HighLife

Well my worst fear has happened. I was driving on I-95 close to Pompano Beach FLorida. I was in the middle lane, just right of the HOV lane. A plain white Pontiac 4 door decided to pull in front of me. There was about a car length between me and the truck in front of me. So i had to hit the brakes so that his car wouldnt brush my car. As I slowed down i decided to pass the person and get him as far away as possbile. I dropped gears and put my blinker on for the a lane change into the HOV lane. As im almost fully in the HOV lane, the Pontiac decided to cut me off again. I was fully in the HOV lane and as the Pontiac entered the HOV lane, he had to come to a complete stop. So he slams on his brakes, mind you he is not even fully in the HOV lane, the pople behind him had to slam on their brakes also. So basically since he cut me off and i was speeding up to pass, my car hit the back of his car. Well, at this point i was PISSSED. I got out of the car and started yelling. The person got out of his car and proceeded to walk over to me saying he is very sorry and he didnt know I was going to go into the lane. As the person inspected his car, he openned his trunk. Me being right there next to him, i get a glance of the stuff he had in the trunk. I was shocked when i saw he had a Kevlar Vest and a Shot gun. I also saw few different types of helmets. I asked him what he did for work. He then replied, "Im a Federal Agent". My mouth drops to the floor and i was slapping myself for yelling at him. About 5mins later, before the Police had gotten there, another person driving the same exact vehicle pulls up. The person gets out of the car and begins to ask me questions about what had happened. I begin the story and tell him that the car was in the lane to the right of me, he cut me off, making me slam on the brakes. After that, i said that i thought the person was driving very dangerously and i decided to take the HOV lane to pass him. Again he did the same exact thing, with less then a car length of room, he pulled right in front of me and slammed on his brakes. I told him that i felt i wasnt at blame here. That being said, finally the police shows up and again I proceed to tell her the story. After I said my peace, the driver of the Pontiac and the Police officer walk away from me for a second. I see this and i decide to move in thinking we just getting out of the way of traffic. The Officer see's me and says " Sir, can you please remain there for a second." I say, "Officer if this has something to do with the accident, I would like to hear it." Officer looks at me and says " I understand sir, but for right now, im asking you to stay right there." So I hang out next to my car and wait. About 10mins goes by and the officer returns with the accident report. I finally spoke and told her that I didnt feel i was to blame here. The person pulled into my lane and was not using due care to make sure that there was no one in the lane when he made the change. The police officer looks at me and says "Sir, no matter what happens on the city streets, you hit someone from the back and you're at fault. Again I explain that since the person didnt bother to see who was in the lane before he changed, that he was the cause of the accident. At this point, im extremely upset. I then ask the officer, " Mam, if I were driving along the road and decide to pull in front of someone and slam my brakes causing the car behind me to smash into the rear of my car, who is at fault." The officer looks at me and says " Im sorry sir, i dont have the time to answer these questions." So now my Civic is wrecked, my hood, bumper, both left side and right side fenders, both left side and right side headlamps are completely destroyed.

Has anyone ever been in the situation? If so, did you win, and if you won, what did you say. I still dont feel i was at fault. So right now, Im looking at a ticket for Failure to use due care and may car is almost dead. Costing me $2226.17 to fix. Not only that, but since my i have alot of speeding tickets, my insurance company is going to drop me if this person makes a claim. If he wasnt a Federal Agent then i was just offer to pay for the damages out of my own pocket. This would keep my insurance out of it and all is good, but since he works for the goverment, he told me that it has nothing to due with him. I also wanted to contact him and ask him if he felt that I was the cause of the accident. I look at the police report only to find that all his info has " Confidential Records ". No name, no address, no phone number. Not even the name of his insurance company. Nothing... So if anyone has been in this situation, please let me know how and what you did. Thanks all.

krazyDOHC

damn ....that really blows, sorry to hear that

globlctzn

Just like the cop told you. You rear end someone its your fault, period. Sorry to hear about your situation. Good luck!

cash459

that sucks *** man!....i hate morons who drive like they are the only ones on the road.....but they do have a point in saying that if you hit someone from behind, then, yes it is your fault...i would say, that you could take your chances and go to court, you never know what might happen....let us know what happens...maybe you should talk to a lawyer.....good luck bro.....

clm

That's horrible, man. My advice would be to talk to a lawyer. Good luck.

jdmCHEF

damn id be pissed too. taht ************ only got away with it cause he was a gov. agaent. i know it sucks, but i dont think that u should stress unless u get a claim filed against u. in that case id talk to a lawyer. sorry bro

FabulousSi

Thats horrible news hopefully everything works out.

pdiggitydogg

well...yeah...youre screwed...
no matter who was really at fault in that kind of situation, the one that rear-ends the other gets the shaft

