the onramp.
because she was too fucking lazy to get in with the rest of the people a half mile back.
I ride bikes too and there is a large difference here even though 99% of the time I will not lane split either as it is HIGHLY ILLEGAL here. and cops will hit you with a multitude of tickets if they catch you doing it.

 

[CVSiN]

I'll make one last defense of myself then leave this to be a thread for people to vent their anger at the world.

This is not Bumfuck, Iowa. This is rush hour in downtown in a major American city. There is no "waiting your turn," there are no turns, because the cars never stop flowing. There is no back of the line or front of the line, there is just a line.

Moreover, parallel parked cars block the view coming out of the driveway making any entrance into flowing traffic dangerous when traffic is flowing at 30+ mph.

The best time to enter traffic in such a situation is when it is stopped at the light. When it is stopped at the light you can put the front of your car into a gap and establish yourself in the lane while all other vehicles are at a standstill.

That's what I did. The other driver thought this infringed on his manliness so he decided to continue to pull forward and run into me.

SlowSpyder: The other driver was stopped when I initially pulled in front of him to establish myself in the lane. I did not cause him to slam on his brakes or anything like that.

I live in Houston not exactly BFE either.. and you're still a fucking jagoff.and yes there is always YOUR turn.
and if you did that to my car as an "driver" not only would I have your job but I'd sue YOU for the damages as well.

 

[Ryland]

The best time to enter traffic in such a situation is when it is stopped at the light. When it is stopped at the light you can put the front of your car into a gap and establish yourself in the lane while all other vehicles are at a standstill.

That's what I did. The other driver thought this infringed on his manliness so he decided to continue to pull forward and run into me.

SlowSpyder: The other driver was stopped when I initially pulled in front of him to establish myself in the lane. I did not cause him to slam on his brakes or anything like that.

In RI fault is typically placed on whichever cars front end hit the other car thus in this case the other driver would be at fault. The only time that this does not apply is when the other driver goes through a light, stop sign etc into the flow of traffic.