Backing up or wrong way?

What is the name of your state? Texas
My wife was backing out of the Day School Parking area when another mom pulled through the drop-off/pick-up area then proceeded to go the wrong way through the parking lot to get to the street faster. Not expecting a car to be coming the wrong way, my wife backed out of her parking spotand hit the other car. The other driver told her not to worry about it and that it just left a mark that could be rubbed off. Now her husband is upset because he sees a dent there that she never saw at the time of the accident. What should I do? Who's at fault?

flyguyjoel said:

What is the name of your state? Texas
My wife was backing out of the Day School Parking area when another mom pulled through the drop-off/pick-up area then proceeded to go the wrong way through the parking lot to get to the street faster. Not expecting a car to be coming the wrong way, my wife backed out of her parking spotand hit the other car. The other driver told her not to worry about it and that it just left a mark that could be rubbed off. Now her husband is upset because he sees a dent there that she never saw at the time of the accident. What should I do? Who's at fault?

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**A: your wife is at fault.

If I am understanding you correctly, the other driver was driving the wrong way in a marked "one way" zone. Your wife was backing out of a marked parking space, and backed into her. If that is correct it would be the other drivers fault! There may be some problems due to the fact that it sounds like it may be private property. The marked "one way" on private property might not cary the same weight as on a city street.

HomeGuru said:

**A: your wife is at fault.

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Sorry, I disagree! The other driver was driving the wrong way in a "one way" zone!

And, I'll take the middle road. I think the fault lies with both drivers.

When I was learning to drive, we learned to watch all directions when we back. SPECIFICALLY for people driving the wrong way down a street/road/aisle.

HomeGuru said:

**A: your wife is at fault.

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**CORRECTION: you're wrong!

if presented before a judge, it would most definitely be a contributory negligence that the other driver drove the wrong way. at best, it would be 50/50 if not the other person's fault for driving down the street the wrong way. How do I know this? Because the very same thing happen in a shopping mall parking lot in another state (not Fla) and I was awarded the case and their insurance had to pay all of it.

I thought Texas was a comparative negligence, not a contributory negligence, state.

moburkes said:

I thought Texas was a comparative negligence, not a contributory negligence, state.

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maybe so....

contributory negligence

An injured person's failure to exercise due care, which along with another person's (the defendant's) negligence, contributed to the injury. A common law defense, originating in England, that one who negligently harms another cannot be found liable if the injured person himself was negligent in the slightest degree. Many states have adopted a comparative or proportional form of contributory negligence whereby negligence of the injured person is not a complete defense, but reduces the defendant's liability according to the degree of the plaintiff's negligence.

Zigner said:

When I was learning to drive, we learned to watch all directions when we back. SPECIFICALLY for people driving the wrong way down a street/road/aisle.

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Sure, for safetys sake you should! Just like when the light turns green, you should still look both ways before proceding. But it still would be the other drivers fault!

Ok, your wife will be found majority (at least 51%) at fault. A reversing driver has the greatest duty to yield to traffic going forward behind them. The other driver may be found to have some fault for going the wrong way, but it will be 49% or less. Basically, someone driving forward will always have the right of way over someone reversing.

Texas is NOT a contributory negligence state. In Texas, a driver can recover damages as long as he is found to be 49% or less at fault, though his recovery is reduced by the degree of fault. In contributory negligence states, ANY percentage of fault will prevent a driver from recovering; but only 5 states follow this rule, and Texas is not one of them.

The states I deal with are contributory states so I don't normally set percentages of fault, either my insured is 100% at fault, or he's less than 100% at fault and we pay nothing. But if I had to guess, I would guess a very small percentage of fault, maybe 10%, could be assigned to the driver going the wrong way. Your wife should have looked both ways.

ecmst12 said:

Texas is NOT a contributory negligence state.

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I knew that. daprez keeps interjecting irrelevant stuff into other people's threads. Maybe it makes him feel smart, or something.

moburkes said:

I knew that. daprez keeps interjecting irrelevant stuff into other people's threads. Maybe it makes him feel smart, or something.

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Nah, he just feels good that he can cut/paste copyrighted material without providing any acknowledgment.

Zigner said:

Nah, he just feels good that he can cut/paste copyrighted material without providing any acknowledgment.

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This is true**************..

Zigner said:

Nah, he just feels good that he can cut/paste copyrighted material without providing any acknowledgment.

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didn't my "maybe so...." post acknowledge that?