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08-30-2007, 11:41 AM
| | Junior Member | | Join Date: Aug 2007
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| | | Hit a basketball hoop hanging 3 feet over roadway. Who is at fault?
Washington State.
Hello,
Last night I was driving my motorhome through our neighborhood (which is considered a private road because it is narrow) and due to the width of the street and a car parked on the left side of the road I was driving towards the right side of the road about 3 feet from the curb. A homeowner on the right side of the road had a basketball hoop (the kind that can go up or down and it was all the way lowered) with the rim about 4 feet into the road and I hit it with the corner of my motorhome windshield (which is now destroyed).
I am wondering if they are at fault because of the fact that this hoop is protruding out into the road or if I am just hosed because I don't have cat vision to see in the dark that something black is sticking out into the road at 9 feet in the air?
Let me know if you could.
Thanks,
Jeff |
08-30-2007, 11:45 AM
| | Senior Member | | Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: South Cackalacky
Posts: 15,044
| | | No. You hit a stationary object.
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08-30-2007, 12:35 PM
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Originally Posted by moburkes  No. You hit a stationary object. | So if someone leaves something in the road, they are not liable? |
08-30-2007, 12:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Ozark_Sophist So if someone leaves something in the road, they are not liable? | Generally, no.
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08-30-2007, 01:09 PM
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Originally Posted by moburkes Generally, no. | If a vehicle hits a stationary object, it is the driver of the vehicle who is at fault.
The stationary object is not moving; it's the vehicle that is moving.
That seems like a very simple concept to me, but some people have real difficulty grasping it...especially if they got a ticket for their lousy driving! 
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08-30-2007, 01:19 PM
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Originally Posted by seniorjudge If a vehicle hits a stationary object, it is the driver of the vehicle who is at fault.
The stationary object is not moving; it's the vehicle that is moving.
That seems like a very simple concept to me, but some people have real difficulty grasping it...especially if they got a ticket for their lousy driving! | Someone fails to secure to a load. It falls off the truck and becomes a stationary object. The driver has no liability to the vehicles that strike the object because it is stationary? Not. |
08-30-2007, 01:21 PM
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| | | I gotta disagree in this case. Sue the bad people in small claims court. (Or let your insurance handle it)
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08-30-2007, 01:24 PM
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Originally Posted by seniorjudge If a vehicle hits a stationary object, it is the driver of the vehicle who is at fault.
The stationary object is not moving; it's the vehicle that is moving.
That seems like a very simple concept to me, but some people have real difficulty grasping it...especially if they got a ticket for their lousy driving! | Or teenagers steal a car and leave it parked in the driving lane on a blind corner? Car=stationary=teenagers not liable |
08-30-2007, 01:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Ozark_Sophist Or teenagers steal a car and leave it parked in the driving lane on a blind corner? Car=stationary=teenagers not liable | Well with joint and severable liability anything is possible.
However, you are expected to modulate your speed when going around such corners. What would you have done if there was a sudden traffic backup in the driving lane just around the corner? |
08-30-2007, 02:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Zigner I gotta disagree in this case. Sue the bad people in small claims court. (Or let your insurance handle it) | I agree. My wife hit a grinding rail (something skateboarders use) that was left in the road. The parents of the kid that owned it told me to get lost, the cop that came a few minutes later suggested a $500 ticket for "littering" if they did not accept responsibilty. Their home owner's insurance had no problems paying the claim. In the same light, a basketball hoop is not something one should expect while driving on the road, things like stopped traffic or other vehicles are items one should expect while driving.
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08-30-2007, 02:31 PM
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| | | I agree if you hit a car or tree on the side of the road you are at fault but just don't know about a basketball hoop (rim) sticking out in the road 3 or more feet (painted black on the sides so you have no shot at noticing it at night). The base is in the yard but the rim and backboard were sticking well out into the street... In a car it is not an issue but a motorhome sits a bit taller... |
08-30-2007, 02:32 PM
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Originally Posted by Jeffsji I agree if you hit a car or tree on the side of the road you are at fault but just don't know about a basketball hoop (rim) sticking out in the road 3 or more feet (painted black on the sides so you have no shot at noticing it at night). The base is in the yard but the rim and backboard were sticking well out into the street... In a car it is not an issue but a motorhome sits a bit taller... | Turn it over to your insurance company. Its not their fault you weren't driving a car.
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Originally Posted by arazi Quote: |
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08-30-2007, 02:34 PM
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Originally Posted by Zigner I gotta disagree in this case. Sue the bad people in small claims court. (Or let your insurance handle it) | As I have repeatedly stated here, take the case to small claims.
Let the judge decide.
However, the rule of law is that the driver is liable.
EVEN IF...all the examples happen above.
The law states that a driver has to be in control of the vehicle at all times.
Period.
End of story.
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08-30-2007, 03:47 PM
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Originally Posted by seniorjudge As I have repeatedly stated here, take the case to small claims.
Let the judge decide.
However, the rule of law is that the driver is liable.
EVEN IF...all the examples happen above.
The law states that a driver has to be in control of the vehicle at all times.
Period.
End of story. | The law also states you can't litter, drive with an unsecured load, place obstructions in or over a public roadway.
Period.
End of Story.
Even then. |
08-30-2007, 03:49 PM
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Originally Posted by seniorjudge As I have repeatedly stated here, take the case to small claims.
Let the judge decide.
However, the rule of law is that the driver is liable.
EVEN IF...all the examples happen above.
The law states that a driver has to be in control of the vehicle at all times.
Period.
End of story. | And for the record, you have not repeatedly stated anything here. This was your second post on the thread and you first stated: Quote:
Originally Posted by seniorjudge If a vehicle hits a stationary object, it is the driver of the vehicle who is at fault.
The stationary object is not moving; it's the vehicle that is moving.
That seems like a very simple concept to me, but some people have real difficulty grasping it...especially if they got a ticket for their lousy driving! | | |
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