Pop Quiz: Priorities and assigning fault in an RTC

[winjim]

I saw this incident last night on Police Interceptors* and thought it might be interesting to see what other people thought of it. The incident involved a motorbike rather than a bicycle but I think it's still relevant. See if you can decide who is at fault and later on I'll let you know what the officer at the scene had to say. No spoilers please if you saw the episode.

A car driver is at a junction waiting to emerge from a minor road, onto a busy major road. A driver on the major road flashes him. The first driver begins to pull out but as he does so, a motorcyclist riding on the major road hits the side of the car.

Who is at fault?​

*Don't judge me

 

[glasgowcyclist]

I chose the emerging driver although the flashing driver is guilty of being a nobber.


GC

 

[LCpl Boiled Egg]

^ Me too.

 

[MikeW-71]

The emerging driver.

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Do you want the right answer, or the one that should be correct? I've been the motorcyclist in almost this situation. (To be fair, the copper agreed with me, it was CPS that didn't.)

 

[benb]

The emerging driver, no question.

It doesn't matter if someone flashes you; it's your responsibility to check the road is clear before you pull out.

 

[ianrauk]

Emerging driver

 

[winjim]

Do you want the right answer, or the one that should be correct? I've been the motorcyclist in almost this situation. (To be fair, the copper agreed with me, it was CPS that didn't.)

I'm interested in what you personally think, but feel free to talk around the subject

 

[busman]

Both the emerging driver and flashing driver are at fault imo.

 

[w00hoo_kent]

In which case I'll change my vote :-)
Common sense says the emerging driver is responsible for assessing the situation and making the choice based on that. They should have seen the motorbike and so not pulled out. Just the same as you don't pull out just because the car coming towards you is indicating.

I could believe that being what the police officer said, I would be stunned if the final judgement was that the flashing of the oncoming driver didn't mitigate the actions of the emerging car, possibly reducing all responsibility completely.

Consider also that the highway code equates flashing to sounding the horn, it's officially a warning action. Despite that it has become common parlance for 'pull out' but it's not always used to mean that. What's to say the car isn't flashing to oncoming traffic warning about hidden Dibble?

 

[glenn forger]

Flashing headlights don't mean anything. The emerging driver's at fault.

 

[Markymark]

Why would the flashing driver be at fault? They could have been flashing for any number of reasons. It can only be the emerging driver at fault for it is they who failed to give way. If they failed to do so because another car flashed or their mate on the phone told them, it is neither here nor there.

Please can you put us out of our misery?

 

[shouldbeinbed]

The emerging driver, being flashed out is not a do it anyway card.

Wife was in the IAM for a while and they were very hot on don't flash people, if you are happy to let someone go, sit and wait while they decide when it is safe for them to do so.

I'm always on my guard filtering the rush hour as you can near as dammit guarantee any car having flashed another out will not have checked behind them for motor/cycles and the emergent car will take the flash as an instruction to move, not a friendly if misguided gesture.

Edit
To be pedantic: The motorcyclist should be aware and modifying their behaviour to respond to any eventuality, more so if they too had seen the flashed lights, it is a commonly understood (if wrong) gesture that should set your spidey-senses tingling that selfish or unthinking knobbery might be about to occur

 

[glenn forger]

The emerging driver, being flashed out is not a do it anyway card.

Wife was in the IAM for a while and they were very hot on don't flash people, if you are happy to let someone go, sit and wait while they decide when it is safe for them to do so.

I'm always on my guard filtering the rush hour as you can near as dammit guarantee any car having flashed another out will not have checked behind them for motor/cycles and the emergent car will take the flash as an instruction to move, not a friendly if misguided gesture.

A few times along Hackney Road I had drivers overtake me then flash a waiting driver out. Might be an honest mistake, might be deliberate, hard to tell.

 

[User33236]

There is always the chance that the motorcyclist was seen as at fault as, having seen one driver flash the emerging driver out, should have been prepared to stop in anticipation of what happened

Of course if that is what happened then it's total bull as the emerging driver is at fault