Just hit another car but who's at fault?

gitbags

gitbags

gitbags

Associate
Joined
17 Nov 2011
Posts
800
Location
By the Sea
Title say's it all really, on her way to pick me up from work a woman decided to open her car door with out bothering to check and was hit by my other half as she was passing. :mad:

This daft bat launched into a rant about how her door was ripped off (it wasn't but it will need replacing) and is now claiming my other half is at fault. I don't see how this can be the case as all the damage to my partners car starts from the wheel arch, thus suggesting the car door was opened as she was passing the drivers door.

So obviously we're fuming, but what I was hoping you lot could help me with is who is at fault here?

No word from the insurance company as it only happened couple of hours ago.

Opinions would be helpful.
 
i had this happen to me recently although thre was no damage to other parties car.

in the end i ended up accepting part payment for my wing mirror.

depending on where the damage is on your car (is it the front or side?) *depending on this you might be able to argue that she opened the door as you were passing, im not sure this would work but for me it wasnt worth the hassle for what it cost me to fix.

do you have any witnesses? otherwise at best your probably looking at 50/50.
 
Last edited:
It should be a simple case of the other party is at fault but from what I've read it's all in the detail. If on the accident claim form your wife even mentions that the door was open or was about to be opened prior to her passing then it could go 50/50 as the assumption then is that it possibly could have been avoided.

So just tell the truth, that she never saw anything till the sound and use the fact that the damage starts at the wheel arch and hopefully all will be good.

I'm basing the above on what I've read elsewhere so if it's wrong I'm sure I'll get flame-thrower-ed down :)
 
Last edited:
Nope no witnesses hung around. As for damage it's on the leading edge of the front passenger side wheel arch, not a mark on the front or headlight area.
 
My guess is that it would depend on whether once the door was opened, it would give your partner a reasonable time to avoid it, either by braking or by driving round it safely.

The fault is either 1) with the lady for opening the door without looking and giving no time for your partner to avoid, or it's 2) with your partner for running into an opened door that could easily have been avoided. It's impossible to say which it is without witnessing it really.

Rgds
 
gitbags said:
Nope no witnesses hung around. As for damage it's on the leading edge of the front passenger side wheel arch, not a mark on the front or headlight area.
Click to expand...

i would use that as evidence of the other parties fault then. surely if your other half had been at fault then the damage would have been at the front of your car?

as the damage is to the side it certainly suggests the other party is at fault imo.
 
My fiance works for an insurance firm. She has said both sides will try and blame the other party but if the door was opened and there was no way to avoid it thus your partner hitting the car then its the other parties fault, not your mrs's. Oh, and they will be able to tell by the damage whos at fault. It may take time but eventually the other side will accept liabilitiy.
 
On the road she was on it wouldn't be possible to avoid an open car door without mounting the pavement and hitting a shop doorway or pedestrian. Small seaside town you see. But most importantly the parked cars door wasn't open at all until she pulled level leaving no time to react.
 
What road? Whats the speed limit? If its a 30 she should have been able to swerve? Was it busy? If it was then its the old bats fault.
 
The insurance will settle 50:50 like they did with me. No damage to the front of my car as the other driver opened his as I was passing damage from wheel arch backwards. But he said his door was already open and I drove into it. Even though after getting out he said "sorry I didnt see you". After finding out they had settled I was talking to a specialist and he said they have never failed to win a case like mine IF the damage starts behind the front of the car.
 
mattyg said:
After finding out they had settled I was talking to a specialist and he said they have never failed to win a case like mine IF the damage starts behind the front of the car.
Click to expand...

so if thats the case then perhaps the insurance companies wont settle 50/50 and instead in the OPs favour surely?
 
Last edited:
My partner just wanted me to say thank you for the replies. It's help steady her nerves a little, unfortunately I wasn't there at the time but the other driver launched into quite a rant.

Poor cow second accident in less than 6 months (rear ended by a driver on the phone)
 
I had some stupid **** do this to me once, it was on a b road late one evening, I'd just finished work and was heading home in my new van and there was a red nissan bluebird on the opposite side of the road parked up.

Any how, when I am about 5 feet away he throws the drivers door open which I proceed to drive into at 60mph.

I slam the brakes on and stop, he starts his car up and buggers off.
Leaving me with a smashed headlight, wrecked wing and a broken bumper.
 
Don't see how they can side with the other party. If the damage started halfway down the car then that proves their door hit your car as you were passing alongside it. There's no question of avoiding it either, you can only avoid something if you see it in the first place... His car door wasn't there in the first place so you wouldn't have aimed to avoid it.
 
Defo the others fault, thats some narrow road. Reminds me of the lanes in Brighton :p

I guess they exchanged details? Tomorrow I would get on the phone to her insurance company (not yours). And tell them exactly what happened. No need to involve your insurance yet.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom