who is right bike or car?

i was hit by a car while on my bike an i want the driver to pay for the hospital bills. but they refused because i was in violation of riding on the sidewalk an on the wrong side of the road.
which i think is unfair because no where on this main street does it say i cant ride on sidewalk nor does it have a bike lane an a bike wouldnt fit in that small street plus everyone rides on the side walk an ive always rode on the sidewalk an a cops pass right along side me an dont say anything. i came to a complete stop on my bike an after making sure the driver stopped at the stop sign i proceeded an she pulled up to see if cars were coming an she hit me. the driver still didnt notice she hit me an kept pulling up. an finally the passenger told her she hit me as i was on the floor. i feel its her fault for not stopping at the stop sign for atlease 3 seconds an for not looking both ways. i was stopped to insure she would stop an i was not going full speed so she cant say i came out of nowhere. even the passenger told the driver i knew i should told you i saw her coming. if the passenger seen me why couldnt she have? there was no trees or any parked cars blocking her from seeing me. who do you feel is in the wrong?

Vince

Call the police and tell them what happened.
They'll be able to tell you what you can do.
You can also take her to small claims court.

sgoldperson

What was the car doing on the sidewalk? Oh wait you were riding on the CROSSWALK, when you belong in a LANE, which is less of an issue to me. To me the real issue is that you were going the wrong way. If I hit a car that was driving the wrong way THEY are fault. That is what YOU did. You drove the wrong way. You are wrong simply because you were in teh wrong lane. The legal argument goes if you were in the CORRECT LANE you wouldn't have been hit.

Add: It IS illegal to RIDE a bike on a sidewalk, as well as in the crosswalk technically. If you were WALKING your bike they would be in the wrong and you'd be right. The difference is a bike rider is a MOTOR VEHICLE and a person on foot, even if they have a bike, is a PEDESTRIAN.

yyyyzz (wise)

You do not know the rules of the road very well. You are totally wrong, and no excuse will change that. If everyone does it, it is still wrong, you were the fish getting caught.
Peace.

P.S. Her wrong does not make your wrong right.

Firecracker .

While the rules of the road vary from state to state, THOSE rules are the same in EVERY state.
SideWALK - for pedestrians, not legal to ride bicycle.
CrossWALK - for pedestrians, not legal to ride bicycle. Proper method to use crossWALK - dismount and walk as pedestrian.
Bicycles are VEHICLES by law in EVERY state, and must follow the same road rules as any other vehicle.
By law, you were wrong. Very wrong.

By common sense, you were even more wrong.
You rode out in front of something that could kill you.

Now, you can thumb down all the answers you don't agree with - it doesn't change anything.
Just because cops choose not to tell you it's wrong does not make it right.
Most cops don't know the real laws as well as you think.
If you said which state you were in, I'd show you the laws.

Carl P

If you where in a cross walk with your bike, she was at fault.

Take it up with the police and a lawyer.

EDITED:
You are allow on the sidewalk in many states and it appears you followed the law where I live.

More reference for the state of VA. (And Firecracker learn the laws before you talk)

http://www.vdot.virginia.gov/programs/bk-laws.asp

Where to Ride

* Bicyclists must ride with the flow of traffic on the right side of the highway.
* Bicyclists operating a bicycle on a roadway at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place under conditions then existing shall ride as close as safely practicable to the right curb or edge of roadway. Exceptions to this are when bicyclists are overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction, preparing for a left turn, avoiding unsafe conditions, avoiding riding in a lane that turns or diverges to the right, riding on a one way street where bicyclists may ride as near the left-hand curb or edge of roadway, or when the lane width is too narrow to share with a motor vehicle. Additionally, bicycles are not excluded from riding on the highway shoulder.
* Bicyclists must not ride between two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction unless one lane is a separate or mandatory turn lane.
* Bicyclists cannot ride more than two or more abreast on highways. When riding two abreast, bicyclists cannot impede the movement of traffic, need to move into single file when being overtaken from the rear. On a laned roadway, bicyclists shall ride in a single lane.
* Bicyclists are not permitted to ride on interstate and certain controlled access highways, unless the operation is limited to bicycle or pedestrian facilities that are barrier separated from the roadway and automobile traffic. The restricted sections of the highways are marked with conspicuous signs.
* Bicycles may be ridden on sidewalks unless prohibited by local ordinance or traffic control devices. While on sidewalks and shared use paths, bicyclists must always yield the right of way to pedestrians and give an audible signal before passing a pedestrian.
* Bicyclists pulling onto a sidewalk or highway from a driveway must yield the right of way to pedestrians or vehicles already on the sidewalk or highway.

Reference: Â§Â§46.2-802,46.2-808,46.2-826,46.2-903,46â€¦ ^TOPICS

Brendon

Well for a start, yes they should own up and pay the bills. Its not illegal to bike on the sidewalk is it?
The car is at fault, not you. And not stopping at a stop sign is dangerous, tell the driver that, knowing from pure instinct that that's illegal.

Im having to edit this to the "Top Contributer".
Since when was biking illegal on the sidewalk, think about it, you have no proof. In theory the driver IS in fault, its just casual sense knowing when to look and when to drive.

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