Comparative fault-car accident in a parking lot.

[daughtersrus]

About 2 weeks ago I was in an accident in a strip mall parking lot. I was driving down an aisle to leave the mall and a lady pulled out of a parking spot and hit the front side panel on the driver's side.

The police were called and a report was made. The officer told me that she admitted not seeing me and was at fault.

We're having the car fixed under our insurance (State Farm) now.
Her insurance (Allstate) called for a statement. I gave them one. Some questions were odd. Why was I even at the store? My answer: shopping.
How many car lengths away was she when I saw her? My answer: a few feet since she pulled out of a parking spot.
What did I do to avoid the accident? My answer: stop the car.
State Farm says thay Allstate determined that I'm 20% at fault for being in the parking lot and not seeing her. They say that the parking lot was empty. It wasn't empty but she was parked with no cars on either side because she said she didn't want anyone to dig her doors. She also said to me that she didn't see me at all.

State Farm said that they will fight on my behalf to get them to pay all of the bills and get my deductible back. If they find that I'm at fault at all, do we pay our entire deductible or is it the % that of fault?

So frustrating because there was nothing I could do to avoid the accident. She hit the side of my car. I didn't hit her. The car is less than a year old!

 

[SharonZ]

That's common, let State Farm fight your battles for you - I believe that they call the process subrogation. They will battle AllState to get your deductible back, not sure about where the 20% fault applies, though.

 

[piccolopat]

You had a legal right to be in that parking lot. You had the undisputed right of way since you were in the traffic lane and she was in a parking spot. If she pulled out in front of you and you hit her door they might be able to argue that you were partially at fault. The fact that she hit you on the side seems to indicate she is fully responsible. However a part of the problem may be how you answered the question on what you did to avoid the accident. If you saw her pulling out, did you stop and then she hit you? If this is the case, they might argue that if you didn't stop maybe you would have passed the spot she was pulling out of and not had the accident. Or did you stop after she hit you and there really was nothing you could have done to prevent the accident?

 

[Klayfish]

daughtersrus, this is what I do for a living.

What Allstate is doing, as far as taking your statement, is standard practice. None of the questions they asked you would alarm me. Each company is going to do their own investigation into liability. Remember, the police do not determine liability, the insurance company does.

Since you went to State Farm, they will pursue Allstate for recovery of the damages, including your deductible. Yes, it is called subrogation. That is why Allstate wanted to speak to you. Clearly they recognize they may owe something...it depends on what state you're in, which you didn't mention. They're trying to see if there is any comparative negligence. Again, your venue matters. If State Farm and Allstate can't come to an agreement on liability, State Farm will file arbitration. It's basically like court for insurance companies...keeps things like this from clogging up the legal system even more than it already is. That arbitration decision is binding.

What State Farm does from there is a business decision on their part. If they recover 80% of your damages, they may refund 80% of your deductible. However, often if they get enough recovery, they'll refund your entire deductible and just "eat" the part they didn't recover.

From the info you gave, I can see the angle that Allstate is looking at...it's called "last clear chance". Hard to say if I'd agree, without knowing all the details, but I probably wouldn't try to put 20% on you based on what you've mentioned...it would be tough sledding to prove in arbitration...but again, I don't know all the facts.

Hope this helps, and don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

About 2 weeks ago I was in an accident in a strip mall parking lot. I was driving down an aisle to leave the mall and a lady pulled out of a parking spot and hit the front side panel on the driver's side.

The police were called and a report was made. The officer told me that she admitted not seeing me and was at fault.

We're having the car fixed under our insurance (State Farm) now.
Her insurance (Allstate) called for a statement. I gave them one. Some questions were odd. Why was I even at the store? My answer: shopping.
How many car lengths away was she when I saw her? My answer: a few feet since she pulled out of a parking spot.
What did I do to avoid the accident? My answer: stop the car.
State Farm says thay Allstate determined that I'm 20% at fault for being in the parking lot and not seeing her. They say that the parking lot was empty. It wasn't empty but she was parked with no cars on either side because she said she didn't want anyone to dig her doors. She also said to me that she didn't see me at all.

State Farm said that they will fight on my behalf to get them to pay all of the bills and get my deductible back. If they find that I'm at fault at all, do we pay our entire deductible or is it the % that of fault?

So frustrating because there was nothing I could do to avoid the accident. She hit the side of my car. I didn't hit her. The car is less than a year old!

