In our article we will talk about one of the most common types of road accidents - the so-called “door accidents”. This is the name for incidents in which the driver of one vehicle, without looking in the rearview mirror, opens the door, and another car drives into it, or when a car owner opens a car door in a parking lot and it hits a neighboring car.
If you take a closer look at the cars driving along the streets of your city, you will easily understand that this type of incident is the most common. After all, quite characteristic damage to the doors remains - dents, scratches.
Today we will talk about whose fault it is in this type of accident, who should compensate for the damage caused, and how the victim should act. So let's get started.
What to do if you scratch someone else's car with a door
If, leaving a shopping center, you approach your car and when opening the door you accidentally hit a neighboring car, then in this case you cannot talk about a traffic accident. Because this concept implies causing damage while moving, and none of the cars were moving.
What can be done in such a situation?
The most correct decision would be to agree with the victim on voluntary compensation for the damage caused. And under no circumstances try to leave the scene of the accident.
If you or the victim have a CASCO agreement, then you need to inform the insurance company about what happened and find out what needs to be done to compensate for the damage.
Any traffic accident is a stressful situation, both for the perpetrator and for the victim. Therefore, do not aggravate the conflict with insults. In any situation, remain human.
If you “caught” a pedestrian, then the situation is much more serious, since there is a threat to human life and health. It all depends on the severity of the injuries inflicted on the person.
If there is no damage, then the solution is simple. However, be considerate of the injured person and offer them a ride or other assistance.
If a pedestrian is inflicted with some, even minor, injuries, then under no circumstances give in to panic and do not leave the scene of the incident, even if you are sure that it is not your fault.
In such a situation you need:
- call the police and summon them to the scene of the incident;
- if necessary, call an ambulance for the victim.
If the victim says that everything is fine with him and refuses to call an ambulance or the police, take a receipt from him about this.
After all, if the next day the police come to you and report that you hit a person, caused him many injuries and fled the scene, you will have a way to prove that you are right.
In general, it would be better to call the police, even if the victim refuses. They will draw up all the necessary documents, record the testimony of all witnesses, and this will protect you from adverse consequences.
Registration of an accident in a parking lot in 2019
A parking lot accident is a type of accident that involves damage to a vehicle in a parking lot.
Situations can be different - damage to the body by a special barrier, a collision with another car when reversing, hitting the body of a neighboring car when opening the doors, and so on.
Such cases are common, but finding the guilty party is often difficult due to ignorance of traffic rules and a number of legislative norms.
Normative base
An accident is a road traffic accident in which a vehicle collides with another vehicle, or a stationary object is hit. All specialists in this field, from auto lawyers, lawyers, accident experts and ending with insurers, interpret this legislative norm in practice in the same way.
The interpretation looks like this: any collision caused by one or more vehicles that occurs both on the territory of a highway and on the adjacent road infrastructure, which includes parking, can be classified as an accident.
Who is to blame in an accident in a parking lot?
Most parking lot accidents happen when trying to back out of a parking spot. Approximately 80% of them occur when one of the participants in the incident is moving backwards. Traffic rules require you to make sure that the maneuver is safe before you start driving.
When both participants in an accident were moving during a collision, the one who at that moment just started moving and drove without making sure that his maneuver was safe is to blame.
If one of the cars was standing at the time of the accident, then the one who was moving at that moment will be to blame. This also applies to cases of collision with an illegally parked car. While driving, the driver is obliged to monitor the road situation and take all measures to avoid accidents.
Common causes of collisions in parking lots
Everything that happens in our lives has certain causes and consequences. As for the first, parking accidents, provoking factors may be:
- modification of some vehicles;
- urbanization, change of infrastructure schemes;
- a large concentration of cars, their heavy traffic near the parking area;
- organizing a parking space not according to the standards established by the traffic police;
- vehicle malfunction.
When driving in reverse
More than 90% of all accidents in parking lots occur due to the driver’s inability to control the vehicle when reversing.
Parking using reverse gear is taught in driving schools. This exercise is called “parallel parking,” but not everyone who has received a license is sufficiently proficient in this skill.
With barrier
If the parking area is equipped with a barrier, then this implies that you must first pay a certain amount of money, which is the parking fee. Only after this the barrier will open and you will be able to drive your car.
If a person causes an accident in a parking lot with a barrier, then the reasons may be the following:
- The driver does not want to pay for parking services.
- The driver made a mistake while driving the car.
- The driver deliberately violated the rules.
- The driver was distracted by minor circumstances when paying using the terminal.
