[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by arjithin

Its changing. Many cab drivers themselves feel the need of air bag ( but still not much of seat belt ) for their own protection and are choosing variants with Airbag.

Air bag without seat belt equals a bigger punch in the face. Or worse

And, something I only learnt within the past year, as I happened to see it in my car manual: rake adjustable stearing wheels should point at the chest, not the face, and should be at least ten[?] inches away.

[Ruchir031]

Never did I imagine posting my own accident here, but life and road idiots are unpredictable. First accident of my life in 5 years of driving.

On the kaparshera road towards bijwasan, near oberoi farm, I slowed down as did the traffic ahead of me and came to a stop, behind me an i20 followed suit and stopped behind me at a fair distance. Now this moron meru cab driver, coming at speeds of over 80, immediately tried to break, but fails to. His car skids and rams into the i20, and since the i20 driver was only a learner, he had no hint of keeping the brakes pressed so his car rear-ended mine.

I get down to inspect if anyone had been injured, fortunately all were safe. After that I get back to check my car and bam, the dicky and bumper were badly damaged. The i20 had minimal damage to the front and some damage on the rear. The cab had his bonnet, bumper and condenser/compressor damaged.

The driver and the girl in the i20 start shouting on the cab driver and so did I.
The i20 guys were immediately demanding compensation while I was waiting for the police to arrive, needless to say, they came to the spot almost 2 hours later!

During these 2 hours I gave a piece of my mind to the cab driver and he was least interested to hear what I had to say. In fact, he was god damn putting all the blame on me! He was persistent on saying why did I brake and I am like what dude, are you bloody drunk? I got angry and started shouting at him but later apologized for my high tone as he was twice the age of mine.

Once the police arrived, they asked what happened and gave us two explicit options. Compromise and settle or go to the police station and file some complaint 289 and they will impound all 3 cars, I was in no mood going this way. The cab driver refused to pay anything and said he was absolutely at no fault, the cop used some Hindi words to teach him what and who is wrong.

We later went to the station where a few friends of mine and the dad of the i20 girl arrived. Sat with the cops and had all the details, names, numbers, written on the paper. He then again asked us if we want to file the 289 or compromise. The cab driver refused to pay a cent. The i20 guys talked, I talked to my father and explained this is the situation, he also felt it's better to stick to compromising, but since the cab driver had no intention of doing so, my father suggested to take copies of his license, rc and insurance and get it signed by him (no clue yet how this helps) even to this he denied. The cops asked him to do as I say but he still was persistent. I eventually had to call our friend who is an ACP in Vasant kunj. He talked to the police guys and then they got a little strict towards the cab driver and he eventually gave me crossed copies with his signature. Wrote a letter for S.H.O and in which it stated that everyone has agreed to compromise upon mutual understanding, signed, and got rid of the bloody mess.

Overall, I can say the system sucks, the best they can do is to drag us to the court and maybe after a whole year we'd get results during which our cars will be kept off and parts from it will get stolen.

The cab driver, well no words for him. I might have beaten him had I not controlled my temper. Reason? I mention what would you do if it was a human ahead instead of the cars, he said, I'd do the same thing I am doing now and say it wasn't my fault he came in between, it's his fault. I was like dude, you're up here for a breakdown for sure. First, you drive at illegal speeds, you damage two vehicles totally by your fault, you eventually end up agreeing you are the one at fault because that is what the majority is saying and still you don't give a damn about others or admit the truth and say a sorry? I mean, I have no clue what to say at this point.

We later left but the cab driver was made to stay at the station. Attaching a few pics, no pics of the i20 and also couldn't take the exact pics as traffic was building and I suggested to pull-over all 3 cars to let the traffic flow smoothly.



Skid marks from his tyres

The bumper had a lot more damage but I managed to pop it back by hand. The frame inside where the dicky closes is badly damaged and the dicky wont close now

Like they say, the vehicle behind always blames the vehicle ahead of him, in my case though, I was *a* vehicle ahead of the vehicle he hit and yet the blame is on me. Also please excuse if I typed this long and wrong, typing in a hurry on the mobile app is really not that ideal.

Bad day, bad start of month.

[PGA]

Originally Posted by RSM_TorqueZoner

T

Any idea about injuries here? Hoping there wasn't any fatal casualty

Three persons in XUV lost their lives. This accident video still gives me jitters as there are plenty of morons like the Fortuner guy on the roads these days. I only hope that Police have applied homocide charges against the fortuner guy.

[Rohan24]

Originally Posted by Ruchir031

Never did I imagine posting my own accident here, but life and road idiots are unpredictable. First accident of my life in 5 years of driving.
.
.
.
Bad day, bad start of month.

