The Dispute:
Last week while riding my motorcycle and 1-2 seconds after my initial acceleration from a stop in the left lane at a newly-turned green light, I was involved in a 3-person accident. Driver 1 was going the opposite direction and failed to yield while turning left, assuming a green arrow when there was none. So Driver 1 hit me and pushed me into the right lane, causing my bike to side swipe Driver 3 (as I consider myself Driver 2). I was thrown from my bike, rag-dolled a bit, and landed on my back but was able to stand up almost immediately (ATGATT people!!!). I rolled up my jeans to feel/examine the affected leg and nothing seemed life-/quality-of-life-threatening so I declined an ambulance at the scene. This caused the police then to decline writing an accident report, citing no injuries (despite my minimal but real road rash, bruising, and burns). In fact, Driver 1 was not even cited for any infraction despite failing to yield. Anyway, in advance, I’ll be fine, thanks. I saw my doctor the next day and am currently under his care. I have linked a crappy MSPaint diagram.
The Legal Part:
Both myself and Driver 3 have given our accounts to Driver 1’s insurance carrier and they have already determined Driver 1 to be 100% liable. I have since come to find out that I made a mistake after purchasing my bike, and as a result my insurance never kicked in, so I was uncovered at the time of the accident. Double unfortunately, Driver 1 is an international student at a local college and has the minimum liability coverage of $5,000; however, Driver 3 does indeed have their own collision coverage. My bike will likely be totaled, and its FMV was around $3,000. I do not yet know the cost of repairs for Driver 3’s vehicle, but it is likely to exceed the minimum payout when added to my totaled bike. In the case that Driver 1’s liability coverage cannot cover Driver 3’s total cost after paying out for my bike, and Driver 3’s insurance eats the difference via their collision coverage, how likely is it that Driver 3’s insurance will come after me for the difference? I fear that I will be a much more attractive target for Driver 3’s insurance carrier since Driver 1 is a foreign national and college student. Have you all had any similar experiences wherein a judge or jury actually found Driver 2 (me) liable since technically Driver 1 never touched Driver 3 even given the fact the entire accident was the result of Driver 1’s negligence, a finding that their own insurance company has stipulated? I have not yet spoken to Driver 3’s insurance carrier yet. I assume that Driver 3 told their insurance the same thing that they told Driver 1’s insurance, which is the same thing that I told Driver 1’s insurance: what you see written above, aka what happened. Before you all tell me to call a lawyer, I called a motorcycle-specific attorney for a consultation the next morning. Given my lack of insurance and two other vehicles involved, he declined to assist me and was generally an ass; though, at that time I did not yet know Driver 1’s insurance would accept 100% liability.
Yes, I’m incredibly lucky on about 9 or 10 or 1,000 levels. The cops at the scene reminded me many times (all 3 are bikers in their free time).
Last week while riding my motorcycle and 1-2 seconds after my initial acceleration from a stop in the left lane at a newly-turned green light, I was involved in a 3-person accident. Driver 1 was going the opposite direction and failed to yield while turning left, assuming a green arrow when there was none. So Driver 1 hit me and pushed me into the right lane, causing my bike to side swipe Driver 3 (as I consider myself Driver 2). I was thrown from my bike, rag-dolled a bit, and landed on my back but was able to stand up almost immediately (ATGATT people!!!). I rolled up my jeans to feel/examine the affected leg and nothing seemed life-/quality-of-life-threatening so I declined an ambulance at the scene. This caused the police then to decline writing an accident report, citing no injuries (despite my minimal but real road rash, bruising, and burns). In fact, Driver 1 was not even cited for any infraction despite failing to yield. Anyway, in advance, I’ll be fine, thanks. I saw my doctor the next day and am currently under his care. I have linked a crappy MSPaint diagram.
The Legal Part:
Both myself and Driver 3 have given our accounts to Driver 1’s insurance carrier and they have already determined Driver 1 to be 100% liable. I have since come to find out that I made a mistake after purchasing my bike, and as a result my insurance never kicked in, so I was uncovered at the time of the accident. Double unfortunately, Driver 1 is an international student at a local college and has the minimum liability coverage of $5,000; however, Driver 3 does indeed have their own collision coverage. My bike will likely be totaled, and its FMV was around $3,000. I do not yet know the cost of repairs for Driver 3’s vehicle, but it is likely to exceed the minimum payout when added to my totaled bike. In the case that Driver 1’s liability coverage cannot cover Driver 3’s total cost after paying out for my bike, and Driver 3’s insurance eats the difference via their collision coverage, how likely is it that Driver 3’s insurance will come after me for the difference? I fear that I will be a much more attractive target for Driver 3’s insurance carrier since Driver 1 is a foreign national and college student. Have you all had any similar experiences wherein a judge or jury actually found Driver 2 (me) liable since technically Driver 1 never touched Driver 3 even given the fact the entire accident was the result of Driver 1’s negligence, a finding that their own insurance company has stipulated? I have not yet spoken to Driver 3’s insurance carrier yet. I assume that Driver 3 told their insurance the same thing that they told Driver 1’s insurance, which is the same thing that I told Driver 1’s insurance: what you see written above, aka what happened. Before you all tell me to call a lawyer, I called a motorcycle-specific attorney for a consultation the next morning. Given my lack of insurance and two other vehicles involved, he declined to assist me and was generally an ass; though, at that time I did not yet know Driver 1’s insurance would accept 100% liability.
Yes, I’m incredibly lucky on about 9 or 10 or 1,000 levels. The cops at the scene reminded me many times (all 3 are bikers in their free time).
