Legal questions - parking lot accidents

Okay, so I was at Sonic today, and I guess I crashed into to someone(I didn't know, I just drove back through the parking lot like nothing and parked at walmart) and they wanted to report it as a hit and run.

The people chased me, were tailgating and honking. I parked and they blocked my car in. They accused me of crashing into them while backing out.
The police were called. I guess there was damage on their car and it matched damage on mine, but my car is pretty banged up from the previous owner, it honestly might have been there beforehand.


The police acted like it was no big deal, assured me that the other person did something illegal too by blocking me into a parking spot and explained to me the legality of a hit and run. They told me "accidents happen, the insurance will deal with it) The other person claims that they have witnesses(though I don't know how they could have talked to people there in that time frame), but I also have witnesses on my side that called the police right there and explained(someone who was at the scene, and a guy on a bike who saw the people yelling at me)... honestly, the whole story is all jacked up and I don't think there's going to be a linear story.


So what happens at this point?
What should I do? I just got my license so it's all pretty stressful to me. I honestly think these people just wanted to cause trouble.

I am so stressed out and I need something to calm my nerves.

1) Let your insurance company deal with it, that's their job. I assume you do have liability coverage, yes? And no one was hurt so its just property damage.

2) "Combat park" as much as possible from now on - either back into the parking spot or pull through, so you always pull out forward into traffic, and if you must nose in park your car far away from other cars. Parking lots are dangerous.

3) Install dash cams in your car so there's no "he said she said" after an accident. You can get front/rear combos for under $200 from amazon.com these days. They are cheap insurance.

Did you get a ticket? I realize you are stress but this is the wrong place to ask, you might be able to get free advice from a cop or judge in the city it happened, depending on your ability to actually talk to them. Other than that, a lawyer familiar with that city would be the one to ask.

Only advise I can give is don't let anyone brainwash you into changing your story you know is true. The other party might try to do that.

Don't stay stressed over it. The main thing is no one was hurt. Most of these property damage cases are "no fault" depending on what state you live in. The parking lot should have cameras that can be accessed by the insurance companies or the police. Some times they will release a tape of the accident if you ask the security guards or the parking lot management. That could be arranged. Check it out , you may be surprised when you ask. Certainly worth a try. Good luck and stay in peace and not pieces. :)

If it wasn't a big enough of a collision for you to notice, I seriously doubt there could have been any damage done to the cars. Good job keeping your nerve though, if someone acted like that to me I would've probably taken a baseball bat to their windows to give them something to actually complain about.

Thanks guys.
I didn't get a ticket, the police officer didn't seem to be on anyone's side or worried at all really.

He seemed a little upset the the people were parked behind me blocking traffic and was sure to let me know that that was illegal and also explained the legality of hit and runs. They told me that there was paint on my car that matched damage on theirs and it was going on the report.

I'm totally willing to cover any costs of any damages I may have caused, but these people didn't seem willing to work with me at all, they didn't even listen to 2 words I said.


I guess I'll just wait and see what he insurance/police say to me.


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Sounds to me like they just wanted some insurance $$$ and you were an easy target. Good luck on your situation. Karma cares for everybody and takes no sides.

It was on private property not a public roadway so the police won't be issuing any citations. Wouldn't it be equally possible that they hit YOUR car in the parking lot and waited around for you to show up so they could collect on your insurance? (hence the matching damage) Do NOT admit any fault (not even a 'maybe') and just let the insurance company handle it.

MarkS shared some good info.

I am a police officer in Texas. Though a different world than Cali some things will still be the same.

Like MarkS said a parking lot is private property. That means no citations and many times no accident report at all. Here we don't have to do an accident report for people and can let them report the accident to the state themselves, and that's if they want. It is always perfectly fine to just exchange information and go your separate ways, only reporting it to the insurance companies, or settling whatever way the two parties see fit. Too many people believe you must get an accident report.

I wasn't there so I don't know exactly what happened but Im not so sure the people following you broke any law by blocking you in. Even on private property you are to stop and give information in the event of a collision. Failing to do so can be an FSGI. If the car truly believed you were trying to flee they could have had ever right to follow you and block your car. If you had done nothing then it would be a whole other matter but from the limited info I have Im not sure they broke the law by blocking your vehicle. Again, I was not there but don't freak out and take a bat to their car as mikesmelly said they would do.That will just get you shot or run over. It sounds as if you handled it as well as you could and the more calm you are the more the police will be willing to help you. We deal with crazy drama all day long so its nice to be able to deal with people with a level head from time to time.

As a police officer you get very good at picking out new damage from old and putting together how the damage was caused. You can see the direction the two cars were going when they hit and very rarely need much help in getting things sorted as to who was at fault.

