At Fault Accidents - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

jamesnj · #1 11-19-2002, 11:31 AM

Is there anyone here who was involved in an accident that was their fault. Wherever I go I always here people talk about how they got rear ended or sideswiped or someone backed into them.

Tell us about an accident you had when you were at fault and how you could have possibly avoided it.

rickg · #2 11-19-2002, 11:44 AM

And I suppose your one of those that don't believe that everyone in jail is really innocent, huh?!

I pulled out in front of a guy at an intersection that had only my direction stopping. I forgot the cross traffic didn't stop. Very stupid mistake. Thankfuly no one was hurt, and the cars had minor damage. That was about 14 years ago, and the last accident I had that was my fault.

Jim Anderson · #3 11-19-2002, 12:16 PM

I rear ended a lady who stopped in a merge lane. She had gotten the throttle to merge then I turned my head to check traffic to merge then she changed her mind and stopped

rickg · #4 11-19-2002, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Jim Anderson
I rear ended a lady who stopped in a merge lane. She had gotten the throttle to merge then I turned my head to check traffic to merge then she changed her mind and stopped

That was my very first accident when I was a teenager. Bad thing was, the guy I hit was a neighbor, and the car was brand new!

I was in my dad's '67 ford PU, he was in a Ford Capri. It didn't look like a Capri anymore!

G-Benz · #5 11-19-2002, 04:40 PM

Both rear-enders were my fault...as a sixteen-year old driver!

Reasons: Lack of defensive driving skills, overly-aggressive driving tactics, in too doggone a hurry to drive like someone with sense, etc. etc...

In an unrelated situation, one accident I recall was during a job I had at a music store when I was in college. Sometimes I would have to deliver a piano to a customer, so I drove the truck. It was winter, so the truck had the snowplow attached for serving double-duty for clearing the store parking lot.

Anyway, the music store owner's 15-year old son came along to help move the piano. He begged me to let him drive the truck through the neighborhood as we neared the customer's house. I gave him an emphatic "NO".

We delivered the piano safely and were ready to leave. The kid kept bugging me again about driving the truck up to the neighborhood exit. I finally gave in and let him have the wheel.

The truck was a manual, and I did not know he had no experience with a stick. Anyway, he proceeded to lurch the truck out of the customer's driveway and into the customer's car across the street with the snowplow!

I got in very little trouble for that although it was a very stupid decision on my part.

G-Benz · #6 11-20-2002, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by PaulC
My FIRST accident happened in 1966 when I was seven years old.

Sounds like you're my age...I just turned 43 a couple of days go...

Peyton300TD · #7 11-20-2002, 02:11 PM

anyways, as you know i have a 1985 300TD, which i traded for my mom's mint 1985 380SL for spring term of college. while driving it to school, i was with my girlfriend Paige at the time with the top down. we were cruising down I95 on a sprint at about 100mph. i see a trooper on-coming on the other side of the road, and i panic-ed. i slammed on the brakes and pulled ahead of a semi in the right lane. i saw the trooper brake, u-turn in the median and turn his lights on coming for me. **** i thought i was about to lose my license. he ended up pulling over the truck instead, and i have no idea why

anyways, my luck ran out then. towards the end of the semester i was driving paige to her apt and turning into her parking lot and wasn't looking as i turned in. i hit a camry coming out at about 5mph. sadly, the camry's bumper rode over the low SL bumper and into the lights and fender. paige hit her head on the visor but wasn't hurt.

i felt AWFUL. $5,000 worth of repairs. which makes me scared driving my high mileage diesel which isn't worth a lot. it wouldn't take much to total the car. so is anyone else scared of this? totaling, even if it isn't your fault? never would you get the value of your car that you think it is worth. sad.

eric

Peyton300TD · #8 11-20-2002, 02:15 PM

another

jjrodger · #9 11-20-2002, 02:22 PM

I've smashed an SLK... twice.

