Failure to Yield Accident Lawyer

Determining Liability in Failure to Yield Accidents

The traffic laws are in place to set rules for maneuvering safely on the roads.

When drivers ignore right-of-way and fail to yield to other vehicles, it leads to collisions.

Failure to yield accidents most commonly occur at intersections, four-way stops, merging on highways and onramps, and as a result of illegal u-turns.

When you've been hit by another driver who didn't yield, they will typically be found at fault for the crash and liable for damages.

 

However, proving they violated the traffic rules can get tricky.

If you were injured in an accident where a driver failed to yield the right-of-way to you, claim a free legal consultation from our failure-to-yield accident lawyers to discuss your legal options.

The lawyers at Lawsuit Legal have a track record of winning big settlements in similar cases and know what it takes to build a strong insurance claim.

You might be able to file a lawsuit to recover compensation; our trusted legal team can help you maximize your settlement today.

Failure to Yield Accidents: Types & Examples

There are a variety of circumstances that commonly result in right-of-way accidents on the roads and highways. The auto accident lawyers at Lawsuit Legal review a considerable number of injury claims from victims caused by right-of-way violations. The most common types of failure-to-yield accidents we encounter include:

Failing to Yield to Oncoming Traffic

When a vehicle fails to yield to oncoming traffic, the result is often a head-on collision. It can be caused by aggressive driving, low visibility conditions, speeding, driver impairment, or inattention. Whatever the cause, when it results in a head-on collision, it can be especially devastating to the victims involved in the wreck. Depending on the speed of the vehicles involved, the consequences of a head-on collision can be catastrophic. Head-on accident cases commonly involve serious injury and death. We regularly encounter victims suffering crush injuries resulting from the crumpling of the vehicle's front end. These cases commonly involve broken bones, internal injuries, and leg and head injuries caused by hitting the dashboard, windshield, and steering wheel.

Illegal U-Turn Accidents

Drivers who attempt an illegal u-turn are commonly involved in auto accidents, resulting in severe injury and property damage. U-turns can involve crossing multiple lanes of traffic, which can increase the risk for accidents. Vehicles that don't yield to other vehicles and pedestrians during the maneuver will be at fault for a resulting collision in most cases. These sharp turns can result in T-bone car accidents where the front of one vehicle strikes the other in the side. U-turns are legal at some intersections, but drivers must yield to oncoming traffic. Turning in violation of the local traffic laws will generally result in that driver being found at fault for the accident in most cases.

Uncontrolled Four-Way Stops

Four-way stops are intersections, all using stop signs for traffic from all four directions. The traffic rules for which driver has right-of-way at a four-way stop are not always clear to motorists as they approach. Drivers that don't yield to the cars with the right-of-way regularly cause accidents. When drivers fail to yield, this can cause collisions and injury. Not yielding can result in a variety of accident types at four-way stops, including multi-car accidents, side impacts, head-ons, and t-bone accidents, to name a few.

T Intersections

Three-way intersections require drivers on the ending road to yield to the flow of the straight-through traffic on the continuing road. This sets up a scenario where drivers don't yield to the oncoming traffic when they enter the intersection. The straight-through traffic can be traveling at high speeds, not expecting the stopped vehicle to enter the intersection, causing the impact. In some cases, the driver didn't see the other car coming when they decided to proceed across the intersection or to make their turn. Not yielding can result in side-impact collisions and T-bone accidents occurring at three-way intersections.

Not Yielding to Pedestrians

Motorists are required to yield to pedestrians and bicyclists in most situations. Pedestrian strikes in crosswalks are often the result of the driver not stopping when a pedestrian steps out into the crosswalk. If a driver did not check for pedestrians in a crosswalk or fails to yield to a pedestrian, they will be found at fault, in most cases, and be liable for damages. Not stopping at crosswalks can be considered a failure to yield the right-of-way accident, and drivers will be found responsible in most cases. Knockdown accidents can result in head injuries and brain damage, internal bleeding and organ damage, broken bones, and/or cuts and bruises, depending on the circumstances.