You should be getting a call from both yours and theirs insurance companies. Be very careful when talking to theirs and if at all possible let your company handle all dealings with them. They will try to rope you into saying things to place blame and everything will be getting recorded. If the other party really is just out for money don't be surprised to hear they went to the hospital or doctor and have some sort of injury.

Good luck.

Thank you!

I stopped and gave them the info they asked for, but that was after they chased me... Would that still be a hit and run?? I'm assuming yes.

I told them I would pay for whatever damages there may have been, even if it meant sacrificing entire pay checks. They kept telling me that I was going to "learn my lesson" which really freaked me out because the wife went inside walmart after they said that, and it was just me, my tiny sister and her husband(a man that looked to be around 50) who was yelling at me and causing a major disturbance. I felt threatened and didn't know what to do. I wanted to get back in my car and lock the doors. I was kinda glad I ended up in the walmart parking lot where there was a bunch of people and security, even though that is the worst part of all this, but it may have actually kept him from lashing out at me while his wife was gone.

What I'm scared of, is that I did drive out of the sonic parking lot pretty fast(not more than 15mph) because my sister was on the phone with my angry dad who wanted us to go to the store and come home ASAP so I may have looked like I was trying to flee, but I slowed down once I got into the walmart parking lot(they were behind me tailgating and honking, so I thought they were pissed that I slowed down.
I would have stopped had I known of the accident(could this hold up in court? Probably not since I didn't stop to give info at the scene) I would have been willing to go back to sonic and talk there where it happened if they didn't block me in.

I was very calm and collected when the cops were questioning me, I told them what happened to the best of my ability. I didn't even know where the damage was, and the people weren't telling me. The cops kept asking "where is the damage" and I kept telling them "I don't know, they didn't tell me"
I thought it was rear damage to my car, and I didn't see any so I was very confused, but the cop showed me the damage in the front, it was a pretty light scrape and there was about 6 inches of their paint none of mine came off it looked like, no dents or anything. They had several other scratches all over the back of their car and I'm not 100% sure which one they think I caused. I was going so slow(I was riding the brakes), I must not have felt it happening if it did indeed happen the way they said it did. I don't remember who I was parked next to in sonic, which obviously doesn't help my case.

I'm happy that the cop was very cool though, he made me very comfortable, the other cop talked to me like he was a close friend.

I understand what can happen, and I'm fully prepared for whatever is going to come my way. Even though it sucks because it's going to put a misdemeanor on my record and my insurance will be super high, but I guess that's the responsibility I have to take for being reckless.
I guess it's "welcome to the adult world" ._.

Will I be able to get the witness report from the police? I didn't get the info on the witnesses that were there, but they were on the phone with the police, and another guy called the cops because he saw the man screaming at me.

Whatever happens, my dad has a good lawyer and I'll have to talk to him to see what the best course of action will be.


I'm hoping the people will be willing to just take cash and drop the charges, but the world doesn't work like that unfortunately.


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Also, I'm sorry for posting all this. I know it won't get me anywhere, but it just feels better to let it all out.

You guys are really making me feel loads better even though I expect the worst to come out of this, and I really appreciate it. Thank you!

The odds that you are going to be arrested now are just about zero. If you were going to be arrested for a hit and run(FSGI- Fail to Stop and Give Information) you would have been then. Nothing says you have to stop right at the accident spot. You are allowed and encouraged to drive to a safe spot that is out of the way. That is all you need to say you were doing. When people get into a little fender bender and then sit in the road all it does is block traffic and create a mess. If both cars are drivable it is always better to get out of the way. You may initially stop and tell the other party that you are going to pull off of the road but most people should be smart enough to see what you are doing.

You should have felt even a little contact. I would go to Sonic and see if they had a security camera facing the area the accident is said to have happened. They may just me scam artist and if you could prove they are then it would be them with the legal issues. Most security system recycle the video every few days and start over filling its memory. You need to act fast and try to get this done.

Your insurance is going to request a copy of any reports the officers did. I would ask the insurance for it first. If they can no give it to you then call that police dept and see where you need to go to get a copy. Usually they charge a few bucks and not all the report will be released. It will have some information blocked out for both parties safety.


A tip to help people in the future. When you are dealing with someone that was acting like this guy was, record it secretly. If you hold your phone up as a camera the guy will realize what you are doing and more often than not stop. That is not what you want when trying to collect evidence to prove a person made you feel threatened and afraid. Also there is a small chance this will anger him more which you also do not want.

There are a couple good ways to record them without them even knowing.

One is to hold the phone to your ear and appear you are talking on the phone as you record. When you do this stand off to the side of the group and seem uninterested in what is going on. This is best used by a person not directly involves meaning one of your passengers.

