Minor Collision & Insurance?

[Celica TVS3]

I was in a minor collision yesterday driving from downtown in rush hour traffic.

Basic Facts:

- It was a two lane road (4 total).

- Traffic was backed up in both westbound lanes.

- There was a car parked 50m from the intersection in the right hand lane.

- I had to move into the left hand lane to continue travelling west.

- I had my singal light on for aprox. 1-2 minutes while waiting for the light turn green.

- There was a vechile beside me, about 2-3feet back from the front of my car.

- The vechile infront of the vechile beside me pulled up about a few feet to create a gap.

- I proceeded to move into the gap about 1/4 of the way into the left hand lane.

- The vechile beside (and slightly behind) then drove forward after I began pulling into the other lane.

- We bumped 1/4 panels and caused pretty minor damage to both vechiles.

- She gets out of her car and tells me that she wasn't letting anyone into her lane because she waited too long allready.

- At the time I was driving a company vechile owned by my girlfriends dad. We were on the way out to his house.

- In order to avoid an insurance issue we had agreed that since the damage was minor we would get body shop quotes, forgo the police reports, and just deal with the situation in cash.

- I got a call today from a constable stating that a police report was filed and I would have to come down and file a statement myself.
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I have two questions.

Firstly, am I at fault? I looked into it and found that 79(4)(a) of the Highway Traffic Act states
(4) Notwithstanding anything in this section, a driver shall not
(a) drive from one traffic lane to another, when the movement cannot be made in safety.

I feel that the movement was made in saftey but it was the agressivness of the other driver that directly caused the collision. I belive she was not paying attention to the traffic infront of her, a gap was created, I proceeded into the gap, she realized a car was going to get in front of her and in an attempt to avoid it she ran into me. In order to avoid the police reports and insurance mess I was willing to cut her a cheque for her damage regardless of fault. I figured either way having an accident on reccord was going to hurt me (24) more than a lady in her mid 40s .

Secondly, Who's insruance would this claim be made through? If an insruance comapny on my side has to be involved would it be my personal insurance or the insurance of the company car? I obvously would perfer it to be my own.

Even if the police report is filed can insurance company involvment be avoided?


Sorry for the long post,

Thanks,
Aaron

[lint]

similar situation happened to my mom. She was at a light and had already moved the front end of the car into the left lane due to a parked car. When the light turned green, the driver in the left lane behind her, decided she didn't see my mom or something, and hit her front fender. According to insurance, it was my mom's fault. Apparently, unless your car is fully in the lane, any collisions are your fault. Insurance company stated they would not contest fault, it was solely on my mom.

Retarded. Just means if anyone is entering your lane, just hit them. They'll be at fault as long as their entire car hasn't fully merged yet.

[Khyron]

State in your police report that the woman seems to have hit you on purpose because she said she wasn't going to let anyone else in. That can save you, if she's stupid.

Also be clear that she requested no report, and then went to file one - that's becoming more and more common nowadays. I would just file automatically now.

Khyron