Got into my first major car accident

I work at a law firm that handles traffic accidents, normally for the party that was hit and wasn't at fault. I can't honestly say if we'd accept your case if u brought it to us since this is one those he said she said cases. I do not know about NY but here in CA, only one car is allowed to 'go halfway' on a left turn to wait for a yellow before completing the left turn, the 2nd car has to stop at the line and wait for the 1st left turning car to clear the intersectio before she can 'go halfway'. It's too late now but you really should've gotten the name and number of a few witnesses who can prove that you 1) weren't speeding and 2) had the right of way by virtue of you going straight and 3) didn't run a red light. If the lady gets a lawyer and tries to spring a propert damahe AND bodily injury suit on your insurance company, make sure u talk to your own ins companies adjuster handling the case and make it clear that you are disputing liability . . . give her your recorded statement.
the police report should have a summary and conclusion section that indicates who was at fault. If it says you're at fault, you could be in trouble. Good luck

 

when you're hit by an uninsured motorist, you file a SR19 form with the DMV out here in CA and your own ins will pay for the repairs of your car. You won't get any raise in ur premium becaseu u weren't at fault. your ins company will then take the issue against the driver who hit you that wasn't insured.

 

You have hit on something that sparked my interest in this one this morning. He said he "slowed down" to let the first car clear the left turn but then had the accident with the second car as he continued through the intersection on "yellow". If I had been the second car trying to complete a turn at a yellow and the car in front of me was allowed to progress by oncoming traffic I would reasonably assume that traffic was going to stop all together and that the left turning vehicles would be allowed to clear the intersection.

I still think both parties carry blame here.

 

red means stop, yellow means clear the intersection. If you're already in the intersection waiting to turn left, you have the right of way to proceed through the left turn and out of the intersection. There are a lot of people who are unclear about how to handle an intersection so your answer is not surprising. I'm one of those people who aces his driver's license test each time and I know the dynamics of an intersection.

 

Except that you are wrong in this case. Very Very Very wrong. I sincerely hope people don't take your mistaken opinion as legal fact.

 

So if you happen to be 1 foot from the white line and moving at 30 MPH when the light turns yellow, you're required to stop rather than continue through the intersection? :huh: The landstander is skeptical (to put it mildly)...

 

It should be pointed out that traffic laws vary by state. When I learned to drive in CA, we were taught that yellow means that you should stop and not enter the intersection if it is safe for you to do so. If you're 2 feet from the limit line and going 25 MPH when the light turns yellow, it's obviously not safe to slam on your brakes and try to stop.

But, as I said, laws vary state to state. This may not be the law in MI or NY.

 

first of all, if you read the post, the OP was the 2nd car making the left turn, not the one already halfway through the intersection, so she should not have attempted the left turn if she was behind the white line like she is supposed to waiting to make the left.. 2nd of all, I find your post rather condescending and inaccurate, Traffic laws are always subject to interpretation, how it is applied to each situation varies by each indicident. The purpose of the traffic lights are to keep us SAFE, and stopping from 40 to 0 at a busy street is DANGEROUS, a car behind you may think u're going to go through and rear end you as a result when u slam on the brakes, it all depends on the situation.

 

I remember my first major accident (back in the '80s). I wasn't driving (my girlfriend at the time was) and we were going straight with a green light. Somebody made a left turn right in front of us. The driver of that car was angry with us (don't know why) until the cop asked who was the one who overtinted their windows.

We were in a Mercedes and could drive home while they had to be towed.

 

The procedure with the insurance company can be long and agonizing. It depends on a number of factors.

Moving your vehicles from the scene is fine. The police report should show a rough diagram of how the vehicles collided. Have you picked up the police report yet? Usually that can take up to 10 business days, so be patient.

 

"I watched you very carefully. Red light stop, green light go, yellow light go very fast. "

- Starman, 1984

 

I believe this law will vary from one place to another, however the law that I learned in driving school (Quebec) was that when turning left, you are not actually allowed to advance past the white line unless you can complete the turn immediately. I actually know someone who was ticketed for this offence years ago (waiting in intersection, turning on yellow)... the cop must have been short for his quota. <_<

Of course, in real life people tend to sit in the middle of the intersection and wait for the clear, and this is in fact the way of life in Toronto if you ever want to make a left turn. :huh:

Again, a perfect example of what is legally correct versus reality.

- Kevin

 

The police will take your statements, inspect the scene, assess the damage and then issue his assessment on the scene. The police will give you a NCIC #, , report # and what PD he's from on a placard . . .call that PD in a abt 10 days and ask for the report. The insurance companies take awhile . . . especially if a Bodily Injury claim is filed. normally abt 2-3 weeks for liability assessment and property damage checks to be issued. the insurance adjusters want to take statements from al parties involved, witnesses and look at the police report before making a decision on liability. This is all in CA, not sure about NY State

 

What bigj3347 said about the police report is right. The police take statements from all parties' involved, inspect the scene, etc. Once you have the police report, then you start dealing with your insurance company.

Good luck, it's definitely a learning experience.

 

If it happened where the red arrow meets the black arrow, I would guess it's not your faul. You clearly were already in her path when she pulled out - meaning she should have waited until you passed. I could be wrong.

 

I got beeped at a few weeks back, when I finished a left turn through a yellow light while someone was approaching to make a right turn. He/she apparently felt like I was in the wrong to be in the middle of a turn while they still had a chance to enter the intersection on a yellow. I'm big enough to admit they probably had a point.

Once upon a time, the rule was if you had an accident while making a left turn, YOU took all the blame. I'm not sure any law read that way, but that's the way it seemed to be implemented. However, if the left-turner here wins, that may mean the old rules no longer apply...