Hit in the rear while turning off the road (UK) who is at fault?

[maxxev]

Hi. UK driver.

To get right to the point:
My road is on the bend of a busy main road with traffic lights about 20 meters ahead, just visible from the left hand lane when travelling towards the lights.

Was turning from the main road into my road (right).
A car had just turned into my road.
There was no on-coming traffic in the other direction and the traffic lights ahead had turned red,
I turned right into my road but the car in front was forced to stop (due to oncoming traffic in the middle of the road (passing parked cars), I was then also forced to stop while still being VERY partially in the left hand lane of the main road.
At this point I was hit from behind, very gently on my far left lumper by his far right bumper.

The damage is to the bumper, but because they are all integral these days it needs to be entirely replaced.

Who would you say is at fault?
Though I do think there is no way someone should have hit me as I was NOT going fast and obviously had not even left the road by the time they started accelerating.

[Andy09]

The driver who hit you is at fault, driving with undue care and attention.

[ummmm]

If the driver hit you from behind then it is their fault.

[bednobs]

where did the person in the left lane come from

[EcclesCake]

If I've read this right you took the turn but the road ahead wasn't clear for you to complete your manouevre. If this is the case and you were hit because you were blocking the road then I would suggest that it is at best a 50/50.

[andy-hughes]

I would agree that if you were hit from behind, it's the other driver's fault.

The reason why you were positioned anywhere in the road is not an issue - all drivers are mandated to be able to stop within the distance they can see to be clear.

[maxxev]

Hi,

Eccles you do read correctly, and I did wonder that myself, I did turn into the road while at the moment there was a car already moving down that road. So therefore technically the road was not clear when I turned into it, however the car that was forced to stop infront of me did have right of way.
One could argue that the cause of the accident was the person coming the other way on my road when they did not have right of way.

[ummmm]

Either way...if a car is in the road you're not allowed to hit it...

[boxtops]

In the first instance, the car which strikes you in the rear is at fault. This happened to us on a slip road - someone struck us quite hard in the rear and drove us into the rear of the car in front. There was a chain of 5 cars in the accident, each claimed from the one behind them - we all passed it to our insurers and it was the chap at the back, who didn't stop in time, whose insurers settled all the claims.

[joko]

it si sirrelevant why you were blocking the road...you are entitled to stop your car wherever and whenever you need if you can not proceed any further...the road was blocked that is not your fault

the driver behind should have been driving at the decent distamnce behind and should not have preempted your movements

he is at fault - no question

[Count-A-Strong]

I think everyone is assuming that the car which hit maxxev was also wanting to turn into the road, whereas clarification is required as to whether it was actually coming down the road (thru the traffic lights) in the opposite direction to which maxxev was travelling BEFORE he made the turn. If the latter is the case then i think the driver who hit maxxev could argue that maxxev should not have attempted to turn into the road until he knew it was clear.

[ChuckFickens]

I was thinking the same as you count...

If you were turning right across a lane of traffic and where hit by somebody coming the other way (i.e. you pulled across in front of them) then you should have made sure you could complete the manoeuvre before starting to turn so potentially your fault or 50/50

If you were hit by somebody who was travelling behind you then they should have made sure they left enough room to stop so their fault.

[joko]

i assumed they were continuing on the same road...they seem to have just continued past assuming the car in fromt will be gone by the time they git to it...that is their mistake...

they passed too closely an should have slowed...

[ljdksa]

yes, he says there was no oncoming traffic, so must have been going same direction

[EcclesCake]

Not everyone was making that assumption Count ;-)

Max, I agree you could argue the point about the person not giving way but I suspect you would be entering the realms of butterflies beating their wings in the Amazon etc,etc...

[ChuckFickens]

It that was the case, joko then firstly, as the OP was turning right and they claim they were only sticking out a little bit then they would have been on the opposite side of the road to anyone continuing past from behind them, also the collision would not have been on the left hand side of the OPs car, it would have been on the right side.

[Count-A-Strong]

sorry eccles!
chuck - I think the OP is not quite telling the whole truth. I would bet that they had only just finished making the manouver when they were hit by a car coming down the road.

[ChuckFickens]

Yeah, it's not quite ringing true is it CAS.

If there was no oncoming traffic I can't see how they can be hit on the left hand side while doing a right turn.

[EcclesCake]

Fair point guys! If there was no oncoming traffic how did a car collide with Max?

Max, you need to clarify as this is getting confusing!

[maxxev]

I was struck by the car behind.
There was no traffic coming towards me from the other direction.
I had not cleared the left hand lane with my car before I was forced to make the emergency stop.
To clarify I was hit on the REAR left-hand side of my bumper by the right-hand front corner of theirs.

if it helps here is the road in google maps, it's about the angle I was entering the road from too.
As it is a country village the lanes are not very wide at all therefore when I was forced to make the stop I was still in the left hand lane whist having entered into the side road, I probably COULD have gone a little further in, I had left a good stopping distance between me and the car in front after my emergency stop.
http://maps.google.co...num=1&ved=0CBYQ8gEwAA

(I hope that link works)