Car accidents are traumatic, disruptive experiences. They are also very ambiguous. While fault is sometimes obvious, the situation can often be murky. People will remember things differently. Sometimes, one motorist may feel inclined to lie in order to avoid consequences.
This can make a difficult situation even harder.
Accidents caused by other drivers pulling out suddenly can be uniquely frustrating. As you physically recover and work to repair damages, you also need to answer one critical question:
Who is to blame?
Below, we explore various crash scenarios to help you better understand the situation.
How Right-of-Way Rules Guide Fault Findings
Insurers lean heavily on police reports determining which party violated West Virginia’s right-of-way statutes when deciding accident fault. Right-of-way gives vehicles priority passage on roadways relative to intersecting cars. Failing to yield right-of-way suggests negligence, often placing significant fault on that driver.
But right-of-way varies situationally based on:
- Traffic signals
- Posted signs
- Merging lanes
- Turn priorities
We’ll unpack “pull out” crash examples at intersections and driveway exits to showcase how insurers deliberate over fault.
Intersections: Traffic Lights and Signs Dictate Priority
Entering intersections legally with green lights gives you right-of-way over other cars. So if an oncoming driver pulls out against their red arrow or stop sign and hits you, they violated right-of-way by failing to yield. Insurers would likely place the majority fault on them for opposing signals.
But they may threaten partial shared fault if questions arise around your:
- Attention approaching
- Traffic scanning
- Speed suitability
In other words, if they can make a case that you were doing something wrong, they probably will. That’s why having legal partners who challenge assumptions and poke holes in allegations proves so critical.
Driveways and Parking Lots: Look Before Proceeding
Driveways and parking lots commonly experience “pull-out” crashes. In these locations, insurers acknowledge that cars leaving private drives must yield to traffic.
So if a driver noses out of a driveway suddenly and you T-bone them, unable to stop in time, their failure to properly yield suggests prime fault.
But insurers might partially blame you if they argue you had an adequate opportunity to see the car backing out. Skilled legal advocates contest such allegations through extensive evidence gathering and accident reconstructions.
Other Deliberated Factors on Accident Fault
Besides right-of-way, insurers also review aspects like:
- Attention and response times
- Speed suitability
- Vehicle defects
- Traffic flow interference
They attempt to determine if the drivers’ actions exercised “reasonable care.” In other words, were they behaving in a way designed to avoid foreseeable risk?
If you were distracted when a driver pulled out, you may assume liability based on “comparative negligence.” In other words, the person pulling out made a mistake, but you should have been able to compensate for it.
Don’t settle for hasty assumptions of “shared fault.”
We’ll bat down questionable allegations through detailed investigations illuminating true circumstances. The bottom line is insurers often work aggressively to deny or reduce claim payouts by unjustly blaming victims. But skillful legal teams flip the script through exhaustive evidence gathering and negotiation.
Police Reports Weigh Heavily – But Aren’t Definitive
Insurers heavily weigh police accident reports when determining fault. So problematic officer conclusions can improperly influence claim outcomes if they fail to adequately investigate circumstances.
For example, we’ve seen clients deemed partially liable in collisions after officers applied generic “failure to yield” citations without fully examining sightline impediments obscuring oncoming cars.
Don’t accept skewed police assumptions – call on us to advocate for you. We leverage accident reconstructionists to model collisions from an unbiased perspective.
And if necessary, we’ll formally contest deficient police reports through evidence packages, forcing insurers to discard misguided opinions.
Witness Accounts Also Prove Flawed
In addition to police reports, insurers also grant significant weight to witness statements on accident faults. Yet eyewitness accounts often prove unreliable as they distort facts based on limited vantage points.
Skilled legal teams talk directly with witnesses to highlight logical flaws in their problematic statements. We also press insurers to decrease the credibility granted to questionable witnesses when deciding claim outcomes.
Bottom line — we fight to ensure no victim shoulders undue fault or financial burdens for collisions caused by others’ negligence. You deserve fierce partners who won’t allow insurers to unjustly make you a scapegoat.
Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer for Reliable Guidance
Don’t tackle your confusion solo. That’s what a personal injury lawyer is for. The car accident lawyers at Miley Legal in West Virginia offer free consultations to examine your unique case while answering questions around fault deliberation and insurance claims.
Their personal injury attorneys stand ready to ease concerns and get you compensated for damages stemming from other motorists’ failure to yield the right-of-way. Reach out so they can map an effective path forward.
