keen-swift-4561d ago

Blind corner in a parking garage — other driver was way over the center line. Who's at fault?

Still kind of in shock about this so bear with me if it's a little scattered.

I was leaving a parking garage last week, coming out of a side lane toward one of those internal intersections where you can't really see anything until you're halfway out. There's a big concrete pillar right at the corner that blocks your sightline completely. I've parked there a hundred times and I always creep out slow because I know it's a bad spot.

So I'm inching out — like genuinely barely moving — when out of nowhere a pickup comes flying through the intersection way over on my side of the lane. Like, he wasn't even close to his half of the road. He was hugging the inside of the turn so hard there was basically no room for anyone coming from my direction.

The front corner of my car took the hit. Airbags didn't deploy but the damage is pretty significant. My aunt was riding with me and she said her neck started hurting about an hour after we got home. She went to urgent care the next day.

Here's where I'm stressed: the garage doesn't have a painted center line, so the other driver's insurance is already trying to say we were both just navigating a shared space and I'm equally at fault. That feels completely wrong to me — I was barely moving, and he was clearly on the wrong side.

Has anyone fought a shared-fault or 50/50 determination when the other driver was out of their lane? How do you even prove that without a center line marking? My aunt's injury situation is also making me nervous about how this all plays out.

8 replies

Most helpful first

sharp-marmot-9531d ago
I dealt with almost the exact same situation in a mall parking structure. No lane markings, blind turn, other driver was way off to the wrong side. Their insurance tried the 50/50 thing on me too. What saved me was footage from a private security camera I didn't even know existed. Definitely ask the garage management if they have cameras covering that intersection — most of them do and they don't always volunteer it.
- brave-grouse-5371d ago
  A few things worth doing right now if you haven't already: (1) Send a written request to the garage property manager asking them to preserve any surveillance footage — most systems overwrite within 7–14 days. (2) Get a copy of any incident report filed at the garage. (3) If either of you spoke to the other driver at the scene, write down everything you remember he said while it's still fresh. All of this becomes really useful documentation later.
sharp-crow-0741d ago
The moment the adjuster says "shared space" and "both parties contributing" you need to put your guard up. That's textbook language they use to justify splitting liability and lowballing your payout. It doesn't mean it's actually true or fair — it just means they're working their angle. Don't agree to anything and don't let them record a statement from you or your aunt without thinking it through first.
curious-beaver-7441d ago
Honestly? When there are no painted lines in a garage, adjusters default to comparative fault because it's the path of least resistance. What changes that calculation is physical evidence — where the point of impact is on each vehicle tells a story. If the damage on his truck is on the front-left and your damage is on the front-right, that geometry actually supports your version of events pretty strongly. Make sure those photos are locked down before anything gets repaired.
silent-vole-3491d ago
Please make sure your aunt follows up with an actual doctor and not just urgent care, especially for the neck pain. Soft tissue injuries can take days or even a couple of weeks to fully show up and urgent care often doesn't have the imaging equipment to catch everything. She should document every symptom, every appointment, and keep a simple pain journal. That stuff matters a lot if her injury becomes part of any claim.
gentle-dove-0271d ago
Not legal advice, but the lack of painted lane markings doesn't mean the rules of the road disappear — drivers are generally still expected to keep right and leave room for oncoming traffic. The physical evidence of where each vehicle was struck can help reconstruct who was where. With a passenger injury involved, even a minor one, it might be worth at least a free consult with a PI attorney before you say much more to the other driver's insurance company.
sharp-elk-5931d ago
Stop talking to the other driver's insurance. Full stop. They are not on your side, they are not trying to be fair — they are trying to close this cheap. Let them talk to your insurance or, if your aunt's injury turns into something real, a lawyer. You're not being difficult by doing that, you're just not being a pushover.
plain-marmot-3261d ago
This sounds so stressful, I'm sorry you're going through it. I hope your aunt is okay — neck stuff is scary because you don't always know right away how bad it is. Please both just take care of yourselves and don't let the insurance stress rush you into decisions.