Responsibility for Damages

Question

Kelly asked:  My daughter was riding a bike in a bike lane.  To her left was a left turn lane.  To her right, was a gated community.  Traffic light for her was red.  She stopped.  Looked both ways. Clear of traffic, she proceeded.  Car came out of gated community, and hit her.  She got a ticket for disobeying a traffic signal – had to pay $500 to rent – a – bike .. and got a trip to the ER for cat scan and tests.  NOW – the driver is saying she is responsible for “damages” to her car??  Help.  Please?

Answer

Bicyclists are operating vehicles and must comply with traffic laws just as other drivers.  This comment by Vey on another post applies:

August 2, 2013

“Can a bicyclist be responsible for damage to a car when the cyclist ran a red light at an intersection and damaged the automobile.”

Yes. And so can a pedestrian, but this is civil liability law and outside the scope of this site. For more info, please contact an auto insurance company or an attorney.