On 21 December 1998 I pulled out of a T-junction without looking right (I was too concerned with whether I could get out in front of the vehicle coming from the left). Pure stupidity and slack thinking on my part. Unfortunately a mother and daughter were coming from the right, on their way to celebrate the mother's birthday. I admitted fault straight away. I got a date off the daughter, she was quite nice.

In July 1999 I spun the same SLK into a tree in France. Thankfully no-one else was involved. I accept blame, of course, but I'm still not sure why the accident happened. The road was wet, and I lost control in an S-bend, but I didn't think I was going too fast. Obviously I was. The tyres wer quite worn, too. I can remember it all very clearly, the long time in which to have a look down the road to see whether a petrol tanker was coming the other way... It was a total bore getting the car back from France.

I'm mega cautious when driving wet roads now.

The Warden · #10 11-20-2002, 02:44 PM

I have only been in one accident so far.

It was the very day I had bought my old Scout, and was driving it home. I was looking for a place to refuel it, and saw one literally on the side of the freeway. I had to cross a solid white line into a lane that was merging onto the freeway to pull into the fueling station. I saw a car a ways back, but figured that I had plenty of space to merge into the lane and make the turn without causing a problem. The lady in the other car wasn't looking where she was going, and ran into my right rear wheel as I was making the turn into the station. No damage to the Scout except for two scratched lug nuts, but the lug nuts caught and ripped off her front bumper (mid '80's Ford mini station wagon), and that was enough to total her car.

No one called the cops over, so the settlement was decided solely by the insurance companies. I know I made a mistake, but so did she (she wasn't watching where she was going, and admitted this), so I figured it'd be fair to call it a dual-fault accident and let my insurance pay my damages (which was nothing, but that's beside the point) and her insurance pay hers. However, because I crossed a solid (white!) line, the accident was blamed solely on me. I just stopped paying for that one...

This was in April '99, and was my first and last (so far) real accident...taught me never to cross a solid white line, eh?

Jim Anderson · #11 11-20-2002, 02:57 PM

I've totaled two cars in my life... both on Friday the 13th

Trelinski · #12 11-21-2002, 07:24 PM

I was slowing down for a red light once, this was downtown (narrow, slow road), there were probably around 10 cars stopped at the light, last one was about 30-50 metres ahead of me. I see this really hot girl walking down the sidewalk right beside me, and I glance over, I figured I knew how much brake pressure to apply to stop before reaching the end of the line of cars. Well 5 seconds later I was woken up by a bang and realized I drove into the Buick Regal in front of me at about 5km/h. Pure stupidity on my part. Just imagine how embarassed I felt. Luckily both cars are pretty solidly built, and neither had even a scratch, I bought the other driver (20-something female) a coffee and left.

This was in August, I'm much more careful now.

BTW, I think if you get into an accident, then you are always at fault, at least to some degree, because 99% of accidents can be avoided by thinking ahead.

Freestyler · #13 11-22-2002, 02:42 AM

Scenario:
At the end of a highway off-ramp, waiting to turn right at the t-section.

I'm right behind a lady waiting for traffic from the left to clear. I have a good view to both sides -and so does she.
Traffic clears.. She starts turning right.. I follow her, -looking to my left for a sec. to doublecheck for traffic, and then the sweet little lady decides to slam the brakes for no apparent reason. SMACK! I rear-end her. -A little bit of damage to both cars but no injuries.

The thing is.. This has happened 3 TIMES within a year now! Exact same scenario. -Highway off-ramp -lady in front of me -slams the brakes for no reason right after she starts turning.
I'm starting to believe it's a conspiracy!

You would think i had learned from this the first time. But think about it.. Don't you doublecheck to the left right when you are going out in a t-section? -It's enevitable!

Freestyler

jsmith · #14 11-22-2002, 07:48 AM

freestyler,

this happened to me once and i see it happen all the time, even more so on similar badly designed on-ramps. it's that "T" that causes it. if the stop point has the car aimed in the direction of the traffic flow this would not happen as much. i found that i had to adjust my driving habit for those situations. i make sure that the car is gone before i make my own move. it takes an extra couple of seconds or so but you get used to it and it's well worth the trouble.