Legal Question in Traffic Law in Virginia

Re: Responsibility for an accident when one stops at green light?

You rear-ended the other driver. It's your fault. VA is not a no-fault state. Next time don't follow so closely.

Re: Responsibility for an accident when one stops at green light?

If the other driver abruptly stopped at a green light for no good reason, causing your vehicle to rear-end his, it's possible that this other operator could be at least partly liable for the damages resulting to your vehicle.

You should first get two credible repair estimates for the damage to your vehicle. Then send a copy of the lowest estimate with a letter to the other party requesting that he or she share in the reasonable cost of the lowest repair estimate. This amount could be 50% of the estimated repair cost or some other amount which you believe is reasonably proportionate to the other driver's share of the culpability(blame)for the accident.

If the other driver fails to respond to your correspondence, your remaining option is to sue

her or him in small claims court for the entire amount of the damage to your vehicle(up to the $2000 jurisdictional limit) based upon your claim that he or she was entirely at fault for all of the damage done to your vehicle by the precipitous stop executed without adequate warning to you, the driver in the rear, and which, although you were following at a reasonable distance for the speed and conditions of the road, did not permit you to stop in time to avoid the collision.

You should be able to file your case in small claims court for less than $40.

Re: Responsibility for an accident when one stops at green light?

Generally speaking, if you do not keep your

car under control you are responsible for the

consequences. As a result, when you rear end

someone you are almost always legally liable

automatically. The exception might be if the

driver you hit was doing something truly unusual

and you could not stop as a result. But you

might need a witness to confirm your testimony,

if they deny it.

For example, if the brake lights were not

working, and you can show this, that would do

it. But you would have to convince the judge

that something truly unusual was going on.

Technically, you cannot sue anyone for their

contributory negligence. That is a defense.

What happens is that if Party A is negligent,

and Party B is also negligent (and it is relevant,

so that it contributes to the accident), then

nobody gets anything.

As usual, a lot would depend upon what version

of the facts the judge ends up believing after

the various people testify to different things.