Car park accident, whos to blame?

whilst carefully reversing out of a parking bay in a busy car park, and whilst only being 3ft/1metre out , i was struck a glancing blow to the nearside rear of my vehicle, by another driver who said she hadn't seen me my car suffered a scuff on the bumper , hers had panel damage.
my insurers solicitor have said they wont fight my case as i should have reversed into the space, this sounds ludicrous as i cant find any evidence that this is law, any advice would be helpful .
Additional Details
just to add on... i do have a witness that said exactly that and i was inching out and she ran into me not the other way round , she was going way too fast in a dark and crowded car park , the witness has been asked to provide details but the insurer hasnt waited for them

Adam

reversing in is safer as you can drive out forwards. it was you pulling out so you are to blame.

the fact it was "dark", or they were going "too fast" or you were "inching out slowly" are irrelevant im afraid. it was their right of way, you cut them up. you are to blame.

best thing is to be nice to the other person, and see if they will let you pay for their repairs yourself instead of going through the insurance which will lose any no claims bonus and increase you premium next year.

Bardic

The fact that you pulled out of a parking space in front of a passing car means that it was your fault, if fault there be. Reversing in and driving out would have helped you see what you were doing, that's all. It's not a criminal matter, there's no law to harp on about, unless you care to try careless driving, which won't fly. That's why the solicitor isn't interested.

In all honesty, both of you were at fault, you pulled out in front of her and she should have been looking more carefully.

I'd drop it, if I were you.

richard2437

Unfortunately even if the police had been called they would have refused to attend. They won't try to judge an incident in a car park unless there are injuries. Judging from your description of the damage you have come out of it better than she has. I would leave it at that because she can't do anything about it either.

dubie

I would say that the person that has caused the damage is usually the person who has done the bumping which in this case I would consider to be the other driver.
It is a hard one to call. I would reach an agreement with the other driver that you pay your damage and she pays hers. If you are insured it is your insurance company that pays for it anyway.

new nanna

Not a lot can be done in this situation - usually you pay for your own car's damage.

Max Power

As your line of vision was not clear , you should have had someone guide you out , it was you who did the wrong thing by reversing out ,not the person who was driving forward ,as they had the right of way

Angel

This would appear to have faults on both sides. The best you can hope for is a "knock for knock" claim where both insurance companies pay the claim for their clients.. However I would hazard a guess the other party may not wish to take any blame like yourself and will try to claim from your insurance.

This is where protected no claims clause is great.

J H

More than likely, you are going to be told that you failed to yield properly while backing out. You probably don't have much of a case against her unless there are witnesses to say she was driving erraticaly through the parking lot.

THE Cupid HATER

Ask your Insurance solicitor to give you copy of the law/regulation that they are using to deny your claim. And check with your government Insurance regulatory agency about filing a complaint against the company.

catman

Reversing into a parking space is a ridiculous option as it is much easier to pull front in as you should.
In California there is a law against backing into a parking space (even though it is rarely enforced).

Yorkie

Your both to blame for being women drivers

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: