I was in an accident with an unlicensed driver in CA...?

Question

okay, so today, I was driving with my mom (I just got my license 3 weeks ago). So, no police report has been finalized yet, but I was in the left turn lane, it turned yellow, the guy was probably 50-75 feet from the intersection, so I turned, and the guy sped up to beat the signal, he tboned the car, and nearly killed my mom... believe I broke out in tears because I thought she was dead, just a few cuts though (and of course I'm fine). Anyways, we gave our statements and such, and it turns out the other guy had no license and his "insurance" was at home, which means he's probably not insured. Now here are my questions, please bear with me...

1. Should he be deemed at fault, am I looking at any insurance hikes?

2. Same question, but if I were at fault?

3. If anyone is familiar with these situations or is an officer, does it help me that he is unlicensed?

4. Does the fact he is unlicensed give me more credibilty with the insurance company?

Thanks.

Answer 1

1. The police should have been at the scene to determine who was in the wrong, then it goes from there. Depending on the type of insurance you have, it may go up if you are deemed at fault. You may have to pay an 'excess' (mine is $400 Aussie) if you are at fault for each accident you may be at fault.

If he is unlicenced and uninsured, there is very little chance of you getting any money out of this person to pay for repairs and hospital/medical. He could be charged though, you need to speak to the police.

Answer 2

1.  If he is at fault, your rates will not go up.  

2.  If you were at fault, your rates will probably rise, but not certainly.

3.  It probably does help some that he is unlicensed.  He has no proof of being able to drive the car

4.  That he is uninsured only serves to raise all of our rates.  The insurance company will work off of the police report.  

Get a copy of the police report and read it carefully.  Contest any inaccuracies you find.

What you ddin't mention is who the police found at fault in the accident.  Generally, but not always, that person is ticketed.  

One interesting thing about teenage drivers is that they are in  more accidents, both of their own fault and the fault of others.  Early drivers haven't learned to read traffic and drivers as well as older ones.  I've seen a lot of teen drivers in accidents where it was the older driver's fault.  Other older drivers knew how to avoid the accident.  In this case an older driver may have recognized that this guy was going to try something and waited until the light was red to turn(enter the intersection before the light is red).   After a year or two of driving, you'll also be reading traffic quite well.

Answer 3

Your insurance will probably go up, regardless of whether it was your fault or not.  If the guy doesn't have insurance, you'll have no choice but to file a claim on your own insurance, and they will raise your rates.

Answer 4

I'm glad no one is seriously hurt.

That said, you turned left in front of the other driver which makes you at fault in Ohio.  Whether the other driver is licensed or not (which doesn't help him), you were responsible for not turning left in front of oncoming traffic.