Q: Should I accept my insurance recommendation of taking 70-80% fault on accident claim against me?
My wife was backing out of her parking space in a school parking lot (2737 Kate Bond Rd, Memphis, TN 38133) in Memphis, TN. Front of school, parking area between baseball diamond and parking median. Wife pulling back driver coming fast around corner. Police were called and declined to come out because they were on private school property. Principal will not give video from parking area. Other driver claims that they honked and were driving fast to get out of way. We have two signed witness statements from teacher co-workers that say driver was speeding and did not honk. Driver was coming around a corner quickly and would have had room to slow down or stop; if paying attention.
Should we take the insurance recommendation of accepting 70-80% fault and the driver take 20% and be done with this. They said if we do this then they can not come after us for any type of damages. If we do not accept they we are out of luck for help from the insurance.
A:
A Tennessee attorney could advise best, but your post remains open for two weeks. Regardless, any attorney will be reluctant to advise you to accept or decline a settlement offer. But as a GENERAL premise in virtually all jurisdictions, a car backing out of a parking spot is generally burdened in terms of right-of-way with vehicles already moving. You raise the element of high speed, but are not able to prove it. If the issue and the property damage are important enough for you, you could consult with an attorney. Good luck
Tim Akpinar
A:
I apologize - you do have the witness statements - I was thinking only in terms of the video. But the recommendation remains the same - you could reach out to an attorney to discuss the best course of action. Good luck
Tim Akpinar
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