My first car accident!

[LillFilly]

Luckily, not with my own car!

So I'm doing my rounds in the security vehicle. I get flagged-down, so I pull into one of the rows behind the guy's car (So passenger side is facing his row). He's asking me a question, then suddenly he and his passenger start yelling "Yo! Yo! Yo!"

Then I caught movement on my other side. I turn and see BLUE in my window. It's a BIG van backing-up. I stick my hand out the window waving and sort of gasping "No! NO!" I realized hey, my hand's not going to do much, and laid-on the horn, snatching my hand back just as the van crunched my Driver's side door. The guys I were talking to are just...staring open-mouthed. I get out of my vehicle and watch as this annoyed-looking soccer mom gets out of the van. I had to go through a process of calling my boss (company vehicle), the police, getting a coworker to bring the camera for the damage report, etc. The whole time the woman just...looked annoyed. I finally got to getting her information and she says really snotty "Do you mind if I wait in the van, I have 3-small children in there."

I asked her if they were ok. She said they were fine. I tried to make small talk, but she didn't say more than 5-words to me. Her statement to the police was "I was backing-up and I never saw her. I didn't even know I hit her."

Ummm...yeah. Bright colored security vehicle, flashing lights, the soft marshmellow squish of my side panels, I'm completely invisible. Luckily, the side mirror is the kind that folds-in and just had a scuff mark. But her bumper put a beautiful dent in the door along with lovely blue transfer. She had a nice mirror-shaped dent on the back of her van.

We finally got the paperwork sorted-out and she drives off with no sorry or anything. We got the call from her insurance not an hour later. I wonder what line she fed them?

[mikoyan29]

I used to drive a Cavalier and I was behind a big assed van that decided to back up on me. I didn't even realize what he was up to until it was too late. *Crunch* He said he didnt' realize I was behind him until he looked in the rear view mirror and saw my Red Wing flag flapping in the breeze. Fortunately, he was pretty cool about the whole thing and admitted he was at fault. So we exchanged insurance information. And I found out that even though MIchigan is a no fault state, I can call his insurance for my deductible. (Small Tort or something like that).

[blas]

What is a no fault state?

Is that where each driver is a percentage at fault? (as in, even if you were the one who got smacked, you are still like 10% at fault just for being there?)

[mikoyan29]

What is a no fault state?

Is that where each driver is a percentage at fault? (as in, even if you were the one who got smacked, you are still like 10% at fault just for being there?)

Theoretically it means that noone is at fault for the accident.

[crazylegs]

I wonder what line she fed them?

Doesn't really matter bearing mind the statement she gave to the police!

[mikoyan29]

Sorry about by my weak explanation. Basically no fault means that my insurance will pay my claim regardless of whether I am at fault or not. If I am at fault, that would mean that my premiums would go up at the next go around. I can only turn around and sue for whatever is not covered by my insurance (i.e., my deductible). so basically the other person's insurance covers his part of the claim and my insurance covers mine. Legally, everyone in the state is required to have insurance.

[Nohbody]

Doesn't really matter bearing mind the statement she gave to the police!

Ultimately, that may be the case, but in the short term, what she told her insurance company could result in a hassle of an uncertain amount of time.

The specifics vary depending on the agent and insurance company, but they tend to give the customer's report a bit more weight, initially, and there's generally no real punishment, fiscal or otherwise, for said customer giving their insurance company a snowjob that takes time to sort out.

[blas]

Your insurance premium will only go up because of the ticket you get (you usually get some sort of fine when you're at fault) if you get lucky and are at fault with a criminal or a lunatic who doesn't file a claim against you in time

Gee, he threw such a tantrum when the accident happened.....one week from today, it will have been a year....and still NO claim!

[LewisLegion]

I had someone back into me once. I was pulling into a tiny parking lot when I saw this massive truck's backup lights go on. So I stopped...over the sidewalk and only partially into the parking lot. I can't back up because traffic is now piled up behind me. Can't go forward because there's not enough room to get around him without hitting him. So I wait, hoping he'll actually...I dunno, look BACKWARD or something.

