I was heading east in right lane on merrick road. Other driver going west flies through turning lane to make a left in front of me without stopping. I swerve to avoid him but hit his right rear with my right front. I believe he is at fault 100%. Also, he was 80 years old…not to enter age prejudice… Any lawyers/insurance co workers out there, can you assist? I am waiting for insurance co decision…
Legal advice is best suited to IMHO. Title edited to better indicate subject.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
Did the police ticket or cite anyone when called them after the collision?
And you kind of trailed off there with your age prejudice comment…
I have no legal authority and it probably varies from state to state but I’ll take an educated WAG:
Assuming this is a totally unregulated intersection (no signs or signals), the straight-going party has the right of way. The turning party must yield to oncoming traffic and ensure they can leave the intersection prior to entering it.
Refer to page 19 in the Illinosi Rules of the Road. I think the other driver failed point number four.
It depends on what your state laws are.
In Florida, for instance, there is no concept of “right of way”, so it’s usually up to the officer investigating to determine who may have been at fault.
Every state’s laws are different, and without knowing what your state’s laws are, it’s hard to say who was at fault. From your description, I’d say the other guy was, FWIW.
The OP is in New York. Merrick Road and Amityville are on Long Island.
Why is anyone even entertaining this idiotic question?
I was heading north on the sidewalk going to lunch. Other pedestrian going south lunged at me with a switchblade. I ducked to avoid his blade but hit his right wrist with my head. I believe he is at fault 100%. Also, he was a 20 year old gangbanger…not to enter prejudice… Any lawyers/policemen out there, can you assist? I am waiting for court decision…
Are you claiming that the concept is not applied in practice? Because Florida’s driver’s handbook certainly seems to address the subject of right-of-way— specifically when you’re required to yield it to other drivers.
I live in California and last August I had an accident very similar to yours. Totaled my 4Runner. The same scenario except it was a big long haul truck that turned in front of me.
I was driving straight getting ready to go over a highway overpass. The truck had one other car ahead of it. The car turned in front of me, with plenty of time, to take the highway on ramp I was just about to pass. For some reason, the truck driver decided to make the turn, too. I slammed on my brakes and swerved hard to the left to try to avoid hitting the truck but didn’t make it. The back of the truck crushed the right front of my 4Runner. Luckily, I wasn’t hurt very bad but my beloved 4Runner was not so lucky…
The trucker got out and started to shout at me but the older couple in the car behind me stood between me and him. He not once asked if i was okay. My knees were shaking so bad! I will always be grateful to them for staying with me. Everyone I knew was out of town so I had no one to call.
There were plenty of witnesses to tell the highway patrol what actually happened and most of them hung around, thank goodness. The trucker first tried to tell the HP that I “waved” him on to turn in front of me. When that didn’t work, he then said he saw me talking on my cell phone. That didn’t work, either.
The HP told him that even if I had waved him to turn, he was still at fault since I had the right of way and he should never take chances like that. The trucker never reported the accident to his insurance but I sure did. They were very helpful and things were settled quickly and easily.
So, after my long winded story, I would say the other man was at fault if it happened the way you describe.
What does your police report say? Were there no witnesses?
Yep, but it’s not enshrined in Florida statutes at all. You can’t hit someone and then claim “I had the right-of-way!” Under Florida law, you must do everything reasonably in your power to avoid the accident.
Back when I lived there, I didn’t own a car for years (until I was about 26 years old, IIRC) and I used to know all the traffic & vehicle laws by heart. In fact, there used to be a cycling club in Tallahassee that printed little booklets of the statutes so you could carry them in your seat pack with your spare tube and patch kit, etc. Another point of Florida law that used to freak people (and cops) out: in Florida, a bicycle is legally denoted as a vehicle, subject to all the same laws and considerations. Which means that they have to service you at drive-thrus (banks, restaurants, Farm Stores, etc.). Very few states accord that level of status to bicycles.
As a rule of thumb, those going straight have right-of-way over those turning when cars arrive at an intersection at the same time. The Texas Driver’s Handbook specifically states: “Turning Left - When turning left, yield the right-of-way to any vehicle coming straight through from the other direction.”
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/DriverLicense/documents/DL-7.pdf (PDF)
And that being the case…