I had almost got into a collision when this guy randomly decides to stop in the middle of the roadway. I was lucky I had no traffic to the right of me when I braked and swerved into that lane. And then just when I pass him (you can see from the rear camera) he cuts in front of the turning lane. Had I have been in an accident , who would've been at fault?
looks like he didn't know where he was going. you would likely have been at fault, even though his driving was poor to say the least. i see it all the time, people lost, keep slowing and speeding, pulling half way over at every turn, trying to determine if that is their road. no idea that there are people behind them. you have to have your wits about you at all times, and keep a safe space in front of you.
Let's just say that the dashcam would not have done you any favors had you failed to maintain control of your car and struck another vehicle. In other words.....yes. Hitting another car is very nearly ALWAYS your fault....especially when making a "California Lane Change" (no signal, and too close to the intersection) and hitting a stalled car AT the intersection. The horn blare was not illegal, but it wouldn't have won you any style points with a small claims judge either. Make sure that your dash-cam is easy to dismount and conceal......
If you had stayed in lane, done a panic stop, and someone behind you (thankfully no one!) had piled into your rear, it would have been their fault. However, with if you ran into someone with your emergency lane change, yes, it would have been your fault. Bisco offers excellent advice honed on Boston roadways. Glad no one was hurt and that your evasive move worked OK!
Agreed, and talking of Boston, last spring I was on Storrow Drive and started to change lanes to keep to the right (just before Longfellow Bridge), I had started to indicate to change lanes, when a Mercedes SUV cut across me from my left, pushing me over into the merging lane from my right, which unfortunately was already occupied by another Toyota (Rav). The car I was driving suffered some minor scratches and lost its starboard ear (wing-mirror) and the Rav had some scrapes and scratches. The car I was driving (Toyota Corolla) was a company car. The Merc. didn't stop, I gave pics & report to my boss. I never heard any more about it! …but it was the main reason for me getting a dash-cam shortly thereafter (see other threads), since if only I'd had a dash-cam on the Corolla, we could have traced the Mercedes. ('Tis a felony to leave an accident scene in Massachusetts)
I'm not a traffic laws expert. Yeah, the person shouldn't of stopped. And it appears they wanted into the turning lane but discovered it too late, then dangerously stopped and tried to maneuver into it. It's precisely that type of bad driving that does lead to accidents. But I think I've also read, that as the following vehicle, you have to drive with the attitude, driving distance, that can allow for for complete unexpected stops. I think if you had hit the vehicle...you'd still be blamed for not allowing enough following distance to facilitate an emergency stop. That was a really dangerous situation and lucky it didn't result in multiple car accident. Because the problem is...if you stop, does the vehicle behind you stop? It becomes a domino affect of possible rear end accidents. I wouldn't try to figure it out. You avoided an accident, and whatever the outcome might of been, the driver of the vehicle that stopped was stupid. Is it worth it to risk your vehicle, and a accident...and actually even maybe peoples health and lives, just to get into a turning lane? Just keep driving, and turn around. You can always go back.
The behavior of the white car was poor, but his/her bad behavior does not change your responsibility. As a more experienced, better oriented, more adult driver you have a moral (if not legal) responsibility to compensate for their lack of skill. You did just fine.
From the first video : The driver of the car that stopped in the road would have caused the accident. However, the law says that you need to always make sure that you can stop in the distance in front of you (UK law but I am in New Zealand). Many world laws are derived from UK law, but if not, this particular law makes sense. -> You would have been at fault legally even though that other driver was being 'random' and actually caused the accident. -> In Scotland, there was a road where you have a wide road with straight runs downhill and awesome twisties that can be negotiated at speed. I drove that daily, but one day I went crazy slow. I came across an escaped herd of cows. The speed limit was 60mph (max in Scotland except for motorways at that time). Most people would do 50 around the bends, but I slowed to 10mph for no reason at al, that one time, and said hello to the cows (each being many hundreds of kilos of beef). I saved a cow or three, and saved my own life that day. That driver was morally at fault but you would have been blamed by the Law I always assume 'expect the unexpected', and when I am driving around villages, towns, or cities, I always expect a child to jump out from behind a parked car. I have saved at least one child due to this :O EDIT : Looking at both your videos, you were trying to drive efficiently, and you changed lane safely, then a random car braked in front of you. You kept enough distance to brake if needed. You used a swear word, but I would have used many more such words if that happened to me However, I once had an actress in a Volkswagen crash into my Prius because she was petting her Toy Dog; she lied to the Police and managed to avoid perjury by nobody being blamed. If the car behind you (after the lane change due to random behavior of that driver) had caused an accident, you may have some legal defense - partial. note : I am NOT a lawyer
The importance of a dash cam, I just hope that these drivers won't be irresponsible when on the road.