That is just so sad, man! Feel sorry for you and the car. Glad that no one was hurt.
Our streets are filled with moronic drivers. And in a situation such as yours there's literally nothing we can do! I'm not sure, but I think this is a law in some countries, If there is a rear-end collision, the car following is automatically at fault. Whatever the car in front does, it is our responsibility to maintain a safe distance, and brake on time, failing to do either of which will result in a collision. But all this knowledge is lost on our folks here.
That's why my dad has taught me to always check mirrors when braking from high speeds (Highways,etc.). Plain logic states that it's the tailgater's fault but the system is such that it'll take hours to clear the mess, costing us precious time. Moreover, in situations where I know I'll have to brake in a few metres, I just lightly tap the brake pedal, just enough to light up the brake light, warning tailgaters beforehand.
Still, there's absolutely nothing one can do in emergency braking situations.

[jbpanda]

Originally Posted by Rohan24

That's why my dad has taught me to always check mirrors when braking from high speeds (Highways,etc.). Plain logic states that it's the tailgater's fault but the system is such that it'll take hours to clear the mess, costing us precious time. Moreover, in situations where I know I'll have to brake in a few metres, I just lightly tap the brake pedal, just enough to light up the brake light, warning tailgaters beforehand.

Still, there's absolutely nothing one can do in emergency braking situations.

While such a practice is precautionary and may be helpful in many situations but not all. This is because we all know how people are fond of using mobile phones while driving, not only for attending calls but also for texting, emailing, whatsapp and what not. If one happens to be unlucky to be in front of such an idiot, you can hardly do anything about it. But that is the best that you can do to avoid or minimise happening of such accidents.

It's for this reason atleast in NCR I find numerous cars with steel bumper guards at the front and rear which are also at times dangerous (particularly the ones used by some cabbies which are locally made iron rods) which can cause serious damage to the other vehicles.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Ruchir031

Never did I imagine posting my own accident here, but life and road idiots are unpredictable. First accident of my life in 5 years of driving.

...

Bad day, bad start of month.

Very sorry to hear it. The frustration of dealing with the cab driver and the time spent with the police must have been worse than suffering the damages.

Of course the whole thing is the cab driver's fault. But he is obviously one of those people who, if he ran into a tree, would blame the tree. The police often, if not usually, do know better.

[Shanksta]

Originally Posted by Ruchir031

Never did I imagine posting my own accident .........

Bad day, bad start of month.

Ouch! That hurts that too for no fault of yours.

The Indian way is to blame the vehicle ahead that braked. Such drivers should have their licences suspended. Sadly this is what happens when government officials issue a driving licence even if a person is able to start the car. I hope he got a sound thrashing from the cops after you left. His arrogance conveyed through your words is unbelievable. I am sure had I been in your shoes I would have also gone to the extent of getting physical just to knock some sense into him.

Even I have experienced this "You are to be blamed for braking". Once I braked suddenly because the motorcyclist two car lengths ahead of me suddenly stopped spotting a broken section of the median to take a illegal U-turn. After 2 minutes when I was stopped at the next signal a guy in a Honda Dio with a pillion lady, pulled alongside and asked me why I braked suddenly. I asked him why and he told me you braked suddenly that even I had to brake with all my might to avoid hitting you. I just laughed at this guy and told him what maintaining a safe distance means. Further I also explained to him that when everyone is driving at 40-50kmph and a vehicle ahead suddenly comes to an abrupt halt you have no other option other than to first brake. This being a major road with high traffic I also cannot swerve left suddenly (not that I had the space). But this guy was hell bent on telling me that I was wrong. All I did was pull up the window switch and his voice vanished. Though I felt bad for being rude to that guy by ignoring him and pulling my window up. It is the best thing to do sometimes when you cannot knock some sense into them.

The reason this guy was fuming at me was because of his own stupidity. He had just driven up till the rear of a car on the left lane(thereby blocking his view of the right lane) and then pulled out into the right lane suddenly only to find that I had braked at that moment. Cause I glanced at my mirrors for fraction of a second before hitting the brakes and when I spotted him changing lanes suddenly I though I was gonna be in need of a new left taillamp that day.

Anyway in your case I hope he does indeed pay you for the damages.

[Ruchir031]

Originally Posted by Rohan24

I think this is a law in some countries, If there is a rear-end collision, the car following is automatically at fault. Whatever the car in front does, it is our responsibility to maintain a safe distance, and brake on time, failing to do either of which will result in a collision. But all this knowledge is lost on our folks here.

Couple weeks back I mentioned the same thing in another thread that no matter even if the vehicle ahead is stunting around, it is the responsibility of the vehicle behind to make sure to not even get anywhere close that he has to panic break. Guess most people, specifically these taxi guys will never understand the need and concept of following a basic criteria of maintaining safe distance and checking brake lights.

