Although the traffic laws of American States are similar in big rules, there are still great differences in some detailed rules. The legal provisions on the identification and compensation of traffic accident liability vary greatly from state to state. Generally speaking, more than half of the States in the United States adopt the principle of "who has the greatest responsibility" to determine the responsibility for accidents. Therefore, in the United States, if a pedestrian violates traffic laws and is hit by a vehicle, in most cases, the main responsibility is still borne by the pedestrian.
According to Deng Hong, director of Los Angeles Deng Hong Law Firm and a well-known local Chinese lawyer, the 50 States in the United States can be roughly divided into three categories in terms of traffic regulations dealing with motor vehicles and pedestrian liability:
The first category adopts semi-confirmation system, that is, once the responsibility of the parties to the accident is determined to be above 50%, they should bear all the responsibilities of the accident. The implementation of this system includes Colorado, Nevada and other States that account for more than half of the United States. In the state where this law is implemented, if pedestrians violate the rules first, they must be responsible for it in most cases and are not protected.
Deng Hong cited a case he handled in Colorado: one morning, three workers from China drove an old car to work. When driving on the expressway, the car suddenly broke down and two of them had to get off; Unfortunately, it was foggy that day and visibility was very low. As a result, the two men were killed by a car coming from behind. Later, the police determined that the two workers were responsible for more than 50% of the accident, so the vehicles involved did not need to make any compensation. In this case, Deng Hong tried to help the families of the two workers get compensation by way of work-related injury claims, but he could do nothing about the claim of the accident owner.
The second type adopts the proportional sharing system, that is, the specific responsibility ratio of the accident participants is determined according to the specific circumstances of the accident, and the compensation is shared according to the corresponding proportion. This system includes California, Louisiana and Alaska 13 states. According to the laws of these States, pedestrians' right of way is always higher than that of motor vehicle drivers, and pedestrians always have priority, regardless of whether pedestrians violate traffic rules or not. As for the proportion of responsibility for the accident, experts from the police and traffic safety management departments will determine it.
In the 1980s, the judgment of Simono District Court in Louisiana on a pedestrian traffic accident was typical: a boiler factory worker wore dark clothes in the morning before dawn and crossed a highway from the parking lot to the opposite factory without taking the designated sidewalk. As a result, he was seriously injured by a normal vehicle, so he took the driver, boiler factory and local transportation bureau to court. The court finally made the following judgment: the boiler plant bears the most important responsibility, accounting for 40%; The driver and the plaintiff each bear 25%; Transportation Bureau is also responsible for 10%. The reason is: the factory built the parking lot opposite the expressway, obviously ignoring the safety of workers, although the factory has asked the Transportation Bureau to set up sidewalks; Jones did not take the designated sidewalk at dark and crossed the expressway without priority, which obviously bears obvious responsibility; The driver didn't drive carefully enough, although he avoided it, it eventually caused a car accident directly; Although the Transportation Bureau has built sidewalks, it is also responsible for not establishing corresponding lighting facilities and lowering the speed limit standard. Both the Transportation Bureau and the driver appealed, but the Court of Appeal finally upheld the original judgment, and the injured worker Roland Donawan finally received more than 700,000 US dollars in compensation.
The third type adopts the simple majority system, that is, the party with the largest proportion of responsibility in the accident should bear all the responsibilities. This system is implemented in six states, including Alabama. This system emphasizes that motor vehicles and pedestrians perform their respective duties, and whoever breaks the law first has to take full responsibility. Under these conditions, if pedestrians are injured in violation of regulations first, they obviously have to bear all the responsibilities themselves, which is more demanding than the first system.
Although there are different systems to determine the responsibility for traffic accidents, the basic idea of American traffic law still advocates people-oriented, because American law considers driving a "privilege" rather than a basic right. In order to protect the rights and interests of pedestrians, the United States has taken measures to reduce traffic accidents and ensure traffic safety by improving road conditions, enforcing supporting vehicle insurance policies and severely punishing drunk driving. In addition, many Americans have other personal injury or life insurance, so in the event of a car accident, the victim can usually get some insurance compensation. In the states that adopt the "no-fault liability" insurance system, as long as there is a car accident, the insurance company can provide compensation to both parties without proving who is right or wrong. This insurance system avoids many legal disputes. However, its disadvantage is limited compensation, which only provides compensation for property losses and medical expenses, and does not provide compensation for mental pain. In California, a state that adopts the "fault liability" compensation system, the insurance company of the fault party compensates the other party's losses, including mental pain compensation (usually 2 to 3 times the medical expenses). According to American insurance regulations, usually after every traffic accident, the police will score points, so the insurance cost will rise accordingly. Insurance companies will even refuse to provide insurance for dangerous drivers who often have car accidents, which virtually strengthens the constraints on drivers and is conducive to putting an end to disorderly driving.
Lawyer Deng Hong said that in order to reduce motor vehicle collisions, the United States Motor Vehicle Administration also emphasized the responsibility of drivers through strict driver license management. According to the traffic law, if anyone has a car accident, regardless of the responsibility, the vehicle management office will usually revoke his driver's license first to emphasize the concept that the right to life is always higher than the right to travel. If you drink and drive, you will be sentenced to second-degree murder in case of an accident, and even if there is no accident, your driver's license will be revoked and your sentence will be revoked, because drinking and driving will turn the vehicle into a deadly weapon and pose a threat to others' lives.