I was found 40% at fault for hitting a pedestrian. I was in the left turn lane, with a green arrow, and the pedestrian ran between cars stopped in the 3 lanes (1 right turn + 2 straight, same side of the road). She was injured, my car damaged, but I was partially at fault (total bs) because I was able to swerve to the left an inch or two to avoid hitting her with the front bumper (instead, hit her with the side of the car). Couldn't go over any further, as there was oncoming traffic (from turning right at the corner) and I hit my brakes as soon as I saw her out of the corner of my eye.

My insurance didn't go up for that accident, but with my husband being rear-ended at a red light by a uninsured driver (who hit the guy behind him hard enough that he hit DH and caused my car to hit the car in front of it) a few months prior and my totalling the car (left hand turn and got smacked by a guy going the wrong direction and speeding) 4 months later, my insurance went from $250 every 6 months to $250 a month. Screw you, Geico. 2006 was a bad year.

 

[tvguy]

I was found 40% at fault for hitting a pedestrian. I was in the left turn lane, with a green arrow, and the pedestrian ran between cars stopped in the 3 lanes (1 right turn + 2 straight, same side of the road). She was injured, my car damaged, but I was partially at fault (total bs) because I was able to swerve to the left an inch or two to avoid hitting her with the front bumper (instead, hit her with the side of the car). Couldn't go over any further, as there was oncoming traffic (from turning right at the corner) and I hit my brakes as soon as I saw her out of the corner of my eye.
.

My neighbor was stopped at a stop sign and a bike rider going the wrong way ran into the side of his truck. Entirely the bike rider's fault. He sued. Neighbor's insurance offered the guy $20,000 to settle which he accepted. My neighbor was livid, but his insurance said they knew he wasn't at fault but it would cost $100,000 to prove it in court. Giving the guy $20,000 to go away was cheaper. At least his insurance premium didn't go up.

 

[daughtersrus]

daughtersrus, this is what I do for a living.

What Allstate is doing, as far as taking your statement, is standard practice. None of the questions they asked you would alarm me. Each company is going to do their own investigation into liability. Remember, the police do not determine liability, the insurance company does.

Since you went to State Farm, they will pursue Allstate for recovery of the damages, including your deductible. Yes, it is called subrogation. That is why Allstate wanted to speak to you. Clearly they recognize they may owe something...it depends on what state you're in, which you didn't mention. They're trying to see if there is any comparative negligence. Again, your venue matters. If State Farm and Allstate can't come to an agreement on liability, State Farm will file arbitration. It's basically like court for insurance companies...keeps things like this from clogging up the legal system even more than it already is. That arbitration decision is binding.

What State Farm does from there is a business decision on their part. If they recover 80% of your damages, they may refund 80% of your deductible. However, often if they get enough recovery, they'll refund your entire deductible and just "eat" the part they didn't recover.

From the info you gave, I can see the angle that Allstate is looking at...it's called "last clear chance". Hard to say if I'd agree, without knowing all the details, but I probably wouldn't try to put 20% on you based on what you've mentioned...it would be tough sledding to prove in arbitration...but again, I don't know all the facts.

Hope this helps, and don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions.

Thanks for the info. State Farm called to discuss our DD's special needs car seat that was in the car so I asked for more information as to what Allstate is saying. She said that Allstate is now saying I'm 15% at fault for improper lookout. They said that they still believe that the other lady is 100% at fault. She said that the damage on the cars will show.

They said that I need to pay for the car seat and then submit the invoice for reimbursement. The car seat is well over $1000. I'm just afraid that we will deny the claim because of the cost. Anything special need costs 3 times what over the counter items cost.

Since we're in IL, even if they find me 1%at fault, we will probably not get out deductible back from Allstate.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

Thanks for the info. State Farm called to discuss our DD's special needs car seat that was in the car so I asked for more information as to what Allstate is saying. She said that Allstate is now saying I'm 15% at fault for improper lookout. They said that they still believe that the other lady is 100% at fault. She said that the damage on the cars will show.

They said that I need to pay for the car seat and then submit the invoice for reimbursement. The car seat is well over $1000. I'm just afraid that we will deny the claim because of the cost. Anything special need costs 3 times what over the counter items cost.

Since we're in IL, even if they find me 1%at fault, we will probably not get out deductible back from Allstate.

If not, could you sue the other driver for the OOP costs? I'm not sure about the laws in IL.

