What if I can’t remember the accident?
I had an accident when overtaking on my way to work. The driver who hit me said I was going well above the speed limit. He said he was attempting to turn right and was indicating. I can’t remember the accident but there are witnesses. Some of them say I was going too fast while others say I was not and some of them say the other driver was indicating and turning slowly while others say that he pulled out fairly quickly and suddenly. My solicitors are considering dropping my claim. Is it right that because I can’t remember the accident I must be to blame?
Ryan, Porthcawl
Answer
When looking at blame for an accident many cases turn on witness evidence as well as physical evidence from the scene. Just because you can’t remember the accident does not mean you are unable recover compensation. There appears to be a discrepancy between the witness evidence and this evidence needs to be considered carefully. Speed is always a difficult thing for witnesses to accurately determine. I think you should obtain evidence from an accident reconstruction expert. This expert will consider all available evidence to calculate the speed of you and the other driver and importantly for how long you would have been visible to the turning vehicle while you were overtaking. If you were there to be seen and you succeed in your claim there is likely to be a reduction in your compensation because you were overtaking on the approach to a junction.
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