Why was an accident my fault, when I wasn't at fault?

In New York, back in 1975, a law was passed called the Comparative Negligence law. It established how insurance companies were to settle accident claims based on who is at fault, and to determine the percentage at fault. The problem is that logic is thrown out the window. Basically, you are always partially at fault except in a few instances:

1. You are hit while parked
2. You are hit from behind
3. There are witnesses to say that you weren't at fault

Now the witnesses can't be somebody in your car. I have seen where the insurance companies accepted a neighbor or friend, even though there was an obvious conflict of interest.

So how to you make sure that you can keep your rates low, after you have an accident. The first thing to look for is Accident Forgiveness. Many companies offer some version of it, so review your policy to see how "Forgiving" it really is.

The next step is to avoid an accident. Drive defensively, as if everyone else doesn't know how to drive, and anticipate what they will do wrong. Just because you have a green light, don't assume that the other car coming up to the red light will stop. This is one of those situations where you can be 50% at fault because no one stepped up to be a witness.

If you know that you are about to get into an accident, don't tense up. That is how you get hurt. The people who don't know an accident is coming usually don't get injured. Doesn't help with rates, but it is a good tip.

After an accident, try to get the police there. Don't expect them to help much, but they won't take a report that will help you if they aren't on the scene. Most police reports just say vehicle 1 and vehicle 2 were in an accident. But they will sometimes state driver inattention, wrongful turn, etc. which the insurance companies will use to determine who is at fault.

A few things to know about who is the majority at fault:

1. The person making the turn is usually 80% at fault. So even if you have green arrow, and get hit by someone blowing a stop sign or red light, unless you have a witness, it is your fault.

2. The person pulling out of a parking spot or driveway is usually 80% at fault. Not seeing the other car isn't an excuse, even if they are speeding.

3. If you hit a pedestrian, you are at fault.

There are many other situations that can arise, but these are the ones that I see the most. There are strategies that you can use to determine who you should hit, but way too complicated to put here. Hope this helps, if you have any questions, give me a call. 888-900-2173.