Most posters on this topic are mixing up the Road Traffic Act with the civil law of tort...B.O.B DOLE said:...so where would i stand here anyone can say that
dg123 said:The other party is totally at fault for this crash and there is no negotiation on that fact
Not so, unfortunately, on both points.dg123 said:Your insurance company should be advising and representing you, that is what (part of) your premiums are paid for.
Also not so - the indicator is relevant.Big_Spark said:She is too blame, if she was waiting to pull out of a turning and you was on the major artery, then you had right of way. It is irrelevent if your indicator is on, it could be faulty, as such she is 100% to blame, no question about it.
The HC does not document the law, nor is it a statute. It is effectively a 'best practise' code of conduct.masona said:The Highway Code Rules 86
These are two important points.AdamW said:Also, had you already slowed down for the junction? If you were driving along at 30 or 40 miles an hour, it is pretty obvious you AREN'T turning off, so she should have made a judgment of your speed.
Insurance companies determine fault by considering the actions of both parties and determine from whom they would be most likely to recover their money. They will ignore the Road Traffic Act, and so should you.
You could argue that she wasn't paying "due care and attention". This is irrelevant when considering who is at fault, because it's the reason for her actions and not the fact of her actions.
There's one clear point and a of grey area.
The clear point is that you had right of way. On this basis the driver of the other car was negligent, since she did not give way, therefore she is liable.
The grey area is that you might have contributed to the accident by giving a misleading signal. Your act may be viewed as "contributory negligence".
Your best action is to focus on witnesses. If you say that you didn't signal, and only the other witness says that you did, then I would expect things will go your way. However, if your speed indicates that you were signalling, then there is scope for the two insurance companies agreeing to share liability. Which means that both drivers would share the blame.
If you are adamant that you weren't at all negligent, then you should take control of the argument away from your insurance company. You could achieve this by using legal cover, if you have it, but ultimately its the threat of court action that will persuade the culpable driver to cave. If you personally sue the other driver, as you're entitled to do, then a court will make the decision that the insurers will otherwise make.
One last thing - you should ignore all of the advice on this topic, and seek professional legal advice.