Home > Research Legal Advice > Car / Auto Accident > Fault? Car A had a minor accident with car B on the freeway. "A" disabl...
Asked 4 months ago - Roseville, CA
FlagCar C (my car) driving at 65-70 miles/hr in the fast lane did not see car A well at 10 PM since it was dark and there was no emergency light. I tried to avoid car A by turning sharp to the right and bearly scratched car A. My car totalled and I sustained minor injuries. Who is at fault? Do I have a chance?
Both of you may be at fault. You for driving too fast for the conditions and the other car for failing to turn his emergency lights. However, if the emergency lights were on earlier but the battery had ran out, then he should have set some emergency candles. Nevertheless, Car A was on the shoulder and you were on the road. You will be comparatively at fault. Best of luck.
It sounds like it is 100% fault on the disabled car. You came upon it in the dark while you were driving the speed limit (65 mph). The other vehicle had no emergency lights on. You hit that car tat was sticking out in the road which caused all of your damages and injuries. You should report it to your insurance carrier as a no fault accident. Be careful what you say to he other party's carrier. You need to speak to a personal injury attorney right away to strategize and review your injuries as well. I like your case and think you would be wise to vigorously pursue it. Good luck!
Sounds like you both were at fault though I would place more fault on the vehicle parked in the road. A person is required to move a disabled vehicle safely off the road in situations such as this when at all possible. Sounds like a busy interstate so all the more reason to move it.
I would definitely hire a lawyer to investigate, get your property damage taken care of with the other cars insurance and get checked out medically just to be safe.
Good Luck.
It is likely that you will be deemed some percentage of fault. There are experts and other evidence that you could gather but if you only sustained minor injuries it probably is not worth your time or expenses to hire such people to prove you were not at fault. Even with this evidence since you did not really have any contact with the other vehicle, it is likely you would be deemed a large percentage of fault. These are types of claims where you have to weight the economics of a claim compared to the recovery. There are some claims like these that may be worth pursuing if the injuries are serious. In your case, the costs of proving you were not at fault are likely to be more than what you would recover. I would report it to your insurance company. It would still not hurt to speak to an injury lawyer in California who could more fully explain to you your rights. Good luck. At least you only sustained minor injuries.
It sounds like there may be fault on both sides here. It is a violation of the California Vehicle Code to stop a vehicle on the freeway without turning on the emergency flashers. You may be deemed "comparatively" at fault but, you should speak further with an attorney (on the phone or in person) about potential claims if you were injured.
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