I had a fender bender.

This scares me. After driving all day, running errands, not hungry, not thirsty, not talking on the cell phone, I had a fender bender that was my fault. I made a left at a four way stop, and oversteered, and hit the car on my left, who was stopped. I know I was tired, I didn't look well enough, but I go thru this intersection 3 times a week.
After 40 years of driving this is the first accident that is my fault.
I feel so guilty. The person I hit is low income, their old car was really damaged, my was not. They have no insurance, and some other violations, the policeman said. But I think they have no resources, I probably toteled their poor car, they probably can't afford to rent a car. I can't believe I was so stupid, and in lala land while I was driving. I know I wasn't asleep, I remember stopping and turning, how could I have hit that car?

Don't be so hard on yourself ... like you said accident. It happens to the best of us. We've all done something stupid, glad no one was hurt.

Accidents happen all the time. Much better at the low speed you were undoubtedly going than at high speeds. I don't understand why their insurance situation matters. If it was clearly your fault and you aren't contesting that, won't your liability insurance cover it? Or is the problem that their car was already worth so little that the payoff won't put them in another?

It is a serious lesson for all of us, though. Being a safe driver is often more than just being awake, sober and not on a cell phone. Blessedly no one was hurt.

No one was hurt...that is super. Car damage can always be fixed...

It might have been your fault....but I don't think you ought to say that...

In any case, pretty sure this will turn out OK. Maybe their car can be fixed.

Just be glad it was no worse than it was. Think how things would be if it had been serious, their fault and them with no insurance. Things can always be worse.

Since you are so upset, it seems to me you are a caring person. I have been involved in fender benders where the person hits me and just drives away. A guy backed into me at Home Depot several years ago and was driving away when the security guard stopped him. I went out and looked at the damage (a broken tail light); gave the guy my address and phone number, told him to call me. I bought the taillight at Pep Boys for $35 and had my OM put it in. Never heard from him. Just be careful, familiarity can put a person on autodrive. Maybe this was your wake up call. Be grateful no one was hurt.

JudyH said:

The person I hit is low income, their old car was really damaged, my was not. They have no insurance, and some other violations, the policeman said. But I think they have no resources, I probably toteled their poor car, they probably can't afford to rent a car.

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Am I right in thinking that, as in the UK, it is illegal to drive a car without insurance? If so, I have no sympathy whatever with the person you hit. They should not have been on the road in that vehicle, end of story. Stop beating yourself up about it.
You have actually done the rest of the population a favour by getting an illegally driven car off the road.

Judy - I am so sorry you had an accident. I know it makes you feel crummy.


As far as the other car. . . by law, an automobile without insurance has no reason to be in the roadway . .

Is it possible your car needs work on struts? I had the same type of problem, but fortunately no accidents, but it just felt like I had trouble steering tightly and I was worried because my son would be driving at Christmas. The car needed new struts and that made a big difference.
Liz

Emily said:

As far as the other car. . . by law, an automobile without insurance has no reason to be in the roadway . .

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Perhaps she meant it had no collision insurance. Common with older cars. If it had liability insurance, wouldn't matter, as it was not that driver's fault.

Actually, the police said the car had no insurance whatsoever. There would be violations for the driver. The car shouldn't have been on the road.
But, she now has no transportation, maybe, at all, my ins. will give her a little for the car and whatever injury she claims, but my mistake impaired her a lot more than it did me.

I will be amazed if your insurer will pay out for damage to a vehicle that had no business being on the road in the first place. Perversely, you might even have a claim against the driver for having the vehicle in a situation where you could hit it!! and the stress that has very clearly caused you. (I'm not suggesting you would actually make such a claim)

Keitht- GOSH!!!

Keitht said:

I will be amazed if your insurer will pay out for damage to a vehicle that had no business being on the road in the first place. Perversely, you might even have a claim against the driver for having the vehicle in a situation where you could hit it!! and the stress that has very clearly caused you. (I'm not suggesting you would actually make such a claim)

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You have a point there.

I agree with Keith's point about the insurance company's liability to replace a car that was not legally in the roadway. Of course there maybe other issues to her claim . . did she have a legal driver's license? and was the car legally registered? All those components come into play as far as the insurance company's responsibilities.

I don't know anyone that likes to pay car insurance, taxes, maintenance fees etc . . . its just a fact of life and what is required by law.

I do agree that you should have your car checked to make sure it is mechanically sound.

Emily said:

I agree with Keith's point about the insurance company's liability to replace a car that was not legally in the roadway. Of course there maybe other issues to her claim . . did she have a legal driver's license? and was the car legally registered? All those components come into play as far as the insurance company's responsibilities.

I don't know anyone that likes to pay car insurance, taxes, maintenance fees etc . . . its just a fact of life and what is required by law.

I do agree that you should have your car checked to make sure it is mechanically sound.

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A lot of states permit people to drive without car insurance if they pay into an uninsured motor vehicle fund. The fact that someone does not have a valid driver's license or that a car is not legally registered does not really diminish the liability of the person at fault! This idea that she has no business at all on the road is kind of preposterous to me. It would be one thing if this car were unsafe to be on the road and the injured driver placed others at risk. But we haven't been told that and all this lady was doing was sitting in the proper lane of traffic and WHAM!

