When backing a car onto a public street, all drivers of motor vehicles generally have a duty of “reasonable care.” Reasonable care is the level of care that any ordinary and reasonably prudent person would use in the same situation.
As such, it is the duty of those backing a car onto a public street to follow the laws regarding the operation of motor vehicles in their area and ensure that they do not:
- Fail to maintain a safe distance between themselves and oncoming traffic;
- Fail to maintain a safe speed when backing onto the street;
- Fail to maintain a proper lookout and avoid collisions with other vehicles;
- Fail to observe signage regarding proper methods for backing onto the street and any other signals, signs, or warnings regarding backing up onto the public street;
- Fail to properly utilize their signals; and/or
- Fail to properly yield the right of way to oncoming vehicles.
In other words, the general duty of a driver when backing a car onto a public street is to maintain full and proper control of their vehicle and not cause collisions between vehicles or cause harm to other parties, such as passengers or pedestrians.
Because of the possibility of collisions with pedestrians, other motor vehicle operators, or collisions with property, drivers must be vigilant when operating their vehicles. This is especially true when backing out of a vehicle onto a street. If a driver fails to maintain proper control over their vehicle, they may be considered to be negligent.
Then, if the driver is determined to be negligent by breaching their duty of care, and their negligent actions or inaction resulted in an injury to another party, they may be held liable for the damages related to that other party’s injury.
Collisions with Other Vehicles
Once again, when a driver causes a collision with another vehicle, it is generally a result of careless driving. This means that the driver was being negligent. A negligence personal injury claim is a legal claim in which an injured party, known as a plaintiff, claims that another party, known as the defendant, injured the plaintiff by breaching a duty of care that the defendant owed to the plaintiff.
In the case of an automobile collision, when backing a car onto a public street, drivers will typically owe all other drivers, pedestrians, and passengers the duty to act with reasonable care and properly maintain control of their vehicles. As such, if a driver of a motor vehicle does not keep a proper lookout or fails to yield to oncoming traffic when backing onto a public street, they will likely be considered to have violated their duty of care.
For example, a driver may negligently back up onto a public street, resulting in another vehicle crashing into the back of them and damaging both vehicles, or they may collide with another pedestrian. Once again, the injured vehicle occupant or pedestrian may be able to sue the driver who caused the automobile collision for negligence.
It is important to note that although the duty of care of all drivers is to exercise reasonable care, the duty of a driver backing up onto a public roadway and the oncoming drivers are not the same. This is because the oncoming car drivers possess the right of way. As such, the driver backing up must exercise appropriate care that is appropriate to their particular circumstances.
Examples of actions that a driver should take that are considered exercising appropriate care when backing a car onto a public street may include, but are not limited to:
- Utilizing proper signaling;
- Waiting until there is a safe distance with which they can back out;
- Properly yielding to oncoming traffic.
It is important to note that the driver backing their vehicle onto a public street will not always be found negligent if an automobile collision occurs because of their backing up. For instance, there are many cases in which the oncoming car is found negligent for driving excessively fast or otherwise engaging in reckless driving. In some instances, both the driver backing out and the oncoming vehicle may be found negligent.
How Is Liability Determined in Automobile Collision Cases?
As far as determining liability in an automobile collision case, that will depend on the laws of the state in which the collision occurred. Establishing liability in an automobile collision is important because it determines which party can recover damages for their injuries and in what amount.
The oncoming driver may claim that the backing out car driver’s negligence caused both the accident and their injuries. Simultaneously, the backing-out car driver will attempt to defend themselves and will likely highlight negligent behavior on the part of the oncoming vehicle that contributed to the accident. This is known as comparative negligence, which can limit the amount of damages that the oncoming vehicle can recover.
Contributory negligence states that if the plaintiff is considered to be at all negligent in the incident, they cannot recover any damages from the defendant. As such, in contributory negligence states, any negligence on behalf of the plaintiff will totally bar them from recovering for their injuries.
Comparative negligence is widely used by many states to determine damage reduction in negligence cases. Examples of different forms of comparative negligence include:
- Pure Comparative Negligence: For pure comparative negligence, the amount that a plaintiff can receive in monetary damages is reduced by their fault percentage.
- For example, if a plaintiff sues the driver that backed their vehicle on the street for $100,000 but is found to be 80% at fault in the incident for driving unsafely themselves, they may still be able to receive $20,000 in damages;
- Modified Comparative Negligence (50% Rule): For modified comparative negligence, plaintiffs are barred from recovery if they are found to be 50% or more at fault for the accident.
- This means, so long as plaintiffs are considered to be 49% percent or less negligent, they can still recover damages, with their recovery being reduced by their fault percentage; and
- Modified Comparative Negligence (51% Rule): For modified comparative negligence, the same rule applies as above, but the percentage of plaintiff negligence that bars recovery is higher.
- In other words, the damaged party can recover if the judge or jury rules that they are 50% or less responsible for the automobile collision.
- Although the number difference between the 50% and 51% approaches is considerably small, the intention is that when the plaintiff and defendant share the blame equally, the injured party should still be able to seek reduced compensation.
It is important to note that in cases involving automobile collisions when backing a car onto a street, a vehicle accident report is important in determining liability. As such, if you were involved in a collision, you should request an officer to come to the scene and create an accident report.
Collisions with Pedestrians
In legal terms, a pedestrian is any person who is on foot, regardless of whether they are standing, walking, or running. Similar to the duty owed to oncoming traffic, drivers backing their vehicles onto a street also owe similar duties to pedestrians.
When an automobile collides with a pedestrian, the injuries are often severe, as the pedestrian does not possess protections similar to the protections that another vehicle may have during an automobile collision.
In terms of the potential liability for hitting a pedestrian when backing a car onto a public street, there may be both civil and criminal penalties for the driver. For example, the penalty for hitting a pedestrian could include jail time, a ticket carrying a traffic fine, or a combination of both imprisonment and a fine.
Additionally, the pedestrian may also hold the driver who struck them civilly liable for the damages they suffered if the pedestrian is able to demonstrate that the driver was the negligent at-fault party. This will require the pedestrian to prove that the driver backing their car onto the public street was negligent.
Similar to automobile collisions, the fault for the automobile collision is not always on the driver who is backing their car out. For instance, in cases where a pedestrian jumps in front of the car backing out, and the driver did no wrong because they were following the law, the pedestrian is less likely to collect damages for their injuries.
Should I Contact an Attorney About Auto Collisions When Backing a Car onto a Public Street?
As can be seen, automobile collisions when backing a car onto a public street require a certain level of proof of negligence and can often result in injuries to both property and person. As such, it is in your best interests to consult with an experienced car accident attorney if you have been involved in an automobile collision involving a car backing out.
An experienced personal injury attorney will be able to help you file a civil lawsuit against the responsible party, gather all of the necessary evidence to prove your claim and collect damages for your injuries.
Additionally, an attorney will be able to negotiate your claim with the responsible party’s insurance, if possible. Finally, if the attorney is unable to recover a fair settlement for the injuries you suffered, they can also represent you in a court of law.