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Kick the door
According to the Rules of the Road, “Road accident” is an event that occurred during the movement of a vehicle on the road and with its participation, in which people were killed or injured, vehicles, structures, cargo were damaged, or other material damage was caused.”
If both vehicles were stationary, then hitting the door will not constitute a traffic accident. In this case, it is necessary to call local police officers to the scene of the incident.
Using the automatic parking system
Modern cars that are equipped with an automatic parking system are not yet reliable enough to trust a computer with parking.
But the electronics may malfunction, and the sensors may not see the obstacle, after which an accident occurs.
What to do in case of an accident in a parking lot
Now let’s figure out what to do in case of an accident in a parking lot. In principle, the algorithm of actions is given in the traffic rules.
In general, you need:
- Stop, turn off the engine, put the car on the handbrake and turn on the emergency lights.
- Call an ambulance and provide assistance to the victims.
- Get out and put up a warning triangle.
- Call the traffic police, call the insurance company.
- Determine whether there is video surveillance in the parking lot, look for eyewitnesses, record damage and the location of other objects and vehicles.
- Write a statement and draw up a protocol.
Registration of an accident step by step
There are only two ways to report an accident:
- Independent (Euro protocol) – used:
- only 2 or fewer drivers were involved in the collision;
- the parties to the accident have no disagreement regarding guilt and the amount of damage;
- both cars were insured (MTPL was valid at the time of the incident);
- the amount of damage does not exceed 50 thousand rubles .
- Call the traffic police. When calling the road service, the driver must:
- independently film the accident scene from all angles;
- remove the vehicle from the roadway so as not to interfere with the movement of other vehicles (if necessary).
Called traffic police officers are required to:
- Draw up a diagram of the accident.
- Identify the guilty party.
- Completely inspect both cars and determine the extent of damage (describe everything in detail).
- View video recordings and interview all witnesses (if any).
- Draw up a protocol that describes all the important points of the accident.
Insurance compensation is issued on the basis of the traffic police protocol or the European protocol. They are considered equivalent documents.
Fine
For most traffic violations, including in the parking area, a fine is provided. Its size depends on the nature of the accident. In the event of a collision as a result of driving in reverse, the fact is taken into account whether the motorist violated the rules for performing the maneuver.
If the rules of maneuvering were violated, then the culprit of the accident must bear administrative responsibility and must pay a fine.
Is it necessary to display a warning triangle?
Since the incident occurs in a parking lot, drivers often do not install a warning triangle because cars are moving at low speeds in the area. However, the legislation clearly states that if there is an official accident, then a warning triangle must be displayed without fail, regardless of the location of the incident.
In the parking lot, this sign is installed at a distance of 15 m from the car.
European protocol for an accident in a parking lot
It should be noted that under the current compulsory motor insurance policy, if an accident occurred with the participation of no more than two persons, you can receive compensation even without involving the traffic police. If the drivers were able to agree among themselves regarding the amount of damage and other fundamental points, then they can draw up a Europrotocol.
This is a simplified documentation scheme, in which you will definitely need to draw up an accident diagram yourself.
Until the new rules came into effect, there were only 50,000.
Conditions under which the Europrotocol can be used:
- No more than 2 parties are involved in the incident.
- Only material damage occurs.
- There were no negative effects on the health of all participants.
- No deaths.
- The amount of damage does not exceed 100,000 rubles.
- Both participants have insurance.
- Traffic participants have a recording from a video recorder or a specialized program.
Leaving the scene of an accident in a parking lot
In the first minutes after the accident, being under stress, some motorists try to hide, glimmering in the hope that no one saw them.
Is it worth calling the DPS if your car is scratched by a door?
If the damage caused to the car is minor, and both drivers agree to resolve the issue on the spot, then you really shouldn’t call the traffic police. Firstly, waiting for them will take you a lot of time, and secondly, much more time and nerves will have to be spent during the administrative proceedings.
But in the case when the car was damaged while in the parking lot and the second car also did not move (the driver opened the door and hit a neighboring car), the traffic police inspector will not come to you, because such an incident does not apply to road traffic. In this case, the damage will be recorded by the local police department, so you need to contact them there.
What to do if your car is scratched in the yard?
What to do if you hit a car in a parking lot and drive away, read here.
In which case you can leave the scene of an accident, read the link:
Is an accident caused by hitting a door in a parking lot - Auto Lawyer Online
Accident in a parking lot: who is to blame, how to act, in what cases a European protocol is drawn up, features and nuances of the accident
A dangerous situation on the road can arise for any driver, regardless of his experience and driving accuracy.