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Of course the whole thing is the cab driver's fault. But he is obviously one of those people who, if he ran into a tree, would blame the tree.

Couldn't get any truer. His attitude took me by quite a surprise.

Originally Posted by Shanksta

Ouch! That hurts that too for no fault of yours

The pain just doesn't end, literally.

The reason this guy was fuming at me was because of his own stupidity. He had just driven up till the rear of a car on the left lane(thereby blocking his view of the right lane) and then pulled out into the right lane suddenly only to find that I had braked at that moment. Cause I glanced at my mirrors for fraction of a second before hitting the brakes and when I spotted him changing lanes suddenly I though I was gonna be in need of a new left taillamp that day.

If this is how people continue to drive in India, I might as well only prefer taking Metros or just bloody walk. I don't even feel safe inside cabs cause those idiots won't even bother having seatbelts at the back.

Anyway in your case I hope he does indeed pay you for the damages.

He wouldn't pay me a penny. In fact, I was least bothered in getting any money from him. The only thing I wanted, was for him to understand how he should take precautions and drive safe so he never gets involved in a case like this again. But he was least concerned to learn how to be a better driver because this is what he said ''I have been driving for much more longer than what your age is''. Yeah, I clearly see that, jerk. I didn't want to have crap to do with him after this and just hoped that his license gets suspended. Which won't happen to him but to those doing over-speeding at 53 where the speed limit is 50. Great laws we've got I'd say.

The only thing that went good for me today was the rain. I was supposed to take my CLA200 instead of City but due to it being very muddy and dirty, I had no option but to take the City.
Getting a Merc damaged that bad would make me cry for days to come, not to mention the cost. Thank you rain!

Edit :
Also, could someone tell me what I should do now? Like, should I get the car fixed at some local workshop (dad is suggesting this) or should I take it to Honda and claim insurance or spend the damages from my pocket? Is this case eligible for claiming insurance? The trunk, bumper, left fender, left ORVM (biker trying to avoid the cab did the damage to i20 and my car *really outa luck today *) have taken the damage so I am expecting to spend around 30k at this.

[hserus]

You'll get bodywork done for much less at a good FNG. Your dad's advice is good and look up the tbhp directory for your city. They will tinker and fix things that the service center will just blindly replace.

As for the ORVM I am sure the mechanic will be able to source from a scrapped car either the entire assembly, or the skullcap / outer shell if that is broken and the mirror is intact, for a bit cheaper than the cost of a new assembly + mirror from the service center.

[pixantz]

Originally Posted by Ruchir031

due to it being very muddy and dirty, I had no option but to take the City.

I'm not sure if that's a bad thing to say for the City or can we take it as a compliment, but it sure sounds like all that the City deserves is mud and dirt!

Anyway, at least there was something good in the fact that you the dent didn't end up on the Merc. Good for you. Poor City :(

[Ruchir031]

Originally Posted by pixantz

I'm not sure if that's a bad thing to say for the City or can we take it as a compliment, but it sure sounds like all that the City deserves is mud and dirt!

Anyway, at least there was something good in the fact that you the dent didn't end up on the Merc. Good for you. Poor City :(

Honestly it's neither. The city being nearly 19 months old and the Merc, not even a month, it's just a big relief for me. Damage such as this is very heart-breaking on a new car and fixing it even a hell lot more costlier on the pocket. Although, my heart breaks to see my City in such a shape because it's my first ever car and I've really pampered and taken very good care of her so far.

Just look at this picture below -


In the accident I had yesterday, this is what happened to the metal yet the bumper is totally intact, except a few paint chips here and there. Not sure if Merc could handle this as nicely as the City did, but poor her. :( Have sent her to be fixed and she should be up and running real soon, just praying I don't end up in another tragedy as this where I get involved in an accident when I really shouldn't have been lol.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I guess it is the nature of the materials. Sadly, they haven't yet given us car-body material that springs back to shape.

Get a quote for your repairs before you shed too many tears. It is amazing what panel beaters can do with their skills and tools. I'm not saying it's going to be cheap, especially with the painting --- but find out first. Your poor dear car will be put back into good shape. You just have to find out the wallet damage. Or claim insurance.

[Ruchir031]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Get a quote for your repairs before you shed too many tears.

Actually, I have. Details here - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4227093

On another note, saw the latest Dzire badly crumpled at Vasant Kunj police station, Air Bags were deployed and had stains of blood on it. Anyone has any info regarding this? Hope the passengers of the vehicle are safe.

[techn0l0gist]

Just in - An offroading accident in Goa !

[samaspire]

Crazy funny but looks like a real accident. Anyone have any details?