This is really a rotten deal for her. It would be truly ironic if she needed the car to get to work so that can pay for the insurance, registration fees, etc so that she could continue to go to work!

chris5 said:

A lot of states permit people to drive without car insurance if they pay into an uninsured motor vehicle fund.

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How does that work, sounds suspiciously like an insurer of last resort.

Anyway, to the original posting, in my opinion, an uninsured driver should not be on the road whatever their circumstances.

What I've seen is that if you don't have insurance, you have the option of posting a bond with the state. "Insurance of last resort" is something else, that's a pool where all the ins. cos. in a state share all the "bad risks", but you still have an insurance company to deal with.


My guess is that the people in this post had no insurance or bond, and they should not have been driving the car. Same as someone driving with their license suspended. There are always other options, like carpooling, even if you don't have a car, you can pay to travel with someone else.

basham said:

How does that work, sounds suspiciously like an insurer of last resort.

Anyway, to the original posting, in my opinion, an uninsured driver should not be on the road whatever their circumstances.

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I believe that the uninsured vehicle fund is paid for by those of us with insurance (that's the case in NY anyway).... And if you totaled that car, then you probably did someone else a favor; if the uninsured vehicle hit someone and damaged their vehicle and/or injured them, the victim in that case would be hard pressed to recover much...

Let me clarify my position on this. If the driver of the other vehicle had in place a form of insurance which is acceptable in that state, then they are deserving of sympathy and of payment for repair to their vehicle.
If however the vehicle or driver was not in possession of valid insurance they are not deserving of anybodies sympathy for what has happened. They were on the road illegally therefore they are in the wrong - end of story.
Any attempt to justify driving without insurance, e.g. "they might need to get to work to pay for the insurance" holds no weight in law or morality.
What is the next step? "I wanted to learn about computers so I could get a better job. I couldn't afford the computer so I just took it anyway. I would go back and pay for it once I had a better job. Honest Judge!!"

Keitht said:

Let me clarify my position on this. If the driver of the other vehicle had in place a form of insurance which is acceptable in that state, then they are deserving of sympathy and of payment for repair to their vehicle.
If however the vehicle or driver was not in possession of valid insurance they are not deserving of anybodies sympathy for what has happened. They were on the road illegally therefore they are in the wrong - end of story.
Any attempt to justify driving without insurance, e.g. "they might need to get to work to pay for the insurance" holds no weight in law or morality.
What is the next step? "I wanted to learn about computers so I could get a better job. I couldn't afford the computer so I just took it anyway. I would go back and pay for it once I had a better job. Honest Judge!!"

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"No weight in law or moraility" -- that's a bit too steep for our system of laws here in the states and my morality is on the other side of this equation. Again, as I said before, many states allow you to drive without insurance if you pay an uninsured vehicle payment. In my state, the payment is $500 and every person who has insurance in this state generally will have "uninsured motor vehicle coverage," precisely to cover the risk that you might be hit by an uninsured driver! Now, it seems to me that the fact that someone was driving illegally has nothing to do with whether they are deserving of holding someone else legally accountable for getting hit upside their head or car -- the original poster is legally liable for the injury she caused the other side -- that is the common law in virtually every state over here.

I think you miss the entire point of the "sympathy" that people might feel for this person who got struck by another car. We simply have a different view of morality.

I did say that if the driver who was hit had any form of insurance acceptable in that state they were deserving of support. I simply have no sympathy whatsoever with somebody who is acting criminally and gets caught out. In the UK driving without insurance is a criminal offence and it from that standpoint that I am making the point.
There was a case in the UK where somebody was attempting to break into an office building when they fell through the roof. They tried to sue the owner of the building for compensation for their injuries on the basis that the roof was unsafe, thankfully they failed. I see that as a reasonable analogy for the situation outlined in the OP.

keith,
He might have won here!

Lot's of uninsured drivers (and a lot without drivers licenses, too) in our area. I don't have any sympathy for that at all.

Woof. I hope you never cross the street illegally and get hit by a (licensed and insured) drunk driver. I'll still feel sorry for you (and probably for the drunk driver too). Ok, I'm going back on the porch with the rest of the bad dogs.

Keitht said:

I did say that if the driver who was hit had any form of insurance acceptable in that state they were deserving of support. I simply have no sympathy whatsoever with somebody who is acting criminally and gets caught out. In the UK driving without insurance is a criminal offence and it from that standpoint that I am making the point.
There was a case in the UK where somebody was attempting to break into an office building when they fell through the roof. They tried to sue the owner of the building for compensation for their injuries on the basis that the roof was unsafe, thankfully they failed. I see that as a reasonable analogy for the situation outlined in the OP.

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Man oh man that's really a twisted analogy and a twisted way of looking at things! There's a big distinction -- which seems to be overlooked in your posts -- between doing an illegal act that essentially causes the harm suffered by the person who committed the illegal act, and someone doing an illegal act that has nothing to do with the harm sufferred by that person! Of course, a burglar has no legal or moral standing to complain about any injury he suffers from committing an illegal act; this is a far cry from someone who's illegal act -- driving without insurance or driving without a license has nothing to do with someone else hitting them through no fault of their own. It is precisely like the situation posted above -- someone jaywalking on the streets -- a common occurence here but nonetheless illegal -- who gets whammed by a drunk driver who could have avoided the incidence but for his drunkeness. If you don't see the moral or legal distinctions between these situations, then I'm afraid you're capacity to see right from wrong is greatly impaired!