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The officer spoke broken English, wouldn't hear anyone out and just did whatever he wanted.
The only thing confusing to me is: The back and front of my mother's car is extremely damaged from the car behind us banging her car into the van. However, the van doesn't have any dents, only a little paint missing. LOL,as you can tell, I don't know a thing about cars. Maybe the van is just that much stronger?
Another thing, in the end, the car behind us was only about 5 inches behind, but the van in front had enough room that about 90% of another car could have fit between theirs and ours. I don't understand how there was so much room between the two.
This was one big mess and it seems we got the worse end of it all when we were in no fault. Just venting.
Thanks, again!
Because you were pushed into the back of the van, your car didn't travel very far. The van in front of you didn't hit the vehicle in front of them, so it traveled further since there was nothing to stop it. That's why there was more room between your car and the van.
In my accident, there was a smaller pickup in front of me and I was hit very hard from behind by a much larger pickup. The guy in front of me had very little damage since he had a chrome bumper. It was a bit scratched up and bent under the bed a bit on one side, but nothing major. (My sedan being slightly lower was pushed under a bit which I'm sure helped.) The truck behind me had a huge chrome grill and I didn't see any visible damage at all on his car. I'm sure there were scratches but none that I could see just glancing at it. However, you can see what happened to my car:
It sucks when your car gets totaled and everyone else gets to drive away, but you can tell from the photos that the car responded exactly as designed, the front and back crumpled but the cab was left completely intact. Vans, SUVs, and trucks will be much more resilient in a crash but the tradeoff is usually gas mileage. Modern cars are designed well enough that they are usually almost as safe as the bigger vehicles.
Aw, thanks so much for going through all of this (it is a bit more relieving for us). We just can't understand how the cop couldn't see this when the tow drivers easily seen it. They looked extremely confused by the cop giving my mother a ticket and pretty much convinced her to fight it because they thought it was very unfair.
Your explanation of how it happened made perfect sense!
Sorry to hear about your accident. Looking at your car, it seems your accident was a tad bit worse. I'm happy you made it out safely.
I couldn't give you another rep, so Thank You VERY much for sharing and caring!
Quote:
Originally Posted by fennec2009
Because you were pushed into the back of the van, your car didn't travel very far. The van in front of you didn't hit the vehicle in front of them, so it traveled further since there was nothing to stop it. That's why there was more room between your car and the van.
In my accident, there was a smaller pickup in front of me and I was hit very hard from behind by a much larger pickup. The guy in front of me had very little damage since he had a chrome bumper. It was a bit scratched up and bent under the bed a bit on one side, but nothing major. (My sedan being slightly lower was pushed under a bit which I'm sure helped.) The truck behind me had a huge chrome grill and I didn't see any visible damage at all on his car. I'm sure there were scratches but none that I could see just glancing at it. However, you can see what happened to my car:
It sucks when your car gets totaled and everyone else gets to drive away, but you can tell from the photos that the car responded exactly as designed, the front and back crumpled but the cab was left completely intact. Vans, SUVs, and trucks will be much more resilient in a crash but the tradeoff is usually gas mileage. Modern cars are designed well enough that they are usually almost as safe as the bigger vehicles.
See a doctor. Don't take chances with your vision! The bruising in your eye could just be from the snap of your head during the impact. The pain and bruising will soon begin.
See a doctor then see a lawyer. Its the only way you can keep the insurance companies from ripping you off`.Police reports are often not accurate. Once while the cop was handing me a copy of his report after an accident I was in I asked if he indicated if anyone was hurt. He said NO.. I said well sir as you can easily see from the blood running down my arm as you hand me this report THERE WERE SOME INJURIES..and just perhaps you need to change the report...what a moron. This is why I say go ahead and get a lawyer.
See a doctor then see a lawyer. Its the only way you can keep the insurance companies from ripping you off`. Police reports are often not accurate. Once while the cop was handing me a copy of his report after an accident I was in I asked if he indicated if anyone was hurt. He said NO.. I said well sir as you can easily see from the blood running down my arm as you hand me this report THERE WERE SOME INJURIES..and just perhaps you need to change the report...what a moron. This is why I say go ahead and get a lawyer.
I agree! And when you get a report, be sure to get it certified by the office personell. Certification is inexpensive and in most cases only admissible in court if certified (notarized). My wife's recent accident taught me that. Scrutinize the report for accuracy and have backup information to prove your point! Challenge it if necessary. Remember, the officer has to assemble everybody's facts and fill his paperwork out from his notes and memory. He can be just as fallible (even though trained) as any human. In our incident he had the map wrong and it 'appeared' my wife was driving on the wrong side of the road (she wasn't) and their insurance agency balked! We won the case due to the backup info showed he was incorrect.
generally police reports are not admissible since saying you did do something carrys no more weight then telling an officer you didnt do something. you talk he writes.
unless he saw the accident or spotted a violation the report usually isnt allowed since the report cant be cross examined.
even if certified the judge may not allow it unless there is reason and not just you told your side of the story.
the reason they dont allow them is unlike an e-mail or any other evidence introduced in court the judges are afraid because the report was written by an officer a jury may count it heavier then other evidence even though the officer didnt see the accident and is really just what he was told..
I wish I didnt have plenty of experience in this sort of stuff but I do. When you have an accident your fault or not the police officer always ask you directly if you were wearing your seat belt. This is included in his report and if you end up with an insurance injury claim you better believe a lawyer will see this and use it against you to reduce your settlement. I was the second car in a 3 car chain collision and because I dont tailgate I was barely able to come to a complete stop when the car in front of me locked downed its brakes. I stopped about 2 feet from the car. Then 2 seconds later the car behind me speeding and tailgating hit my rear going about 40 mph and knocked me into the car in front of me. . I found out later that the cop estimated my speed at 35 mph and that I was moving when the collision occured. This was 100% incorrect thanks to the moron cop. This sort of thing can cause big problems in court cases when the only thing you want is the truth. Never trust the officer NOT to screw things up. Some of them are pretty stupid but not all.
See a doctor. Don't take chances with your vision! The bruising in your eye could just be from the snap of your head during the impact. The pain and bruising will soon begin.
I have noticed hospitals do this as well. When leaving, you can tell them you're still in pain, but they'll put no pain, etc.
It's sad how many people don't value others and could care less about their job.
Thanks for sharing!
Quote:
Originally Posted by crestliner
See a doctor then see a lawyer. Its the only way you can keep the insurance companies from ripping you off`.Police reports are often not accurate. Once while the cop was handing me a copy of his report after an accident I was in I asked if he indicated if anyone was hurt. He said NO.. I said well sir as you can easily see from the blood running down my arm as you hand me this report THERE WERE SOME INJURIES..and just perhaps you need to change the report...what a moron. This is why I say go ahead and get a lawyer.
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