Spotsylvania County Failure to Yield Accident Lawyer
As defined by Spotsylvania law, what constitutes failure to yield is a turning, proceeding straight, or making another traffic maneuver when the driver is required to yield and does not. They do not fulfill their legal obligations on the road. Failing to yield is just as much in violation of the Virginia code as running a red light or not stopping a stop sign.
There are times when a person is driving and a triangular yield sign is instructing them to yield to oncoming traffic. Other times, it is implied, like when a person is turning left on a solid green and not a green arrow. Drivers take these rules for granted, but failing to follow these traffic rules is a violation of Virginia code and endangers the lives of the public at large. If your life has been endangered due another driver’s carelessness, do not hesitate to contact a Spotsylvania County failure to yield accident lawyer. A determined car accident attorney could fight for you.
Right of Way Defined
The right of way is when a vehicle is allowed to proceed without yielding. For example, if a person has the green light and is going straight, they have the right of way. If a person is at a solid green light and is turning left, they do not have the right of way. They must yield. Rights of way do not have to be with lights.
For example, with a pedestrian crosswalk with no light, the pedestrians have the right of way. That does not mean that all drivers respect that right of way. A lot of times drivers continue to pass even when pedestrians are present. That would be in violation of the law. If a pedestrian was hurt while they have the right of way, that driver who is violating the pedestrian’s right of way and caused the injury would be held liable for their actions.
Investigating Failure to Yield Cases
One of the ways that Spotsylvania County failure to yield accident lawyers could investigate failure to yield cases to see who is at fault include looking at any tire markings on the road. If those cars created tire markings on the road, it is evidence that they either slammed on the brakes or accelerated fast. It does not mean that one person was or was not at fault, but it is evidence that could help the accident victim’s version of the events and hurts the opposing party’s version of the events. Similarly, and most importantly, if a third party independent witness saw who was required to yield and who had the right of way, it could make all the difference if one party is alleging one thing and the defendant is alleging another.
Investigating How Long it Takes a Light to Change
A Spotsylvania County failure to yield accident lawyer could also investigate failure to yield cases by investigating how long certain lights take to change. For instance, how long a light is green, how long it takes to turn to yellow, how long it stays at red, how long the green traffic arrow is, and how long the yellow traffic arrow lasts.
Not all yellow lights are the same. It could vary from three to six seconds. That difference of three seconds could be plausible for them to make it across an intersection. If a person was approaching an intersection from 50 feet away and they saw that it was a yellow light, it is probably unlikely that a person would be able to make it through the intersection in three seconds. It is possible, depending on how fast they are going, to make it in six seconds. Investigating what is going on with the traffic light and how long things take could clarify what happened.
How Insurance Companies Treat Failure to Yield Accidents
Insurance companies treat failure to yield accidents by arguing that there is a good chance that the defendant did not have the obligation to yield, that they had the right of way and that the plaintiff has not provided enough evidence to show that they clearly had the right of way, which makes it easier for the court to dismiss that case. Insurance companies prefer failure to yield accidents as opposed to clear liability cases such as rear-end accidents. They likely offer less during settlement negotiations as a result.
Value of Working with a Firm Experienced in Handling Spotsylvania Failure to Yield Cases
It could be beneficial to work with a law firm as opposed to a solo practitioner when involved in a failure to yield accident because a law firm has more resources than a solo practitioner and these cases require a lot of investigation. A person wants to work with a Spotsylvania County failure to yield accident lawyer from a firm that is able to cover these expenses at the outset to do the thorough research that is required by some failure to yield cases. If a person has a solo practitioner that has a tighter budget and does not normally hire investigators or conduct thorough research to prove a difficult failure to yield accident, they could lose a case that they may have otherwise won.
A law firm is able to apply those resources at the outset to ensure a positive result at the end of the case. With almost all plaintiffs’ personal attorneys, it is based on a contingency fee basis, so the attorneys would have to pay for all these expenses upfront and collect at the settlement of the case at the end. A person is going to want a firm with resources to pay for these expenses. If an individual has been injured in a failure to yield accident, they should speak with a skilled Spotsylvania County failure to yield accident lawyer that could advocate for them.
