Ducati Monster Forum

I had jury duty today. It was a civil case where party A wanted monetary compensation for and injury received during an automobile accident. Out of the 40-ish people in my block, about 30 of us had gone through the questioning period by the time I got let go.

So how many accidents have you guys been in total (moto+car)?

One of the questions that everyone was asked was "How many accidents have you been in?" Only about 7 of the people said that they had not been in an accident ever. Of the remaining 23-ish people, nearly all of them had only been in 2 accidents. They were totally surprised that I've been in 6 accidents and I'm only 27. My sister has been in 6 accidents too and my dad's been in quite a few. Of my 6 accidents, neither I nor the driver of the vehicle I was in was found at fault except the one time when my dad got caught in an insurance scam and the guy in front of us threw it in reverse and rammed us.

2 When I was a passenger. When I was a kid, I was sitting my dad's car and the guy in front of us threw it into reverse and rammed us and then filed an insurance claim that we rear ended him. In college I was riding with my housemates and we were crossing a 4-lane road on a little side street. Traffic was stopped so we scooted across the road and someone going straight in a turning lane T-boned us at about 20mph.

2 In my truck. Rear ended when traffic stopped on the freeway and the person behind me didn't. Both times were due to the other driver being distracted or not observant.

2 times on the bike. First time totaled my first bike when a little old lady turned left in front of me. Second I was in the left lane on a 1-way street at dusk at a car pulled out of a parallel parking spot on the left side of the road. I was on the right side of the left lane in preparation for just such a move and he thought I was actually in the middle lane. My shifter ended up in his wheel well and when he slammed on the brakes it ripped off his bumper.

Random side note, my dad was at fault in an accident once and I guess they lady he hit didn't get enough money from insurance. Her husband tried to sue us because his wife could no long perform her "wifely duties."  [roll] Insurance took care of it.

4 auto accidents before I turned 30. I was young, stupid, and I drove like an idiot. I was at fault in every one, and  [drink] [beer]
was a factor in every accident. The last 27 years have gone well. I was rear-ended once in TJ, and the car ran from us. We never did catch them. Luckily, there were no injuries and minimal damage to the car. I might add, there were no injuries in any of my other accidents, but nonetheless, I am probably lucky to be here.

3 @ work 3 in my car..  5 of them I was behind the wheel, one of them was my fault..  my car while parked was in 3 others too..  all 5 of those I was driving the speedlimit and being a good boy..  if I were driving like I normally did, I would've avoided them...

3 in a car:  2 as passenger, 1 as at-fault driver (minor fender bender when I was 17)

1 on a moto: low speed get off my first month riding

Pretty sure 8

2 definitely my fault at the wheel

6 as a passenger

does not include bike get-offs

While living in LA I was involved in accidents that totaled three cars.

I've had four fender benders.

Last year I was hit in the rear on the 5 North bound near jamboree an that car was only a couple of thousand from being a total.

All these were while doing my job. I usually manage 60 to 80 thousand miles a year on the company car.

1) As a little kid, car I was riding in was t-boned but not too badly, nobody hurt.
2) Driving, waiting to merge at a yield, got rear ended.
3) Driving, waiting at a red light, got rear ended.
4) Driving, waiting at a red light left turn lane, got rear ended.
5) Driving, in the fastrak lane for the bay bridge toll plaza, got front ended by someone who realized he didn't have a fastrak pass and didn't pay attention to my honking horn and flashing lights.
6) Passenger in car in Seoul, sideswipe, neither driver paying much attention but the other car was more at fault.
7) Driving, in stop and go traffic, got rear ended by someone reading a newspaper.

Oops, didn't include moto or bicycle accidents.  another day....

Me..only one when I was the driver. Truck rear ended me. 3~4 over lifetime with other drivers.

Mrs IZ...I lost track!??

Including work and not including get-offs

9...shit 10

1 ) passenger in my moms car

2 ) passenger in 16y/o friends car

3 ) passenger in 19y/o friends car

4 ) crashed my mazda 323

5 ) passenger in fire truck crash

6 ) ditched fire engine in snow bank

7 ) ditched ambulance in snow bank

8 ) ditched ambulance in snow bank

9 ) crashed my ambulance

10 ) passenger in ambulance crash

Seems they're not called Emergency Vehicles for nothing [laugh]....

"Accidents" is IMO a misnomer.

Despite that, I've had 3 no-other-vehicle involved motorcycle get-offs; one at the track trying too hard, one as a result of some arsehole spilling 11ty billion litres of diesel on the road, and one out of excessive optimism.  All of 'em were my fault.  

I hesitate to say this... but after 30+ years of car driving... doing 90,000kms per annum...

nah... I'm not gonna say it.

around here they are called MVC's vs MVA's

Well their not "onpurposees"  :D

Just the one deer/bike incident for me.  :P

1 in 22 years of driving  [thumbsup]

Guy (foreigner in a rental not familiar with our traffic laws) turned left into the side of me when he should have yielded the right of way (he had a green light, but not a green arrow).

I've been in 5 car, 2 bike

Car
1.  I was 16 yo and my friend though it would be cool to yank the parking brake while we were going about 70 down a residential street. 
2.  I was 17 and the left tie rod end on my 1971 buick broke off.  the car spun.
3.  I was 21(?) and a girl rear ended me at a red light.  I was sitting at a dead stop and boom.
4.  I was 22 "   "   "   "   "   " (yes, it happened again a year later).
5.  I was going about 70mph on the jersey tpke and a girl driving a minivan decided to make a 90 deg left turn into my lane.  I managed to slow to about 40 when I hit the side of her van.
6.  I was sitting in the right turn lane on W38th about to turn onto 5th ave and a GIRL in a subaru thought she would back up into me.  She thought the turn lane (right most lane) was a parking lane.  (It wasn't). 

Bike:
1.  I was 19, a woman in a minivan turned left in front of me. I was already in the intersection when she turned.  I managed to lockup and the only thing that prevented me from high siding was me and the bike smacking the side of her van.  She tired to drive off, but fortunately there was a cop watching the whole thing.  He arrested her on the spot for trying to drive off.
2.  I was coming off the Queensborough bridge and crossing 1st ave and a woman ran a red light.  I clipped the back of her bumper and nearly lost it.  Somehow the passenger peg broke off but I did not lay down.



what's the commonality???

SO... this comes off more as a trick question, right? I answered 3-5... as thats the moving accidents in the car. However, I have had 4 cars totalled in parking lots while I was not in them, and two hit while sitting in a parking lot, in the car waiting for somebody to come out of the store. I hate farking parking lots. Plus, I have raced motos... so those wrecks don't count right?

I just remembered 2 more

4 not-at-fault and 1 at fault for me in ummm 18 years of driving.

1 (at fault) - rear-ended someone due to brake failure.  Interestingly, the person I hit fled the scene and I wasn't cited because the other driver fled.

2 - rear-ended at a stoplight by someone just not paying attention

3 - another car changed lanes without any mirror or head checks and merged into me

4 - backed into by someone backing out of their parking space while I was queued up to leave my office parking lot

5 - hit a moose in a near-blizzard.  Moose-strikes are 'acts of nature' here

Interestingly, accidents 2 - 5 were all to my dark green neon.  I'm convinced that something about that color and the perpetual Seattle drizzle made that car really hard to see (each time I got the 'I didn't see you!' line.  In a car.).  I will never own a dark green car or bike again...in fact I have a white cage and two red bikes :)