Safe Speed Forums

I was driving home this evening and came across a car coming from the opposite way doing a "U" turn. The car had turned across my path but was then reversing back across the road. As the car had cleared my lane I continued to drive forwards but the car turning then drove forward and hit my drivers door followed by rear door and wheel arch.

Now I realise that I could have stoped and let the car turn but as my lane was clear I continued assuming (yes I know!!) that the other driver would wait for a gap in the traffic.

Can anybody tell me, when this goes through the insurance, where will the fault lie?

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Nick

He hit you while performing a manoeuvre, and it was not his right of way, and you'd got the front third of your car past him. I say you're legally in the clear.

Me? Assuming there was nothing barrelling up behind me, I'd have likely let him go to get the road clear of obstruction as soon as practicable - which of course may well be what he thought.

From your description, I would probably have let him go first. His manoeuvre (to his mind) consisted of a 3-point-turn and you interrupted it in the middle. However, he should have been looking where he was going and IMO it's down to him.

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Malcolm W.
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not represent the views of Safespeed.

Thanks for the reponses, in retrospect (easy in rectrospect!) I wish I had let the car out.

In addition to my description of the accident, one thing I left out was that it was a wide road, the center was painted with diagonal stripes bordered with broken lines (as described in highway code 109)

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Nick

sounds like he was crossing your right of way. he is liable

the reason i am sure about this is due to a truck magazine regarding trucks nosing their way out of a side street. the examples used were a dithering old lady who panics and doesnt hit the brakes and a boy racer who is speeding and cant stop in time. both cases, the truck driver is crossing their right of way so is liable

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Richie

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I remember, when I was being taught to drive, being told that you shouldn't start a 3-point turn if there was anything coming, as they had right of way, and also to stop if anything came along during the manoeuvre, if there was room for them to get past. I wouldn't have thought you were in any way at fault legally, but of course its still a pain in the arse and, as you have said, you wish you had stopped!

Sounds like poor observation on the other driver's part, and should remind us all never to assume that other road users have any inkling of our presence.