Parking Lot Accident, Whose Fault?

[jon1234444]

I got into an accident last night in a grocery store parking lot in California. I was backing out of my spot, the second to last spot in the row, and a woman came around the corner behind me and we collided. my left rear bumper went into her front left fender, giving her a significant dent but no damage at all to my car. I honestly do not know who hit who, but I was looking backwards and did not see her basically until we collided. there was a car in the last spot that limited visibility.

1. can I prove that she came around the corner too fast because she was unable to see me in time? she didn't honk or swerve to miss me.

2. I know that the person backing up is usually at fault, but when I started backing up no one was in the row behind me. since I was halfway into the lane before she entered it, does that mean she is at fault for not yielding to me?

3. she did not have her insurance card with her at the time. she took my insurance information. we swapped phone numbers and she said she will call me when she finds her insurance card. does this even matter if it turns out she really does have insurance?

4. who really is at fault here? is it shared?

5. what should I do right now??? as of now I am waiting for her to call me with her information. should I call her if she doesnt call soon? should I call my insurance company to tell them what happened? should I just do nothing and wait, since I have no damage to my car?

I found an aerial image of the parking lot and put together all the details in a diagram so it would be easier to understand what happened:



thank you very much in advance for any advice you can lend!

[cdwjava]

You should let your insurance company know that a claim could be made against you. In this instance, fault will be determined by the insurance companies or a civil court (if someone sues).

Usually the backing party will be at fault. However, this is not always the case, and if she struck you in the left rear fender, then you might share the blame.

The state will not assign fault as no police report was made.

- Carl

[Bookm]

By your description, her front bumper didn't contact you indicating that she did not hit you. Therfore, in my opinion she is not at fault at all (sorry). But the insurance companies may find shared fault. I really like the design of this parking lot. It really helps with visibilty when backing. Unfortunately, you were subject to the worst case scenario for this lot.

[Happy Trails]

I would like to know where the other car was when the contact occurred.

Was the other car in the middle of the lane or was she all the way to the right as she should have been? It seems to me that she may have been short cutting her turn.

[jon1234444]

I would like to know where the other car was when the contact occurred.

Was the other car in the middle of the lane or was she all the way to the right as she should have been? It seems to me that she may have been short cutting her turn.

ohhh I like that point, cause she was definitely all the way over to the left. but does that matter if it is a one-way lane?

I talked to her insurance company today (Allstate), and gave them my statement and they said they are going to assign 100% blame to me for unsafe backing. however, she does not have collision coverage so they are looking to my insurance company (Mercury) to cover the bill (which has not been estimated yet). I asked what if she was driving too fast, or if she should have seen me before entering my lane, or if she didn't use her turn signal, and they said these are all points my insurance company will probably use to dispute.

Bookm: it was the front left corner of her car, so I guess it was a combination of the bumper and fender. it was just the fender that had the damage. does this matter if I had no time to react to her?

thanks for the opinions!