I have been to America many times as a sailor. The overall quality of Americans is relatively high, and those film and television dramas that go to the underworld, openly rob and violently are rare in real life. Nothing else, said the driver. At any intersection, regardless of whether there is a policeman or a signal device, the driver always stops first, and then slowly passes when he looks around to make sure that no one is without a car. If there is a car, let the cars at the senior intersection pass. If it is an intersection with traffic lights, there are no vehicles and pedestrians. When encountering a red light, every driver will stop in an appropriate way and wait for the green light before starting the car. When pedestrians and cars avoid each other, the driver will stick out his head and say "I'm sorry".
Drunk driving is prohibited in all countries. But each has its own measures and ingenious methods. In the United States, once drunk driving is detected, the punishment is very severe. Not only will the driver's license be revoked, the vehicle will be confiscated and auctioned, but it will also be designated as second-degree murder. Whoever dares to use alcohol to challenge the law is waiting for you. If non-American citizens violate this regulation, they will be deported unless they are punished, leaving you with both human and financial resources, and your dream of going abroad will be abandoned halfway. Minor violations are recorded on the computer, such as speeding. The more times they break the rules, the more trouble they ask for.
American laws are strict, but American police are not cold-blooded animals. When they perform their official duties, they can really be called ruthless laws and regulations. It's reported that when friends get together in China, a thousand cups of bosom friends never fail, and villagers in different places burst into tears. Finally, the host called the police station, and the police arrived as scheduled to explain the situation. Instead of being annoyed, the police praised the other party as a good citizen who abides by the law, and sent his friends home from China with his own car. Some people say that this is a high-quality police and humanized service. While improving the image of traffic management in the United States, drivers will consciously or unconsciously have the determination to "never do it again."
When people from China come to the United States, they should not think that they can drive at home, and they should drive as soon as they see it. Don't think that having a driver's license in China is unimpeded in the United States. In fact, China's driver's license is not recognized by the United States. If you want to drive in the United States, you must reapply for an American driver's license, and you must apply for two driver's licenses, one is from your state and the other is an international driver's license. This is a wise choice. Although the United States is a country with high consumption, it is convenient and cheap to get a driver's license. You pay $20 in the relevant department where you live. You don't have to pay if you fail in the exam, but pay after the exam, which makes people psychologically balanced. After getting the driver's license, apply for an international driver's license at the Automobile Association and pay $ 10. Two driver's licenses add up to only 30 yuan. However, drivers who slightly violate traffic regulations once will be fined 270 dollars, which is one of the reasons why American drivers don't violate the rules.
People who have been to America have a knowledge that you can't drive, and you can't move without a car. Because most residential areas are in the suburbs, it is common for residential areas to be twenty or thirty kilometers apart and thirty kilometers away from the city center. Therefore, shopping, visiting friends, going to school and going to work are almost inseparable from driving. It can be said that America is a car kingdom. However, the traffic environment in the United States is orderly, not only the road network extending in all directions, but also modern management, and traffic fines are never soft.
There are two kinds of fines that are very distinctive. At least some small and medium-sized cities in China can't do it or are not used to it. One of the fines is the speed limit. The speed limit is divided into several grades, such as expressway, first-class highway, ordinary highway, city and parking lot. Generally, the speed limit of expressway is 65 miles (1 mile equals 1.609 km), that is, the hourly speed does not exceed 104 km. In the United States, running 65,438+000 miles is not speeding according to the model and road conditions, but speeding will be fined. The more you violate the rules, the higher the fine. The reason is that once something happens, you will do more harm to each other. If you want to drive at a speed of 100 miles, if you hit a policeman's gun, you will be fined at least 1000 dollars. Fines are treated equally, regardless of whether they are old or foreign. There is no distinction between strictness and laxity, and everything is done according to the rules. On the highway, experienced drivers keep the speed at the prescribed standard, and dare not cross the line, for fear that they will get excited, lose control of the speed and drive illegally. Most people who drive flying cars and hero cars are foreigners who have just arrived in the United States. Locals and foreigners living in the United States know the severity of fines and generally dare not try to punish them by luck.
The traffic fines in the United States are different from those in our country. You pay the money and leave. It is not a random fine, and there is no evidence. They are recorded by the computer. If you are a first-time offender, you can receive safety education for half a day without a fine. In American society where time is money, this is not much easier than a fine. But even this kind of opportunity, only once a year, will be severely punished again.
Never run a red light when driving in America, because there are monitors at intersections. When you run a red light, it is often because the bus has not entered the door and the ticket has been issued. At the intersection without traffic lights, as long as someone crosses the road, all vehicles have to stop and wait, which is not only related to strict management, but also to the quality of a nation.
The second fine is the parking time limit. There are many cars in the United States, and there are certain rules for parking. Parking lots are charged on time. There are hundreds of cars parked in the huge parking lot, but there are no staff. Because it is managed by computer, the parking person can leave as long as he puts the corresponding coins into the timer according to his parking time. However, you must leave enough room when paying, otherwise, after a while, the fine will be posted on your window. For example, you can park for half an hour for 25 cents, but if it exceeds 1 to 10 minutes, you will be fined 40 dollars. Visible parking is to pay enough, pay more parking fees. The low parking fee is really a small advantage. Here, we can fully reflect the painful consequences of "taking small advantages and eating big losses".