If you have a phone holster that clips on your belt you can move it to the front on your belt or pants with the camera on and simply clip the phone inside. This is one thing I actually look for in a case when buying one. This way you will be recording whatever you are facing and though you may not be getting their face you will be getting enough to show the others attitude and actions.

I use Ram mounts for all my vehicles. On the Ram mounts I use X Grips to hold my phones. These hold the phones great and allow you to record the events in front of your vehicle. You can very easily start recording using this method and they will never think that they are being recorded and just think your phone is in its holder. There are two problems with this method. 1. You need to have your vehicle parked where it is showing the people. You can usually dictate where they are standing by where you are standing so just stand in front of your vehicle. 2. The sound can be an issue so you need to plan ahead and crack the windows a few inches and this will capture any heated screaming and yelling. This is the best method to record any physical altercation since it will be a steady vantage point and not attached to your body.

Thank you so much!
You're really the best thing that has happened to me all day!

There may have been resistance, but I was so flustered and so much was happening at the moment, I guess I was numb to it and I feel so dumb. My main concern at that moment was to go to walmart, but some necessities, and make it home before my parents had to leave.
If I get into legal trouble for crashing, so be it that's on me and I'm willing to take the consequences that come with it, because I can admit that I was being dumb at that moment. I'm not totally convinced that I'm out of the wrong as of yet due to my childish behavior, but I'm not totally convinced that I'm in the wrong either. I guess I just have this faith that people wouldn't go so low as to make something up. Who knows, I might lose this faith.
I can definitely say that is is a learning experience, If I feel I am not mentally calm enough to drive, then I will sit with the car in park until I've regained my cool.


I have another question: could the man get into legal trouble for intimidating and threatening a minor? There were 2 witnesses that saw him directly yelling at my sister(14), instead of me, the adult. She's also a witness in this case and I think it may count against him for also intimidating a witness, he did try to convince my sister that I was in the wrong, and she could testify that.
One witness saw him physically bang on my car as well. They both called the police on the spot, one stuck around and talked to the cop too.

This whole situation just feels like a bad dream.

Thank you for the advice too!
I didn't even think to record his behavior, I was terrified, and I was worried about my little sis. Her mental state is sketchy right now, she's been sleeping all day and I haven't talked to her once. I think the fact that an almost 6 foot man yelled to her face about my mistakes really shook her up. She's been having depression issues lately since she broke up with her boyfriend in march and we were talking about taking her to see a counselor for it. She was getting better, but I'm scared this may have made things worse.
Thankfully a family friend came by to console her last night.


How long does it usually take for a police report to be processed and available?


If I have any more questions, is it okay if I pm you? You've been a major help, I don't want to feel like a bother ^^
I don't know how much information I'm allowed to post online, could I possibly get in trouble for posting this on a public forum?


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I was talking to my mom and this is what she said the cop told her:

- if this man tries to pursue legal action, my mom should pursue legal action against him intimidating a 14 year old and trapping both daughters in the parking lot.
- he was there because someone called about a man yelling at 2 young girls in the parking lot, otherwise he wouldn't have been there, as parking lots are private property.
- he told the people that they were severely blowing it out of proportion and there is no point in trying to ruin my life over a silly incident that caused little to no damage. And they they were doing illegal activities that he was there to witness. The first thing they did was tell the people that they had to move their car.

I don't know if they'll try to take legal action against me, I'm prepared, but I feel better.
What do you think?
That's just info my mom told me, nothing I heard personally.

I think that's my last question lol
I'm just going to wait for the police report and/or calls from the insurance company at this point.


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Nothing you have post can get you in any trouble.

You most certainly can PM me with any questions.

As for the man yelling at your sister and getting in trouble for it, I really doubt it. You can scream and yell all you want. The trouble comes when it is threatening. As in, saying your going to do something to that person like beat them, shoot them, stab them, etc. Even doing this will only be a class C ticket though.

You are really over thinking this. When the officers left the scene they completed the reports sometime before the end of their shift. A simple accident report goes no further in most cases and your case should not have required in more action. Depending on the type of system the dept uses(paper, scanner, digital) the report may be available now.

This was just a simple traffic collision and the officers I promise have not given it any more thought and are not going to take any other action than they did. No other investigator is going to look into it and as far as your dealings with the police goes, you are done.

The next step will be between the two parties and the two insurance companies. This is a civil issue and as minor as the damage sounds I doubt the two insurance companies will have any issue getting this taken care of quickly. You have to remember that this may be new to you but to the police and the insurance companies this is standard when having to deal with angry and excited people. They are not going to care about that. They will investigate the damage themselves to make sure the other guy is not scamming them as well and they will decide what he is going to get paid.

Try to relax and this will be over soon.