I usually brake when i have someone tailgating me too close...to the point that they might hit me. yeah its a real dick thing to do...but its even worse that theyre so close. I figure it doesnt matter what happens...if they hit me, they have to pay for my damages...**** them its their fault to begin with...

now that ive rambled about nothing in particular...sorry to hear that youre getting shafted and I hope you dont get dropped from insurance

E-Rok

I had a smiliar thing happen to me in my SER. I was driving thru a green light about 60mph....and a ford taurus blows thru the red light and makes a right turn right in front of me, and he was doing about 25mph thru the light, so i had no time to react and slammed into the back of him. and then he flat out LIED to the cops and said he was just driving along and I hit him. I told the cops what I saw, and of couse they didnt belive me. because of this I cant get a new car again becase my insurance is crazy becasue the SER was brand new and it was totalled. ******** like him need to be shot.

HighLife

So fuggin unfair...80% of my turbo money is gone to fix my car that i dont feel i was at fault. Im going cut off the next cop i see and slam my brakes and pull my ebrake. Then lets see what happens. ARRGGGGG......im so mad right now that im grinding my teeth. My car is really the only thing i own completely. I spent so much time and money getting it the way it is only for some jackass who cant make a proper lane change. Shitty part about it was that he could of waited 5 more seconds and i would of had more time to react....but since he pulled in my lane while i was speeding up, i didnt have a chance to react.

ki3t

thats sucks real bad ! Sorry to hear that. for that dumb agent.

IS3Fifty

like they say dude.... your supposed to have 100% control of your car at all times.... it sucks.

UpstateCivic

Damn that's shitty! I'd be pissed to. My sister rear ended a guy 2 weeks ago, but the guy took off. (don't know why) So she got off lucky and only had to have her insurance pay for her damages, and no ticket was issued. This is much MUCH worse though. Sorry to hear this man....

E-Rok

hey since you live down here in lovely ft lauderdale, im sure someone will pull out in front of you eventually, so whent hey happens, dont hit the brakes, plow into the side of them and get a new car

00MRSi

Highlife, I am sorry to hear this. **** that POS "federal agent".. That's no excuse for him to drive like an *******!! He could be a man and admit he was wrong and tell the police officer EXACTLY what happened. I can't stand these POS law enforcement people who think they are "above the law"... I would continue to fight this.. Do you have any motorists who witnessed this reckless driving by "agent dickwod"?? Good luck and keep us posted..

methred_92

No way, You are NOT at fault.

You are expected to maintain a safe driving distance from the cars that are directly in front of you. If the car cutts you off then you do not have time to react if they happen to stop abruptly. The other person was driving wrecklessly.

HighLife

Well I wish someone would of stopped and told the cop what happened. I think that guy pulled some BS with the trooper.

Im going to fight it, just to be a *******. I want everyone in this area to know i fought it all the way and see that this law has to change. If not im going to slam my brakes in front of every law enforcement agent i see driving down the road. If the law is the law...then everyone of those will be their fault. FUGGIN BULLSHIT LAW. Im very upset, cause i would of been boosted in less then 2 weeks if his crap didnt happen.


[Modified by HighLife, 9:48 PM 3/28/2003]

sparq

Which is why its your fault...

E-Rok

Shitty part about it was that he could of waited 5 more seconds and i would of had more time to react....but since he pulled in my lane while i was speeding up, i didnt have a chance to react.

umm, accelerating in a lane and having someone CUT YOU OFF is not your fault

Quad-Damag

That sucks man, people can't fucken drive.

JDMvtecDRAGSTA

first of all, it is not up to the officer to 'determine' whos fault it was, he is just there to do his job and get a report written on paper, i hope you have the other persons license plate frame, and other important information. report this incident to your insurance right away. and see what they say, the insurance is the people that DETERMINE what happens and whos at fault.

get this done right away, and jsut because the guy you hit is a federal officer or whatever doesnt mean hes protected from driving laws etc, i dont know much about the situation, but let your insurance handle it now, theyre the legal consultants.

good luck

JDMvtecDRAGSTA

btw i cant believe i read this whole post lol jk

INVALID

Sorry to hear about this unfortunate situation, more then likely you will be the one who ends up losing out in the end. I had a friend in a similar situation, seemed nearly the same words came out of the officer's mouth when he ended up crashing into an elderly lady due to hear carelessness. Best of luck in your pursuit

JDEM1

man, after i read that he had a kevlar vest and a shotgun in the trunk... you are screwed man... i dont know what you can do... you can never win in a situation like that sorry to say..

HighLife

I spoke to my boss and he told me that i might have a chance if the person doesnt show up for court. Im going to get a court date where as the person would have to take time from work and come out there. 80% chance he will show, but 20% chance of him not showing is worth it. PLus i belive that he made a Improper lane change. Problem is proving it. Oh well, worth a shot. Even if i lose im in the same boat im in now, plus court cost.