 

[DVC-Don]

If your company is covering the damages you should not have given the other company a statement. But, the toothpaste is out of the tube now. (7 years as an accident investigator for State Farm and 23 years as an agent.)

 

[daughtersrus]

If your company is covering the damages you should not have given the other company a statement. But, the toothpaste is out of the tube now.

I called State Farm before I spoke to Allstate. They said it was standard practice to get recorded statements from both parties. They also have a recorded statement from the lady that hit me.

 

[xlxo]

I'm 20% at fault

20%? In my state.... anything less than 25% is rounded to zero. The other party is charged 100%.

Avoiding the accident? Love my dashcam.... a dashcam would have proven that your vehicle was at a complete stop and for how long. Would have saved you beaucoup lawyer and court costs. Video evidence keeps everyone honest.

 

[Vijoge]

Thanks for the info. State Farm called to discuss our DD's special needs car seat that was in the car so I asked for more information as to what Allstate is saying. She said that Allstate is now saying I'm 15% at fault for improper lookout. They said that they still believe that the other lady is 100% at fault. She said that the damage on the cars will show.

They said that I need to pay for the car seat and then submit the invoice for reimbursement. The car seat is well over $1000. I'm just afraid that we will deny the claim because of the cost. Anything special need costs 3 times what over the counter items cost.

Since we're in IL, even if they find me 1%at fault, we will probably not get out deductible back from Allstate.

Where did a car seat come into this? I thought the front passenger side quarter panel of your car got hit.

 

[Skippy918]

Most carseat manufacturers have a replace on accident listed in the manual no matter how minor.

 

[John VN]

Most carseat manufacturers have a replace on accident listed in the manual no matter how minor.

Of course they do......cha-ching!!!! for the company.

note-my bolding

 

[Klayfish]

Thanks for the info. State Farm called to discuss our DD's special needs car seat that was in the car so I asked for more information as to what Allstate is saying. She said that Allstate is now saying I'm 15% at fault for improper lookout. They said that they still believe that the other lady is 100% at fault. She said that the damage on the cars will show.

They said that I need to pay for the car seat and then submit the invoice for reimbursement. The car seat is well over $1000. I'm just afraid that we will deny the claim because of the cost. Anything special need costs 3 times what over the counter items cost.

Since we're in IL, even if they find me 1%at fault, we will probably not get out deductible back from Allstate.

The damage may or may not help show negligence. Sometimes it can, simply for point of impact. Other times, it's useless. The car seat should be covered as part of your auto claim with State Farm. Check your policy to see if it's excluded. Could be, but I'd be surprised. If it is in fact excluded, present the claim to Allstate. If they're accepting 85% negligence right off the bat, that means they should offer you at least 85% of the cash value of the car seat. And no, that's not true that if you're found 1% at fault, you won't recovery. IL negligence law is 51% bar. So unless you're 51% at fault or more, you can recover.

If your company is covering the damages you should not have given the other company a statement. But, the toothpaste is out of the tube now. (7 years as an accident investigator for State Farm and 23 years as an agent.)

Since you were an investigator, you know that's not good advice. In fact, the opposite is typically (but not ALWAYS) true. They need to do an investigation into liability. You refuse to tell your side of the story, and they're left with a one sided investigation.

20%? In my state.... anything less than 25% is rounded to zero. The other party is charged 100%.

Don't know what state you're in, but that's definitely not accurate. No state has a negligence law like that.

Pedestrian/bicycle cases are really tough. Courts tend to look favorably upon pedestrians, regardless of what liability may seem. They're tough to deny. To tvguys' point, any plaintiff attorney worth his or her salt knows that it would cost an insurance company a fortune to defend a case like that...only to wind up with a good chance of getting slammed in court. It's cheaper and less risky to all involved (including their policy holder) to settle.

 

[cabanafrau]

Of course they do......cha-ching!!!! for the company.

note-my bolding

I understand your point and agree in these circumstances. However, now step into the shoes of the seat manufacturer, who could be assigned some liability if a child is injured in their seat during another accident and the facts of that accident show the child wouldn't have been injured at all or only received minor injury, but for the unexplained failure of the seat to perform properly. The seat may not have been defective and lead to the child's injuries, the seat may in fact have been damaged in a previous accident in some way no one saw or noticed and now that liability has transformed into manufacturer's liability of defect.

Completely understand that makes no sense in this case, but documenting and keeping track of all of that would be far too cumbersome for insurance carriers and carseat manufacturers.