There are also frequent cases of traffic accidents in parking lots. But if in the event of an accident on the road, motorists know what to do, then in the event of an incident in the parking lot, many are lost and act incorrectly, making mistakes.
In this article we will analyze in detail an accident in a parking lot: who is to blame, how to act and where to contact the victim.
Accident in a parking lot: who is to blame, is such an incident considered an accident?
The very concept of an accident is interpreted as follows: it is a collision of a car with another vehicle or a collision of a vehicle with any permanently installed object.
An accident can occur not only on the road itself, but also in a parking lot or any other road infrastructure facility. This interpretation is generally accepted in all areas: jurisprudence, emergency assessment, insurance.
At the same time, it is important to understand that such a small-scale event, such as a slight blow to the side of a nearby car by a door, cannot be considered an accident. When classifying an accident, the force of the impact, the amount of damage and other factors are taken into account.
In these cases, one should be guided by the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, without taking into account the law “On Compulsory Motor Liability Insurance”, which considers more serious cases as insurance.
Actions during an accident
When an accident occurs in a parking lot, not all motorists know what to do.
Emergency situations on the roadway and in the parking lot have some distinctive features, so you need to act in this way:
- First, calm down and don't panic.
- If one of the vehicles involved in the accident continues to move, it must stop, otherwise it may worsen the situation and cause additional damage to other vehicles or stationary objects.
- Set up a warning triangle and turn on your hazard lights. This is stated in the traffic rules and is necessary to warn other motorists about the danger.
- If a person is injured, call an ambulance and provide him with first aid using available means or a first aid kit.
- Call the patrol service.
What to do if your car is dented in the parking lot?
A car owner who discovers chips, scratches, dents or other damage on his car must act as follows:
- First of all, you need to find out whether the person at fault has a compulsory motor liability insurance policy. If you have this document, the insurance company will pay compensation. If the driver does not have this document, the motorist himself will have to compensate for the damage caused. In cases where the culprit refuses to pay the funds voluntarily, they can be claimed through the court.
- If the vehicle suffered minor damage and there were no casualties in the accident, the participants in the accident can file it themselves. According to the law, registration of an accident according to the European protocol is allowed if: two vehicles were involved in the accident, there were no injuries, the amount of compensation for repairs does not exceed 50 thousand rubles, both parties have valid MTPL policies.
- If the parties were unable to reach an agreement peacefully, it is necessary to call traffic police officers to the scene of the traffic accident. However, you have to wait several hours for inspectors to arrive.
- While waiting for the traffic police officers to arrive, it is necessary to record the details of the person responsible for the incident: his full name, contact details, insurance policy number. It is better to capture the license plate of his vehicle with a camera. It is also necessary to take photographs of any damage caused to the victim's vehicle. In the future, this may result in receiving an insurance payment from the insurer.
For leaving the scene of an accident. Article 12.27, part 2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation will not attract you. Because in reality there was no accident. Since there are no signs (criteria) of an accident specified in the legislation.
Such a case is an accident with all the ensuing consequences, but only if the impact was initiated by another car - it hit your vehicle. If a standing car was hit by hooligans passing by, snow, a tree or other objects/persons not related to the vehicles fell on it, then this is not an accident.
What to do if your car was hit in the yard and disappeared
Out the window - there’s a guy walking between cars. I got into the passenger compartment of a nearby Nissan. I was busy with a small child - I freed myself and went to look. The group of barely walking merry fellows has already parted ways with the owner of the car.
It’s good if at this moment you or a random witness manage to film it on camera or at least remember the numbers.
Conscientious drivers who remain at the scene of an accident and wait for the owner of the damaged vehicle to appear and for the arrival of traffic police officers are rare. As a rule, the culprit of an accident tries to escape from the scene of the accident as quickly as possible so as not to be held accountable. So, for example, consider driving around a group of parked cars: Under normal conditions, the maneuver is not difficult.
Is hitting a door in a parking lot an accident?
Accident in a parking lot: who is to blame, how to act, in what cases a European protocol is drawn up, features and nuances of the accident
A dangerous situation on the road can arise for any driver, regardless of his experience and driving accuracy.
There are also frequent cases of traffic accidents in parking lots. But if in the event of an accident on the road, motorists know what to do, then in the event of an incident in the parking lot, many are lost and act incorrectly, making mistakes.
In this article we will analyze in detail an accident in a parking lot: who is to blame, how to act and where to contact the victim.
