Expert: Bennie719 - 4/7/2008

Question
My husband had a small car accident in a parking lot in New Jersey. He was turning left from the main artery and collided with a car that was coming from the other side. His car's front bumper is damaged in the middle and the other guy's left headlight is broken. My husband says he checked the road before he turned left, and believes the other guy was speeding. When my husband spotted the other driver, he stopped the car, but the other guy didn't or couldn't stop in time and collided into our car. In this situation, is my husband at fault? I heard somewhere that the laws of the road do not apply to parking lots and the liability is 50:50...

Answer
Hi Stephanie,
Parking lot accidents are among the hardest to settle because there are usually no 'stop' or 'yield' signs posted.
There are usually no witnesses, just one drivers word against the other driver and each one usually makes a statement that is in their favor.  For this reason, practically all parking lot losses are settled on a 50/50 basis.

I hope you find this information useful.
Your feedback by rating my answer will be appreciated.

Sincerely,
Bennie
San Francisco Bay Area