Traffic Accident

[warpedskydiver 0]

I was recently in an accident where I struck the back of a minivan at 5mph due to solid ice 4" thick on the pavement.

I checked the driver and occupant and they were alright and did not want to call the cops.

I now have found out a week later that they have filed a lawsuit and the driver say she cannot walk.

I am kinda glad that I called the cops, but one of the cops ( a fat slob ) decided he HAD to give me a ticket. (too fast for conditions)

He stated " the law requires that I assess the blame for the accident"

I know he is full of shit and that I will get the ticket dismissed but I am really pissed that the two thiefs in the van are now wanting a HUGE amount of money so far.

They did not even spill their cokes and continued eating their sandwiches after the bump.

I bet someone is saying " I gotsta get mine "

[Stumpy 284]

Good luck dude - people like this are why i pay so much for my insurance

Never try to eat more than you can lift

[wmw999 2,589]

That really sucks, and people like that suck. Good luck to you. I hope you were nice to the cops, because now they're your witnesses that things were fine right after the accident.

You might want to get the body shop to estimate the speed of hitting from the damage (or lack thereof) to your car.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[steveorino 7]

Very likely, or their symptoms didn't manifest immediately.

Several years ago a kid slid off an exit ramp and rear ended a car that rear ended my wife's car. My wife's car sustained several thousand dollars damage to rear bumper and frame, but it didn't look that bad. She left with only muscle soreness. An hour or so later she was crying in pain. Her back was broken. Their insurance refused to pay anything. We only wanted her medical bills paid. No pain & suffering, just pay the bills. They refused. We took them to court and received a settlement well over the medical bills. Of course, 1/2 went to her lawyer and today she is getting an MRI on her back as even years later she deals with the pain. No real winners and losers.

I hope you have good insurance.

steveOrino

[rehmwa 2]

Tough situation

Accident - I don't think you should get the ticket dismissed. In a rear ending situation, you are at fault for the accident (ice or not, speed or not, it doesn't matter we are responsible for driving and adjusting for conditions and not following too closely). The icy conditions, though, could be used to mitigate the amount of the fine.

Let's not confuse that with the lawsuit thing.

Lawsuit - Tough luck. I hope they are faking and you can prove it. If they are, they are scum and their actions are terrible. But you do have certain facts on your side.

1 - they didn't want the cops nor thought it necessary
2 - you brought the cops and they are your witnesses, good thing you don't have a stereotyped chip on your shoulder like some posters. NOT being rude to them and calling them racists and pigs and crooked just because they are present will go along way to them being fair witness.
3 - You have your car and the damage to it and a body shop can estimate the speed at which "you struck them". If it's really 5 mph, then your statement that they didn't even spill a drink is supported.
4 - you can always take their claims and have a lawyer do a search on their medical and legal history.
5 - Hopefully, you have pictures of the roadway and the damage to their car. The icy conditions will go a long way to mitigating anything above and beyond just medical bills and repairs.

too bad, it's another reason I drive safe and don't get close, you never know who the idiot or crook is in front or behind you

(I was rear ended last year, a line of cars was panic braking. I got through the ice and avoided hitting the car in front of me. The guy behind me was following too close and he couldn't stop. His insurance paid for the entire car repair as it should have. I was hit at quite a bit more than 5 pmh, and didn't have any personal medical problems.)

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[justinb138 0]

I had something similar happen 5 or 6 years ago.

I was a few feet behind someone at a stoplight, my foot slipped off of the brake (was stopped), and I tapped the car in front of me.

No police were called or anything, I gave him my info, etc...

The guy told the insurance company that he had a neck injury, frame damage to the truck (a decade-old ford ranger), and that it was a show truck (it was a big piece o' crap).

The insurance company paid him a little over $200 to replace the (plastic) bumper that had been scratched

• Quote

[jcd11235 0]

About four years ago, I was following car in fairly heavy traffic. My following space quickly disappeared when someone decided to utilize it in order to change lanes. Quickly thereafter, that person had to stop suddenly, and I no longer had adequate space to stop, resulting in me rear ending the vehicle in front of me.

From a legal standpoint, it was my fault. I wasn't that happy, since I had been trying to leave adequate distance. However, that is exactly why I pay insurance, so it didn't seem like a huge deal at the time.

An ambulance was called (by whom?), but all parties refused medical treatment on the scene.

About a year and a half later, I received a court summons, informing me I was being sued for medical damages. To me, the suit appeared o be bogus.

In Florida, drivers are responsible for their own and their passengers' injuries via Personal Injury Protection. That being the case, I had no Bodily Injury Liability insurance, and thus no insurance policy to cover legal representation.

I talked to a couple of attorneys, one during a paid consultation, and one during a free consultation. The attorney I paid to talk to (who was not interested in taking the case) advised me to settle the lawsuit, since I would likely lose, and legal fees would end up doubling (or more) the amount I would owe. In his opinion it was better to settle first.

The attorney I spoke to for free, who was also not interested in taking the case, told me I could fight the suit myself, without an attorney, and advised me of some of my rights, should I do so.

Long story short, I successfully defended myself, so the lawsuit ended up costing me only about $20 in postage and printing fees.

Your mileage may vary, but I am not a big fan of settlements when I know I'm not in the wrong. Good Luck.

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!

[lawrocket 3]

In most states, the driver who rear-ended is presumed to be at fault. If so, most states also will consider you "per se" negligent.

