Parking Lot Accidents- The Wild, Wild West

Aside from an occasional stop sign or perhaps some painted arrows to direct traffic flow, parking lots typically lack any other method of instructing drivers what to do. This often leads to confusion.

Parking lots are usually private property which means the police generally won’t respond when an accident occurs. The exception is if there is a criminal act, significant property damage or an injury.

So how do we know who has the right of way in any given situation? We have to rely on common sense of the road rules we understand. When traveling through an aisle where there are parking spots on both the left and right, most people understand to drive on the right most side of the aisle.  And the “rule of thumb” is when a vehicle is backing out, they have the greater duty to yield.

What happens when two vehicles are backing out at the same time and hit each other? This is where things get tricky. Sometimes claims adjusters will look at who had backed out the most. The aisle is sort of like “home base”. If a vehicle gains control of the aisle it is assumed they obtained the right of way. So whomever was backed out the most is usually determined to be the least at fault.

In my experience as a claims adjuster, parking lot accidents were frequent and some of the most difficult claims to determine who was at fault. Florida Law recognizes that all parties involved in an automobile accident may share a portion of the responsibility for a crash. This is called comparative negligence. With parking lot accidents, comparative negligence is often considered when determining liability. In most cases, both parties are partially to blame. 

There are so many obstacles to watch for in parking lots (pedestrians, medians, parked and moving vehicles) that it is difficult to always pay attention to always avoid these things. My advice to prevent a parking lot accident is to use due care. Drive slowly, look and look again before turning, parking and backing out.