Minor Traffic Accident - Question for LEO's Only

[slider701]

I have a question for LEO's......and particularly for Texas if you guys can chime in.

Let's say you're driving down a 4 lane divided road through a residential area, 35 mph zone. Someone pulls out in front of you such that in order to avoid hitting them you end up swerving and hitting a curb, damaging the rim and suspension on your vehicle. You never make contact with this other vehicle and they fail to stop. The only witnesses are you and the other driver.

My questions are:

1. Can this other person be charged with causing an accident?
2. Can this person be held liable for the damages to your vehicle.

This hasn't happened to me but to another person on another community web site I visit. My opinion, not that it really matters, is that since there was no contact between the vehicles it becomes their word vs. your word, thus a civil matter. The person who supposedly caused the accident can claim the person was driving too fast, not paying attention, or just a bad driver who couldn't control their vehicle.

What's the law say on something like this?

 

[Iceman II]

1. The person can be charged with fail to yield right of way.
2. If the person failled to yield right of way, then this is the way it would be indicated on the crash report. Thus, the X goes by his name.
3. I would show the other vehicle as Unit 1 as a non-contact unit. A non-contact unit is a vehicle that does somthing illegal to cause a crash.
4. I agree with you on the his word vs the others word. The officer would have to take a look and the totality of the circumstances. IMO, the car pulling out gets the X.