ASRA - Australian Skateboard Racing Association

To pay for the damages to the car or not

hey guys, im in a bad situation at the moment

I was skating down high street, along side UNSW, and i made sure that i wasnt slowing down traffic or causing any form of delay, but as I was comming down the road I went to the very left side of the road because there was a line of traffic so i slowed down and kept rolling, and a bus suddenly stops and i didnt know why, and then a car pulled out and I tried to dodge it/break, hit the car and flew 5 meters, no broken bones, and thankgod i was wearing a helmet

The problem i've come across is to do with paying for the costs to repair the dent that my leg left on the front right hand side of the car.

now I've been told that he is in the wrong because he didnt check for bikes or anything else and pulled out when the bus gave him the chance to go, and some say that it is my fault because im on the road on a skateboard and I have no rights, and that i should pay for it

but i am a student with little to no money

 

so i really need some legal advice, or any advice at all that can be helpful

 

thanks 

Tags: accident, car, crash, repair, skateboarding

Views: 115

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Premium MemberPermalink Reply by Jake Elliott on May 24, 2011 at 22:27

What I am talking about is if it goes to court to seek damages Dani, I probably should have explained myself better

 

I have a real life example of a mate who was in a motorcycle accident, he was travelling along a road legal speed etc and a woman in a car pulled out in front of him, he t-boned the car and wrote his bike himself and the car off, he was totally in the right when it came to the road rules.

 

When it came to the insurance companies and the legal mumbo in court, the battle came to % of fault to determine damages to be paid to him, there was some minuscule % of fault attributed to him due to he was using the road and he was hard to see, they also tried to argue that a motorcycle would be harder to control in avoiding a crash.

 

Although he was totally in the right within the road rules some fault was still attributed to him and it took a couple of years to get to that stage, when it comes to court, lawyers and compensation for damages it is a whole different ball game.

Permalink Reply by Alex Smit on May 25, 2011 at 18:20
yeah to be honest i agree with jake and the rest of you, he's texted me and he said that hes sent me information which i should be getting tomorrow but i cant see how he still thinks i should pay for it, im gonna tell him to take a hike and if he tries to take me to court over $400 hes a bloody idiot I think.

also Dave yeah I know its a terrible street to go down, especially in peak hour, and im just going to go through the uni now and try and avoid the campus security, mind you I can beat then on my board :P

I will keep you guys posted if i need any advice, and thanks for all your opinions and advice so far

cheers

Premium MemberPermalink Reply by Dani on May 25, 2011 at 22:44
That sucks man! What a shitty system!

Jake Elliott said:

What I am talking about is if it goes to court to seek damages Dani, I probably should have explained myself better

 

I have a real life example of a mate who was in a motorcycle accident, he was travelling along a road legal speed etc and a woman in a car pulled out in front of him, he t-boned the car and wrote his bike himself and the car off, he was totally in the right when it came to the road rules.

 

When it came to the insurance companies and the legal mumbo in court, the battle came to % of fault to determine damages to be paid to him, there was some minuscule % of fault attributed to him due to he was using the road and he was hard to see, they also tried to argue that a motorcycle would be harder to control in avoiding a crash.

 

Although he was totally in the right within the road rules some fault was still attributed to him and it took a couple of years to get to that stage, when it comes to court, lawyers and compensation for damages it is a whole different ball game.


Premium MemberPermalink Reply by Ben Mod on May 26, 2011 at 2:04

It may be best to bore him into submission ... If he writes to you, write back in a week saying you're getting legal advice.  If he calls or text, respond in a couple of days.  If you respond immediately telling him to take a hike it will motivate him to take action whatever that may be (does he have your address?).  Most people get distracted easily and if you can get through a month or two without much happening you'll become just another irksome memory.  Chances are he knows he can't do much except try to scare/guilt you into paying up.  He's an ass and a chancer for trying to make you pay for his mistake, don't waste time or money on him, go skate instead (safely!)

Permalink Reply by lochie on May 30, 2011 at 20:25
Permalink Reply by Davin Gemmell on May 31, 2011 at 12:46
Alex, changing direction without looking or failing to give sufficient notification is that person's fault entirely.  I was clipped by a car yesterday.  It pulled out from the kerb without looking or indicating (probably because it was a residential street) just as i was coming past it and he collected me with the front right of his car.  I've scratched the bonnet of his car with my pucks trying to stop myself from going in front of the car.  Luckily for me, police had just finished booking him for driving without a seatbelt and were sitting right behind his car.  They informed the driver that i was within my rights to skate on the road as it was unmarked and that he would be booked for careless /reckless driving by not checking his mirrors before changing his course of direction.  As there was no damage to me except some gravel rash, they didn't even take my details.  I know i'm in a different state to you but couldn't see laws differing that much on an area like this.  Like the others said, i believe it's scare mongering by him and it would be interesting if his insurance company does the same.

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