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My father was in a motorcycle accident caused when someone opened their car door, Who is liable? |
The opposing insurance company claims that my father is 50% liable because he was going too fast 5-10 mph (yes... he was splitting between the parked cars and the cars waiting for the light) He was planning to turn right at the light which was approx 150 to 200 feet away from the parked car that's door hit my father's leg. He flew 20 off of his motorcycle and broke 9 ribs not to mention his broken leg from the impact with the door. My main question is with regards to the liability, as far as I know you always have to check for a bicycle or another car before opening a door. What is the law with regards to splitting traffic on a motorcycle, specifically when your intent is to turn right at an upcoming street? Thanx for the help! Quote: "he was splitting between the parked cars and the cars waiting for the light" There's his 50% If he had been following the rules of the road and got hit by a car door, he wouldn't have been partially liable. They both did something wrong and ended up splitting the liability i'm pretty sure the car is liable. if they were at a light why were they even opening the door? think about when someone opens a door and hits the car next to them.....its their own fault. you look before you open. good luck to you both Depends on the state. I know in NY, if you open your car door and hit someone, the officer is required to assign fault to the person who opened the door. LEO Expirence (dealt with many of these accidents) Not being a lawyer, my best answer is that your father was speeding, failed to reduce speed to avoid an accident and illegal lane usage. Get the checkbook out because he is liable. The insurance company has all day to fight it and be in court. Does your father? Either way, I'll bet he won't drive between cars again. tough one, the guy that opened the car door should be but a driver (dad) alays needs to be in control of your vehicle. unless he admitted to the speed I do not see how it was determined. this happens so ofton that most states take the 50/50 route. He can also bring this to claims court in some states beyond the insurance. On a legal basis, bicycles and motorcycles "have" to follow the same traffic laws as cars (motor vehicles). If your father was going to try and squeeze between cars, and I have seen this many times, for whatever reason, then take my advise and take whatever you can from the insurance company, because the whole accident was his fault. Yes, people getting in and out of their cars need to check, and even cars that are in motion need to check, and I hate to say this and I don't mean that all motorcycle riders do this, but many of them zip in and out of traffic and try to find shortcuts, and thus, accidents happen, and when they are zippin in and out, they are hard to spot. |
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