Course he doesn't. He keeps inching toward me. I lay on my horn. Loud enough and long enough for people in the store to look out the windows to figure out what the noise is about. He keeps moving back, very slowly. I look at my sister and tell her 'you know, he's gonna hit us.' She says, 'yup'.

Then he does. His bumper was just high enough to shove my hood back and fold it up like an accordian. He gets out and of course his first words are 'I didn't see you'.

Cops ended up citing him for unsafe backing, I pushed my hood back down and went about my day

[mikoyan29]

Actually it's entirely possible he didn't see you. I forget which news show I was watching, buy they hid like about 20 or so people behind a typical SUV.

[Geek King]

Actually it's entirely possible he didn't see you. I forget which news show I was watching, buy they hid like about 20 or so people behind a typical SUV.

Only if the mirrors are poorly adjusted, the driver doesn't turn his head at all, and the pedestrians are crouching below the back window (either on purpose, or rather short.). I've driven my dad's Grand Cherokee several times, and it isn't that hard to see people behind you unless they're trying not to be seen/not paying attention.

Remember, it's not unusual for news shows to exagerate (or outright lie) about those "safety reports." A couple were even sued over SUV rollover tests where they sabotaged the vehicle when it wouldn't roll like they wanted it to. I remember another where the news crew got nailed for using igniters to set off a fuel tank explosion. Believe nothing that you read, and only half of what you see.

[mikoyan29]

Only if the mirrors are poorly adjusted, the driver doesn't turn his head at all, and the pedestrians are crouching below the back window (either on purpose, or rather short.). I've driven my dad's Grand Cherokee several times, and it isn't that hard to see people behind you unless they're trying not to be seen/not paying attention.

Remember, it's not unusual for news shows to exagerate (or outright lie) about those "safety reports." A couple were even sued over SUV rollover tests where they sabotaged the vehicle when it wouldn't roll like they wanted it to. I remember another where the news crew got nailed for using igniters to set off a fuel tank explosion. Believe nothing that you read, and only half of what you see.

They were using an Excursion or whatever the GM version of that is (Suburban?) and given the way the back end is designed and how high they sit off the ground, I can see where a person could get hidden behind them. Especially if as you said, they don't look around behind them or check to make sure their mirrors are properly adjusted. I think there is a group somewhere that is pushing for TV monitors for the backend of some of these because there have been a number of kids run over. If you look at some of the backwindows of the crossover vehicles (Edge, Aztek, etc.), those look barely bigger than a tank slit, so I could see where those might be a problem too.

[LewisLegion]

It wasn't an SUV, it was a huge pickup truck...not sure what kind (I suck at car types) but it was frickin' big. I drive a corolla and its bumper was literally even with my hood (which is why it bent it the way it did). Had he been backing any faster he could have killed us both by driving my hood and his bumper up into my windshield. Fortunately he was just inching along and even then, he had enough mass to fold my hood in half.

But even if he couldn't see me, he should have heard me. I was leaning on the horn and people IN THE BUILDING he was parked in front of heard me enough to come looking and see what the noise was.

He was, simply, not paying attention.

[Pagan]

I can see where a person could get hidden behind them.

But a car is bigger than a single person.

Hell, I almost got creamed by a semi coming home from work last night. Not only did he not obviously not see me, he was coming out from somewhere he shouldn't have had the damn thing.

[LillFilly]

It just bothers me that this happens wayyyyy too often. I mean, people have come close before, but now it's like they just don't even bother to look at all, and if they see you and stop themselves, they get mad at you! Yes, I used my mind abilities to tell that you would be backing-up like a bat out of hell as soon as I got behind you.

People like this make me almost paranoidally careful when I'm backing-up; you also have the people who just don't look to see you backing-up and walk/drive right into you!