Well, I just got hit by some guy while I was trying to pull into a gas station. Wasn't injured at all. He only hit me in my passenger side rear tire. Minimal body damage, just a dent and some scuffs. He actually was driving the same car as me, a 2005 Ford escape. Luckily, those cars have decently soft and absorbant plastic bumpers so I didn't get fucked up too badly. However the upper swing arm on my axle got bent so that will need to be replaced -.- What I'm most confused about is whose fault it is. I've included a diagram so maybe you guys can shed some light. What I didn't include was the lights. So ill just explain it. I was in the left turn lane. I had a green protected arrow and was making almost like a U-turn since I go right from a U-turn into the gas station. So I had to cross one extra lane since it's a two lane street. He had a red light and was making a right turn. He stopped completely, so its not like he ran it. But right as I was about to turn into the gas station I noticed he wasn't looking in my direction at all, hence how he hit me. Didn't his mom teach him to look BOTH ways? Oh well, he was really chill and everything. He was only going like 2 miles an hour when he hit me, since he was accelerating from a stop. I just don't know if I can say that's his fault, since to be honest, I had a green arrow. And he was turning on a red. Light also didn't say no U-turn. Opinions?
He was at fault. You had the right of way. He was suppose to yield and make sure it was safe to move.
But he did yield. You said he completely stopped at the traffic light and then proceeded to make a right turn, which is legal in California. Question is, are you allowed to make u-turns at that intersection? And when you made the u-turn did you end up in the left lane, and then crossed into the right to enter the gas station, or went straight into the right lane after completing the u-turn?
Who's fault it is will usually be decided by the insurance companies... you both submit your side of the story, and they decide who's at fault, or how much you're both at fault. Last crash I was in, I was deemed 20% at fault by the insurance company. Still got money for my totaled car.
you did have the right away to turn left and he would have to yeild regardless due to the red light but i dont know if thats a legal maneuver you pulled to go into the gas station i would assume you gotta turn left then another left into lot.. but then again he did hit you!
DPS worker here. As long as you had a green arrow and a "No U-turn" sign wasn't posted, it's legal to do a u-turn into the right lane as it's nearly impossible not to use the lane in that situation. The driver turning right must yield to all green lit traffic; u-turn or otherwise. This is based on Texas law though. If the insurance company finds you at fault at all, you could request the written law from your state DPS and that should override any insurance statement as it's THEIR opinion vs. fact. I have helped many individuals overturn insurance rulings using this method. Good luck.