Accident help

[Manik]

Not true. I got it last year when I was 23. Unless they changed it since last March, you'll be fine.

certainly looking into this when i replace my pony.

[McBiggity]

Send in everything you have. If this just happened then the police report won't be ready yet. Contact the officer. Make sure he has the witness names

[Manik]

Send in everything you have. If this just happened then the police report won't be ready yet. Contact the officer. Make sure he has the witness names

Thanks alot!

[Paul_E_D]

Wirelessly posted

Biggity, I don't think you're the devil. I'm just bitter.

Your posts are very good.

[SteveM]

Thanks. This was very helpful.
As for the accident, he did shut off my lane and leave me nowhere to go. i did my best to get around him on my right side (his drivers side) as he left me only a few feet. my back tire washed out putting me in a low side position facing his car. (The left half of my bike never contacted the ground, and before my bike could fall my front tire contacted his front tire, flipping my bike and i sideways effectively turning the accident highside). His rim was black from my tire.

Be very careful how you describe the accident. IIRC, there is a rule that you must be driving in a manner to safely stop your vehicle and prevent it from striking another vehicle at all times.

In 1985, I struck a car that made an illegal u-turn through a pedestrian only crosswalk in a divided throughway while I had a green light. I still had to fight to be declared to have not been partially at fault.

It sounds as if he cut you off from your right side and turned left in front of you. I think there a big difference between:

a. You stopped without hitting his car and crashed (single vehicle accident).
b. You were trying to stop, struck his rim and crashed (you may be partially or even more at fault).
c. Both cars were moving and collided (you will be partially at fault.)
d. You had completed a safe stop and his moving vehicle struck your wheel, causing you to crash.

IMHO, only "d" will result in no fault for you.

Any citations issued by the police? Any police reports?

Just be very cautious with your description on the accident.

[xsiliconkid]

another thing to consider and it may be hard to do.
I understand there is a settlement check on its way to you. If you do not agree with the settlement, don't cash it.
Your insurance company will contend that by cashing the check indicates that you accepted the settlement, especially if any portion of those funds are then used

[Manik]

Be very careful how you describe the accident. IIRC, there is a rule that you must be driving in a manner to safely stop your vehicle and prevent it from striking another vehicle at all times.

In 1985, I struck a car that made an illegal u-turn through a pedestrian only crosswalk in a divided throughway while I had a green light. I still had to fight to be declared to have not been partially at fault.

It sounds as if he cut you off from your right side and turned left in front of you. I think there a big difference between:

a. You stopped without hitting his car and crashed (single vehicle accident).
b. You were trying to stop, struck his rim and crashed (you may be partially or even more at fault).
c. Both cars were moving and collided (you will be partially at fault.)
d. You had completed a safe stop and his moving vehicle struck your wheel, causing you to crash.

IMHO, only "d" will result in no fault for you.

Any citations issued by the police? Any police reports?

Just be very cautious with your description on the accident.

He cut me off from my left side. making an illegal left hand turn without a blinker well under 10 feet in front of me. i hit his tire, because with a speed limit of 30 mph (which i was under), even 10 feet was not enough room for me to come to a stop.

[Manik]

Mcbiggity, to further inform you, cause you have been helpful and i feel like the end result will interest you, iv been informed that the two agents working the case, while both from plymouth rock, are working seperately and have come to different decisions. My agent has waved any fault from me and wrote off the surcharge. The second agent (not representing me) is still undecided to what happened having heard two different stories, and is waiting on a police report to see if it includes the words "left turn", as the other driver claims to have not taken one.

[SteveM]

http://www.mass.gov/ocabr/consumer/i...o-be-used.html

Standard 05 number 3 seems to be your situation and in your favor.

"(05) Out of Lane Collision. The operator of a vehicle subject to the Safe Driver Insurance Plan shall be presumed to be more than 50% at fault when operating a vehicle which is partially or completely out of its proper lane and is in collision with another vehicle:

1. while being passed by the other vehicle, the passing vehicle being in its proper lane;

2. while passing the other vehicle, the other vehicle being in its proper lane; or

3. while changing or turning into or across the other vehicle's lane.



You were both traveling in the same direction I believe.

If you were in the leftmost lane and he left turned in front of you, he was on your right before he turned.

If he was on your left side and made a left turn, he would never cross your path.




The larger point is that you should be very careful about admitting that you hit anything. It may put you at fault, even if he did something stupid.

The classic case is the rear end collision where a driver panics because a squirrel is crossing the road and slams on the brakes. If the following car rear ends the panic stopper, it's still the following cars fault.

It seems like you got pinched between his car and the curb, but be careful about how you describe it.

[Manik]

opposing directions. he was traveling north, me south. turned without warning to me.