Car Accident: Third party going right in left hand lane

[maxxev]

No witnesses:

this roundabout:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocod e=&q=southwater&ie=UTF8&ll=51.013739,-0.344299 &spn=0.000957,0.002339&t=h&z=19

I went straight on in the right hand lane of the roundabout

The third party (learner driver) turned into the rear of my vehicle going right.

She hit the rear quarter of my car, just behind my passenger rear door of a Dihatsu YRV. (i.e. almost all of my car was out infront of her)

My insurance company is telling me as there are no witnesses (third party was not indicating, otherwise I would not have moved to pass her), and because the exit is passed the twelve'o'clock, I was in the wrong lane, as was she, so it will probably go knock for knock.

I would loose 5 years no claims and my �75.

Now I understand no witnesses to prove the lack of indicating, and having re-read the highway code I appreciate that the "most applicable lane" in this instance for me was not the right hand lane, despite the extremely slow speed the learner was taking the roundabout at.

However she WAS in the wrong lane, and she had the majority of my car out in front of me when she hit me. Which can be proved from the damage to her front right side and the rear of my car.

Anyway, I would like some thoughts on this because I really don't want to be paying out �500 or so over the next few years of lost no-claims for this. And wondered if the Insurance company settle on a Knock for Knock (which is sounds like they might) Is there anything I can do?

[R1Geezer]

You are both in the wrong lane, knock for knock at best. If 5 years NCB is valuable then fix it yourself. Sorry mate you are the numpty here, can you not spot a roundabout cutter when you see one? clearly you have never been a motorcyclist!

[maxxev]

Hard to spot a roundabout cutter when they are going very slowly, hugging the outside lane and really looking like they are going straight on the same as me.

I will learn from this though, no matter what don't go straight on in the inside lane as if there is an accident, the insurance company will not support you.

[harryt]

Hi, if it goes 50/50 and you lose your no claims bonus you wont lose it all.
You may be "stepped back" to 3 or 2 years so you will still have roughly 40-45% discount.

[factor-fiction]

I'm not clear which lane the other driver was in a which exit they were coming off at.

It's difficult to prove who hit who in these situations. Could the learner drive argue that you were slightly ahead of her then drifted into her lane or tried to 'cut her up' and as a a result the back half of your car collided with the front of hers.

You say there were no witnesses. If this was a learner driver then presumably there must have been someone in the car with her who could act as a witness. And presumably the witness would support her version of events.

Good luck.

[harryt]

The witness in the learner drivers car would not be " independent" so their evidence probably would not count.

[maxxev]

Hi, yes apparently they are saying I crossed thier exit (so yeh they are saying it's my fault.

I have assumed that anyone in her car would be classified as not being a valid witness because of thier association with her.

So I guess technicaly besides it being a dual carrigeway the exit I took was the "first" exit (actual first being a gated field (or a police stop point, i'm not sure, never looked too closely (never been anything coming out of it))), as such I should have been in the left hand lane, so even though the Learner who was in the left hand lane going right was in the "more" wrong lane, we were both in the wrong lane.

So basically i'm screwed. I will loose 2-3 yrs no claims and have to pay my excess.

I'm annoyed but I will just have to deal with it and make sure I don't go "straight on" in the right hand lane again.

I just hope she never goes right in the left hand lane again otherwise someone else will have to deal with this.

Having talked to someone at work, she said she has witnessed this on the same roundabout before, and so has someone she knows (seems to be a common problem on the roundabout).

I do wonder however if the council were to put road markings, what they would mark the right hand lane as (straight on and right, or just right).
In my experience MOST marked roundabouts where only one exit besides the one entered from is a dual carrigeway, they normaly have both lanes marked as straight on and the right to go right as well.

Thanx for all comments.