Why the heck are you backing up?!!..

[partsgrunt]

So on my lunch break today, I had to tear across town to the supermarket and pick up fixings for the weekly Wednesday night dinner... myself and a variable number of friends always meet up and rotate dinner duties. This week, it was my turn to cook.

Anyhow, I was looking at the news and figured gas prices might be poised to soar thanks to this hurricane in the South, so I swung into the gas station up the street to fill my car.

Leaving said gas station, I was behind a beat up Saab 9-7x, er, trailblazer, which had its right turn signal on and was waiting to turn onto the main road. I had my left signal on and was waiting behind this thing.

For no apparent reason, the reverse lights come on and he starts backing up, at a good clip. Mind you, I'm driving the first new vehicle I've ever owned, at 30 years old, after years of driving beaters. For reference, a VW GTI in a dark shade of blue. (important later)



Horn, shift to reverse, glance in rearview, phewnobodysthere, floor it! I managed to save the front of my car somehow. Guy looked in the rearview as though nothing was amiss, and calmly drove off down the road. This with me still continuously laying on the horn and by now hollering obscenities, hehe.

I'm wondering if my car was low enough where he couldn't see me through the (factory) dark solar tinted rear window, hiding out near the bottom of his mirror's field of view and blending in with the fresh black pavement. I was a good 15-20ft behind him... so I shouldn't have been totally invisible, i wouldn't think.

What makes these people tick? Completely oblivious, stoned, drunk? I think it took ten minutes for my heart rate to return to normal!

[greek_jester]

I'm thinking insurance scam. Given the position, unless you managed to get CCTV footage to corroborate your story, he could have been trying to make it look like you rear-ended him so that he could get the cash for a new car.

[Chromatix]

Sounds like another good reason to fit a dashcam. Especially one that automatically saves the minute or so surrounding a sharp manoeuvre or impact.

[MadMike]

I had something like that happen last winter as I was arriving at the bar to do karaoke and to hang out with my friends. This bar has two parking lots -- one attached to the bar, and another one on the other side of the street. Most people park in the attached lot, unless it's full, in which case they'll park in the other lot.

I was following a small truck, who turned into the attached lot. I entered the lot behind him, and then realized that the lot was full. He apparently did the same, and started backing up quickly. It took me about a second to realize, "Oh shit! He doesn't know I'm behind him!" I wasn't quick enough to throw it into reverse, but I did lay on the horn, hoping he'd hear it and stop. No such luck. He kept moving back until..... CRUUUUUUUNCH!

I jumped out of my car and started cussing up a storm. The other guy jumed out and started yelling, "Oh shit! I am so sorry! I swear I didn't see you! Don't worry, I have good insurance! This will be taken care of!"

I calmed down a little bit after that, and we agreed to pull into the far lot and get the information I needed. He had a spare insurance car, and he told me I could keep it. He also gave me his phone number so I could call him in case there was a problem. He seemed nice enough, but I couldn't help feeling like I was going to get screwed over.

We both went inside, and I found out that he knew several of my friends, who assured me that he was a good guy and he wasn't going to let me get screwed over. I relaxed a little more after hearing that, and even started cracking jokes. My one friend said, "Well, I was gonna introduce you two, but it looks like you already know each other." I just chuckled and said, "Yeah, we ran into each other outside!"

The next day, I called his insurance company with the information. Turns out they're open 24/7, so I could have called right then and there. They took my information, and told me they'd call him to get his side of the story. They called me back a few minutes later and told me there was no problem, and he had admitted to being at fault. The company made arrangements to fix my car, and provided me with a rental. A week later, everything was back to normal.

I saw him again a couple weeks later, and he asked me if everything had been taken care of. I still run into... I mean see him from time to time, and we always have a good laugh over the incident.

[BrenDAnn]

I've been the person in the vehicle in front, backing into someone. In my defense, I was trying to back up to avoid getting run over by a semi making a turn into the drive I was sitting in. I just...didn't look behind myself, I guess. I didn't do much damage to either car, thankfully, but still...embarrassing!

[partsgrunt]

Sounds like another good reason to fit a dashcam. Especially one that automatically saves the minute or so surrounding a sharp manoeuvre or impact.

This. Ordered that afternoon, in fact. greek_jester's insurance scam comment, while not my first thought, was certainly rattling around in my head.

[partsgrunt]

Well, I hardwired the dash cam (windshield cam?)... it's beside my rearview mirror.

I'm not really thinking insurance scam, with regards to the Saablazer guy almost backing into me. I can say without hesitation that the front of my car would have been wrecked had i not thrown it in reverse, looked quickly, and stomped on the gas. I'm pretty sure now in retrospect that he'd nosed out onto the main road a bit too far and simply wanted to back up a bit. It had very recent plates on it, newer than my month old ones. Maybe he was just unfamiliar with the vehicle (being so large) and somehow forgot to look before backing, is my guess. I'm in a rural enough area where I'd like to think the insurance scam deal wouldn't be a common happening.