You were sitting at an intersection waiting for through traffic to pass. A car that was approaching was giving a signal, so you assumed to go, and you pulled out. However, that other vehicle did not stop and you were hit by that car. The other driver might not admit he or she was giving a signal, so it could become a he said, she said argument. There is a chance that you have witnesses who support your claim and saw the other driver giving a signal, but how the entire scenario works out could depend on how liability is divided.
If someone hits your car, you should stay on the scene and call the police, even if you think damages are minor and if no one seems to be injured. You will need to file an accident report to prove what happened and to have success with your personal injury claim.
Be sure to state only the facts – not opinions. The officer will need a statement from you and from the other driver. Any occupants in the vehicles may comment as well. If there are witnesses to the crash, be sure to ask them to provide you with written statements.
Get the names of witnesses and their contact details, as they may need to be contacted later to provide additional facts.
Exchange contact information and insurance details with the other driver. If possible, get photos of the accident scene and of the damages to the vehicles. If your vehicle must be towed, keep the tow bill and keep any rental car receipts, so you can make sure you get reimbursed for all the losses that pertain to your property damages.
Have your car inspected by a qualified auto repair facility and have them prepare an itemized written estimate that details that cost of repairing the damages to your vehicle.
If you have been involved in an accident, there are different kinds of fault that are dependent on the state laws. Most states are “fault” states when it comes to financial responsibility for a car accident, there are different kinds of fault.
The person who is at-fault is liable for the damages, and the losses of the other drivers, passengers, pedestrians, or anyone who is harmed by the accident.
Most states are fault-based, so if an accident happens in a in a fault, also known as tort, state, the at-fault driver’s insurance typically helps cover the costs for repairs, medical expenses, and other losses such as pain and suffering and lost earnings through their auto insurance liability coverage.
There are different kinds of negligence that can come into play depending on the state in which your crash takes place. Here is a rundown of the different kinds of negligence and how they affect an auto accident:
How Fault Comes Into Play When A Driver Signals and Doesn’t Turn
If a driver signals but doesn’t turn, then he or she may be completely at fault for the crash. In that case, then you can recover compensation for your damages, such as car repairs, lost wages, pain and suffering, medical expenses, and so forth. Complete the Free Case Evaluation to get in touch with a lawyer who may be able to help you dispute fault.
There are some situations in which you could be party to blame for an accident in which the other driver failed to turn after signaling. The police report completed after the accident will help determine fault and prove who is responsible for what happened.
Even if the other driver failed to turn after signaling, you could be partly to blame for pulling out into the path of the other car without waiting to see if the car was turning. There are many ways that you could be partially at fault.
Proving A Driver’s Negligence For Failing To Use A Turn Signal
For a successful personal injury claim, you will need to show that the other driver was negligence. There are four elements of negligence, and all four elements must be proven for your personal injury claim to succeed. Here are the four elements of negligence:
- Show that the other party owes you a duty or a responsibility
- Show that the duty was breached
- Show that the breach of duty caused the accident
- Show that the accident caused by the breach of duty led to your damages
Here are those four elements could apply to a situation in which a driver signaled and didn’t turn.
- First, every driver owes others a duty or a responsibility to protect them from harm, so they must drive safely and abide by the traffic laws.
- Secondly, if a driver doesn’t abide by traffic laws – in this case, if he doesn’t use his or her signal properly, they have breached that duty.
- If failing to signal properly causes an accident, then the third element – causation, has occurred.
- Then lastly, if your car is damaged and/or you are injured in the accident, then damages have resulted from the breach of duty.
To have a successful claim, you will need to show that the other driver was indeed using a turn signal when they did not turn off. The driver of the other vehicle may not admit their mistake, but you may be able to prove it if either vehicle was using a dash camera or if there were eyewitnesses.
Always ask witnesses to provide written statements regarding what they saw. You will also want to tell the responding officer what happened so it can be detailed in the police report.
The police officer will investigate the crash, and, also, your personal injury attorney will investigate. A nearby surveillance camera or traffic camera may have caught some – or all – of the accident on video and that could be used as evidence in the personal injury claim as well.
Always maintain as much evidence and documentation supporting your claim as possible. In this case, it may be difficult to prove that the other driver didn’t turn after having signaled that he or she was doing so.
When a driver signals and doesn’t turn, it can have serious consequences. You should always wait to make sure that the other vehicle is actually turning, or you may end up pulling into the path of a vehicle that is going straight through.
That could lead to a T-bone crash and serious injuries. You don’t want to find yourself pulling into the path of a vehicle that has no intention of slowing down and making a turn.
If you have been in an accident with a vehicle in which the driver signaled and didn’t turn, you should consult with a personal injury lawyer who handles such cases in your area.
