On 2007-05-08 14:30:55 +0100, "Clive George" said:

"Andy Hall" wrote in message ...

He wasn't. He was driving at 15mph and was 15m from the junction when
the other car pulled out.

In the case of this accident, to whom do you think that the insurers
would apply the blame?

I'd assign the blame to the one on the main road in that case. If he
can't stop within 15m from 15mph, either his driving or his car is
severly defective.

clive

Probably. I chose an example to illustrate the point rather than
calling up TRL and asking them for the stopping distance of a Mondeo on
the specific road surface with a weight of 20kg in the back and three
passengers totalling 200kg on a damp Thursday morning in April.

The point is that one can be well within the speed limit and people can
do stupid and unexpected things for which it is not possible to
guarantee that there won't be an accident. It is not reasonable to
then hold the driver on the main road to blame.

In the particular example originally given, there should at least be
warning signs on the main road, or if the junction is so bad for
visibility, traffic lights.