Auto Insurance Claims: liability dispute, cul de sac, yellow zone

Question
Our 16 year old son was making a left hand turn into a cul de sac and hit another car that was passing him on the left in the intersection with double yellow lines on both sides of the direction of traffic.  He had his turn signal on but admitted that he did not see the car attempting to pass him.  He had just pulled away from a curb approximately 100 feet prior and had looked for oncoming traffic at that time.  Our son was found 100% at guilt based on point of impact. they said he should have seen the car passing him, albeit illegally in the double yellow zone.  Do I have any hope of disputing or taking to arbitration?

Answer
Kathleen,

You certainly have a chance since the other car should not have been crossing the double yellow line to pass.  However, it sounds as though your son was making an illegal u-turn so he will most likely be found at fault.

If I had to put a percentage on it I would say your son is might be found 70-80% at fault...?

That's just my guess.

Best regards,

Ernest Ferraro
http://www.ferrarofirm.com