Not Stopping at Stop Signs

Failing to stop at a stop sign is among the most common actions resulting in failure to yield accidents. Not making a full stop or rolling stops at signs is dangerous and causes collisions. Not making a complete stop at signs is a violation of traffic laws and is considered a negligent action by the driver in the event of an accident with a vehicle that had the right-of-way. Driver error can cause stop sign car accidents in some cases, but a majority result from aggressive drivers driving recklessly.

Not Yielding to Funeral Processions and Emergency Vehicles

Most states give organized funeral processions the right-of-way once the lead vehicle enters an intersection, and every state requires yielding to emergency vehicles running lights and sirens. Drivers who cut into or cross a procession cause a distinctive class of intersection crashes with their own liability rules. Our guide to funeral procession traffic laws and accident liability covers how these claims are handled.

Merging and Lane Change Accidents

Freeway onramps, lane changes, and merging into traffic are maneuvers that commonly cause failure-to-yield accidents. Aggressive driving and not yielding to the traffic rules required can result in drivers being held responsible in the event of an accident. Subject to local traffic laws, drivers are generally required to slow their speeds and make room for vehicles merging into traffic, with the vehicle already traveling on that road having the right of way. When two lanes merge, the right of way is generally held by the car not changing lanes, and the merging vehicle must yield. Cars approaching a merge area at the same time must alternate, yielding the right-of-way, the favored car is furthest to the right position. In a collision claim, your lawyer can help unravel the unique circumstances to determine who failed to yield as required and caused the crash.

These are just a few fact patterns of accident cases we see regularly involving failure to yield as a causal factor. Roundabouts, dangerous intersections, unique road circumstances, and jurisdictional variances can have legal implications affecting an accident injury case. Generally, drivers have a duty of care to take reasonable action to avoid a collision. When you've been hurt due to the negligent actions of another driver, consult a lawyer immediately so you can recover the maximum compensation you may be entitled.

 

 

Lawsuits & Settlements

Insurance claims involving a car that failed to yield to your right-of-way seem, at least initially, relatively straightforward. The driver who violated the traffic rules is typically cited as at fault by the police and can be held responsible in most cases. However, civil cases involving personal injury can get complex fast. The insurance company will do whatever it takes to minimize their financial exposure. In some cases, without a witness or physical evidence, it may be your word against the other person that caused your accident, and you'll have to prove you did have the right-of-way.

Most civil cases will settle out of court without needing a trial, but you may need to if they refuse to offer you fair value for your case. A fair settlement offer isn't always an option if the evidence is weak or they dispute your version of events. Don't wait until your first settlement offer to consult a lawyer for help with your case.

After suffering a severe injury, most people don't realize what they are up against until it's too late. Your accident attorney will help you build a strong case while negotiating with the insurers and ensure your rights are protected throughout the legal process.

How a Right-of-Way Dispute Actually Gets Proven

Right-of-way is decided by rule, not by courtesy, and the rule leaves evidence.

The proof in a yield dispute comes from sources most victims never think to preserve: intersection and business cameras that overwrite within days, the vehicles' event data recorders showing speed and braking in the seconds before impact, the debris field and point of impact that place each car in its lane, the traffic citation, and witnesses canvassed before they scatter.

The physical evidence usually answers the "your word against mine" problem. Where each vehicle was struck, and where the wreckage came to rest, tells a reconstructionist who entered the intersection against the rule, which is why getting an investigator working early matters more in these crashes than in almost any other type.

What is a failure-to-yield case worth? There is no honest average; the value turns on injury severity, medical costs now and ahead, lost income, and the clarity of the right-of-way proof. The full framework is in our guide to what an injury case is worth.

How long do you have? Your state's statute of limitations, most commonly two years and as short as one, and the camera footage that proves the violation lasts days, not years. Our guide on missing the statute of limitations explains what is lost when the clock runs.