Kinds of Negligence
In some states, both drivers can be responsible for a crash. Depending on the law, you might be able to pursue a claim against the other party if you are no more than 50% at fault. However, in some states you can still pursue damages if you were 99% to blame.
Whose fault the accident is depends on the overall circumstance. While turn signals are required to be used, you should never just assume that a car is going to actually turn because a turn signal is on. Traffic laws do not say that the use of the turn signal should help you determine when it is safe to proceed. You
Comparative negligence – There are states that use a strict form of comparative negligence, which is your percentage of fault compared to the fault of the other party. This allows you to recover compensation even if you are only partly at fault for the crash.
If your state uses comparative negligence, you can seek compensation for damages in proportion to your percentage of blame for the crash. For example, if you are 40 percent at fault for a crash, and your damages total $10,000, you can recover 60 percent of damages, which total $6,000.
Modified comparative negligence – There are some states that use a modified form of comparative negligence because that limits the accident victim’s ability to file a claim against another driver and through their insurer. As an example, in Illinois if you are more than 50 percent to blame for the crash you cannot recover compensation for any damages from the other driver.
Contributory negligence/pure contributory negligence – Some states use pure contributory negligence, which is an all-or-nothing way to determine fault and who can recover compensation to pay for their damages. Even if you are only 10 percent to blame for the crash, you wouldn’t recover any compensation for your losses. You must not be at all to blame for the accident.
The Scenario
Say you are waiting at a stop sign and a car is approaching from the left, giving a signal to turn right. You pull from the intersection to turn left, only to find that the car was not making a right turn and slams into the driver’s side of your vehicle. You could be at fault for the entire crash because cars at stop signs are required to yield to vehicles that don’t have stop signs. You should have waited until the vehicle had passed or turned. It could, however, be shared fault because one driver signaled improperly, and the other driver did not wait at the stop sign until that car passed.
What Kinds of Damages Could Occur to Your Vehicle?
There are dozens of ways that a vehicle could be damaged, and of course the kinds of damages and the cost of repairing those damages can vary greatly. As an example, if your car was hit while it was parked, it will most likely have minor damages, but even those can be expensive to fix.
Your car could suffer scratches or chipped paint or minor dents and dings or a broken headlight or taillight.
If your car was rear-ended while you were at a stop sign, you may need to have the entire bumper replaced, you could suffer trunk and taillight damages, or you may even have transmission damage from the impact going through the entire vehicle.
A T-bone accident might lead to door, fender, and even frame damage. A head-on collision will deploy airbags, lead to broken glass, damage the hood, grille, fenders, lights, and bumpers.
Depending on your make and model of vehicle, the point of impact, and the severity of the damages, your car might need a few hundred dollars of work or it could require thousands of dollars in repairs. In some cases, the damages exceed the value of the vehicle.
When it would cost more to fix the car than it is worth, the insurance company will consider the car to be a total loss. They will pay you the fair market value of your vehicle based on your location as well as the make, model, and condition of your vehicle.
When negotiating the property damage portion of your claim, you will want to include the tow bill and the cost of a rental car while your car is inoperable.
Some of the more common damages claimed in such accidents include:
- Pain and suffering
- Property damages
- Mental anguish
- Permanent scarring and disfigurement
- Long-term or permanent disabilities
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
You must maintain documentation to support your claim. Your lawyer will also help you gather up the supporting evidence so you can show that you suffered both economic and non-economic losses as a direct result of being hit by a driver who was asleep at the wheel. Here are some examples of the supporting evidence that will help prove your claim:
- Medical bills
- Proof of missed work and lost wages
- Repair estimates
- Tow bills
- Rental car receipts
- Witness statements
- Photos of the accident scene
- Photos of the damages and injuries
- Medical records including physician notes
- The accident report
When determining your medical expenses, be sure to include all medical-related costs, such as hospital visits, physician visits, specialist care, prescriptions, medical devices, x-rays and scans, lab work, and surgical procedures.
Ask your doctor if you will need any additional medical care, and have your doctor write a statement as to the effect and detail any additional care that you might need. You will want to determine the cost associated with any future care so you can ask for compensation pertaining to those expenses.
There can be a variety of damages that result from such a crash. The damages usually include property damages, medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, mental trauma, permanent scarring, and more. You need to maintain documentation and evidence, such as medical bills, medical records, damage estimates, proof of missed work and lost wages, and so forth. Documentation is the key to a successful claim. You can write a car accident demand letter outlining the damager you believe you are owed form the accident.
If you have been involved in an accident with a vehicle that gave a signal and did not turn, you should consult with a personal injury attorney. Your lawyer will review the details, investigate the accident, and then determine if you have the right to pursue a personal injury claim. Complete the Free Case Evaluation Form today to get your case reviewed. Time is of the essence, so don’t wait until it is too late.
