Well, I went to go pick up my girlfriend last night and right when we got to the bottom of the hill from her house we stopped at the red light. We were there for 15 minutes because there was a firetruck keeping one light green. Therefore, all of the other drivers began treating this situation as a four way stop and would take turns going. It was my turn. Little green pick up truck didn't realize what was going on. Now my mom's car's rear driver quarter panel is pushed in and the rear driver door won't open. Its driveable, but that was her daily and if she has to buy a new car she can't go to grad school.

The really bad part is that the cop blamed it on me because my light was red.

Sorry to hear that....

drive defensively. The only thing the other guy saw was his green light.

Damn... Stupid things like that happen too often. Well, at least it was nothing serious, so nothing happened to you or your girl. BTW: How's the project going?

Damn Ian. That's pretty f'd up. I gotta tell you, I've been in similar situation (w/o the Firetruck though) and I have to admit I always cringe when it's my "turn" to go, 'cause you never know who's not paying attention or just doesn't care and thinks that everyone else is being stupid and that they're the only one who knows what to do. At least everyone's okay.

I agree with Darrel on driving defensively.

It's saved my a$$ more than a few times. When I'm at a stop light and the light turns green, I pause for few seconds and scan the intersection first before I take off. I've seen too damn many impatient dinks in my time that run red lights.

Sorry to hear about your situation. Hope it all works out for you and your mother.

Well, I'm glad she's not mad at me. She's going to buy a Mercedes 300CE Coupe to replace the Mazda Protege, everything will be fine. Thanks for the support.

Firstly, it's good to hear that you and your GF are okay.

Secondly, it's good to know that it wasn't in your Z.

Thirdly, consult an attorney that specializes in traffic accidents-not one that claims you will get millions in those annoying TV ads-AND your insurance company.

There should be some precedent for an incident of this nature, and since there was an emergency vehicle present (and partly responsible for the accident) there should be documentation around.

Usually, in instances like this where a light is being kept from changing, or an accident occurs in an intersection, law enforcement is sent to act as traffic directors. Otherwise, traffic will build up in one direction (as was your case) which causes the likelihood of more accidents.

Really, you should consult an attorney-the city/county/state might be the ones responsible for the accident.

david