what would happen in this traffic accident situation !!!

[Maverick]

Say you are driving down a street with three lanes and you are in the centre lane (lane 2). This jagoff on your right (lane 3) decides to change lanes without looking... you swurve out of the way and hit the guy in the left lane (lane 1)

the guy that did the nasty lane change is long gone because he did not get hit by anyone. You hit the guy in lane 1 because of the bad lane change that idiot in lane 3 did.

who is at fault ? if nobody had that guys plate number ? would witnesses be any good in that situaton ?

would it just be better to let the guy in lane 3 hit you so you could stop and take pictures etc.... then he would be totally accountable because he would have got in an accident.

what would be the best thing to do in this situation ?

thanks, this didnt happen to me... but it almost did, so I am curious.

 

[PICK3]

Yes, it would be your fault. You have to maintain control of your vehicle at all times.

 

[Raptorex]

Pick3 is correct.

 

[PICK3]

Pick3 is correct.

and you are surprised, why?

 

[Raptorex]

and you are surprised, why?

nah, I know you wrecked a ton of cars.

 

[PICK3]

nah, I know you wrecked a ton of cars.

Actually zero. Although when I was young I was a passenger in a nasty wreck ... Camaro versus lamp pole.

 

[Cutiebaby]

pick3 is correct.
However I am confused here..Wouldn't the 3rd lane be on the left and the first on the right?
do you drive on opposite sides of the road where you are?

 

[Raptorex]

Actually zero. Although when I was young I was a passenger in a nasty wreck ... Camaro versus lamp pole.

I have unforturtunately been in (driving or passenger) > 10 wrecks, I would say the total rate is about 50%

 

[Cutiebaby]

I have unforturtunately been in (driving or passenger) > 10 wrecks, I would say the total rate is about 50%

damn, any serious injuries?

 

[GeneticMutation]

I'm Canadian as well Mav, so here is some insight from a Canadian, though in this case it doesn't really matter.

The fault is on the centre lane driver. As somebody else mentioned you must maintain control of your vehicle at all times. Though the lane 2 driver avoided a potential accident with the driver in lane 3, the lane 2 driver was the one that caused the accident with the driver in lane 1.

Witnesses in my opinion are useless. No matter the circumstances, as a driver, the government expects us to be fully aware of our surroundings at all times. The lane 2 driver should of or ought to have known there was a driver in lane 1 or at least recognize the possibility of a car being in lane 1.

In this scenario, the only plausible course of action is to either brake enough to let the driver that didn't look past you (making sure there will be no car behind you so you don't cause a rear end collision) or allow the car to hit you if there is a car behind you and sound your horn. Sounding the horn is actually a vital component as the law in civil cases tends to divide blameworthiness among individuals. Sounding the horn indicates that you did everything possible to avoid the accident (includes checking surroundings) and places the majority of blameworthiness on the driver in lane 3.

I know it sounds stupid to just allow somebody to hit you, however, that is how the law slices it.

Also, do not forget that the police officer attending the scene of the accident only gets two sides of the story and elementary communications tell us that there are always 3 sides - third being the truth which lies somewhere in the middle. To the officer attending, there are only two cars at the scene, and any claim you may make to a third party being involved instantly becomes suspect.

Law can be quite funny can't it?