Your insurance will cover you. Hopefully, your lawyer will be smart and only contest damages.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[kallend 2,150]

I was rear-ended by a truck some 13 years ago. No symptoms on the day, couldn't hold my head up next morning (or for the next week).

Didn't sue anyone though...

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[Nightingale 0]

Soft-tissue injuries can be really tricky, and, like others have said, can show up days/weeks after the incident. Or, the driver could be faking it. You don't know. Being able or not able to walk is a pretty easy thing to spot, though... I'd bet if she's faking that a PI could get a great photo of her at the grocery store.

I'm not sure what state you're in, but I know that in California, with a rear-end collision, there's almost always an excessive speed violation, because if the car in front of you is stopped, your only safe speed is zero. (my brother has gotten four such tickets...you'd think he'd learn). That cop may not be as "full of shit" as you think.

[nathaniel 0]

Boo. People are so dumb sometimes.

I was in a t-bone accident a couple years ago. The other driver voluntarily helped to push my car out of the intersection. The rear axle was disabled and the wheels were locked--it took several people to push it. Then he had the guts to file for a back injury a month later.

Praise the lawd for insurance companies, mine sorted it out and I've not heard a thing since (other than the claim was closed).

My advice is to do what your parents did; get a job, sir. The bums will always lose. Do you hear me, Lebowski?

[DJL 235]

I don't understand why there isn't a limitation of liability on things like this.

"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

[Andy9o8 2]

Quote

I don't understand why there isn't a limitation of liability on things like this.

There are:

1. Statutes of Limitations.
2. Pretrial motions for summary judgment.
3. Trial by jury, as guaranteed by the Constitution.

Notwithstanding all the tired, old, sloganistic bashing, you'd be surprised at just how many personal injury cases result in summary judgment in favor of the defense (i.e., the plaintiff's claims being dismissed) prior to trial, and defense verdicts at trial. It's a lot. But just like newspapers don't do stories on successful cutaways and only do stories on accidents, they also very rarely do "sensational" stories on defense verdicts; they usually only report the big verdicts, giving the public the mistaken impression (which they lap up eagerly) that that's the norm.

[livendive 8]

I lost control of my truck on black ice about two years ago and hit a concrete barrier. The road looked basically bare and wet, and traffic was moving at normal speed for 5 PM on a Friday. When I got out to assess the damage I fell on my ass...it was a solid sheet of ice and cars were flying by me at 50+ mph. My bumper was bent into my tire, so I got back in the truck, put my seat belt on, and ran the engine just for airbag purposes (It was an elevated freeway with no shoulder). A cop showed up about half an hour later, I got out and cautioned him that it was slicker than it looked, (I would later hear that line quoted in court). He did the penguin-walk up to look at my front-end, and didn't write me a ticket, but did write up an accident report for my insurance claim. A few weeks later I got a ticket for "speed too fast for conditions" in the mail...some desk-jockey saw the accident report and wrote me a ticket, signing in the spot where I would normally acknowledge receipt, putting "n/a" in the "___ mph in a ___ zone", and not writing a date of issue (so I had 14 days to respond but didn't know the start date). The ticket was for $151, but that didn't really matter to me...it was concern for what the 3 point driving infraction would do to my rates on top of an accident". I pleaded not-guilty and went to traffic court. Kept not taking deals till at the last minute the DA offered to change the ticket to "expired tabs" (a non-moving violation) and reduce the fine to $75. I accepted because the judge had just found against someone with a similar story and a non-moving violation wouldn't hurt my premiums. Since I was the last person, court was adjourned and I asked the judge for his opinion off the books. I told him what my story would have been and he said that I made the right move. Basically, if a driver fails to control their vehicle in adverse weather conditions, he's going to find them guilty of too fast for conditions. I told him that I've previously slid off a road from a dead stop, due to the slight slope for rainwater runoff, he said that if I was moving sideways at 0.5 mph and can't control the vehicle, that's obviously still too fast. He finally did say that there were mitigating circumstances he would accept, such as a tire blow-out at a crucial moment, but they are very, very rare.

Good luck beating the ticket. Honestly, if you couldn't stop moving forward before hitting the other vehicle, it does sound like you were either driving too fast for conditions or following too closely.

Blues,
Dave

"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!"
(drink Mountain Dew)

[warpedskydiver 0]

the vehicle in front of me also had slid until it hit dry pavement

I guess I must be a worse driver than everyone else on the road.

[livendive 8]

Quote

the vehicle in front of me also had slid until it hit dry pavement

I guess I must be a worse driver than everyone else on the road.

Apparently no worse than me...

Edit: And telling the court that everyone else was speeding too is unlikely to garner much mercy.

Blues,
Dave

"I AM A PROFESSIONAL EXTREME ATHLETE!"
(drink Mountain Dew)

[orribolollie 0]

Yeah, out of order totally. Feel for you.

Lost of the days of innocence in the UK to. It has become a regular money spinner hear to be 'rear ended' intentionally. I kid you not.

Certain youths are going out in their worthless old cars to intentionally exploit the rear end rule ie. you crash into my ass you pay.

In short slamming on their brakes to cause a crash; then starting legal proceedings such as whiplash claim etc.

Hopefully in your case karma will get the flat slobs in question. With any luck they will be to busy stuffing their faces with sandwiches and collide into someone else rear end.