T-Bone Accidents at Intersections: Proving Liability

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A side-impact crash at a Georgia intersection can leave two drivers with two incompatible accounts. One says the light was green; the other insists it was. The intersection keeps no memory, and the case turns on a single contested fact: who held the right of way. Proving that fact, not describing the collision, is the problem in a T-bone claim, and Georgia’s right-of-way statutes are the framework that decides it. Even a violation of those rules does not end the case, because causation and each driver’s share of fault remain for the jury.

The Rules That Decide Who Yielded

Traffic-control devices. A driver must obey an applicable official traffic-control device unless a police officer directs otherwise, and disregarding one is prima facie evidence of a violation of law, but the requirement is not enforced where the device was not in proper position and sufficiently legible to be seen by an ordinarily observant person (OCGA 40-6-20(a), (b), (e)).

Signals. Traffic facing a circular green signal may go straight or turn unless a sign prohibits the turn, but turning traffic must yield the right of way to approaching vehicles (OCGA 40-6-21(a)(1)(A)). Traffic facing a steady circular red signal must stop at the stop line, the near crosswalk, or the intersection and remain standing until an indication to proceed is shown, subject to the section’s turn exceptions (OCGA 40-6-21(a)(3)(A)).

Stop signs and yield signs. After stopping at a stop sign, a driver “shall yield the right of way to any vehicle in the intersection or approaching on another roadway so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time when such driver is moving across or within the intersection or junction of roadways” (OCGA 40-6-72(b)). A driver approaching a yield sign must slow down and stop if required for safety, and “[i]f such a driver is involved in a collision with a vehicle in the intersection after driving past a yield sign without stopping, such collision shall be deemed prima-facie evidence of his failure to yield the right of way” (OCGA 40-6-72(c)).

Uncontrolled intersections and dark signals. “When two vehicles approach or enter an intersection from different highways at approximately the same time, the driver of the vehicle on the left shall yield the right of way to the vehicle on the right,” with a proviso for a vehicle approaching from a highway that terminates at the intersection, which must yield to the other vehicle “whether the latter vehicle be on such driver’s right or left.” At an intersection with a traffic light in unactivated dark mode, “the driver of each vehicle shall be required to stop in the same manner as if a stop sign were facing in each direction at the intersection” (OCGA 40-6-70(a)).

Left turns. “The driver of a vehicle intending to turn to the left within an intersection or into an alley, private road, or driveway shall yield the right of way to any vehicle approaching from the opposite direction which is within the intersection or so close thereto as to constitute an immediate hazard” (OCGA 40-6-71).

Situation Statute Who yields
Steady circular red OCGA 40-6-21(a)(3)(A) Traffic facing the red stops and remains standing
Circular green with a turn OCGA 40-6-21(a)(1)(A) Turning traffic yields to approaching vehicles
Stop sign OCGA 40-6-72(b) After stopping, the driver yields to vehicles that are an immediate hazard
Yield sign OCGA 40-6-72(c) The driver slows or stops and yields; a collision after passing the sign without stopping is prima facie evidence of failure to yield
Uncontrolled, same time OCGA 40-6-70(a) The driver on the left yields to the driver on the right, with a proviso for terminating highways
Dark signal OCGA 40-6-70(a) Each driver stops as at a stop sign
Left turn OCGA 40-6-71 The turning driver yields to oncoming vehicles that are an immediate hazard

Proving Who Held the Right of Way

Williams v. Calhoun, 175 Ga. App. 332 (1985), shows how the statutes and the proof interact. The plaintiff had the right of way on one street and was turning left onto another, where the defendant’s approach was governed by a stop sign. The defendant did not answer requests for admission asking the defendant to admit failing to stop at the stop sign and causing the collision, and did not move to withdraw the admissions. The Court of Appeals held that the defendant “will not be permitted to controvert” the admitted matters, which a request for admission that goes unanswered establishes (OCGA 9-11-36(a)(2), (b)). The defendant had also pleaded guilty to failure to yield the right of way in recorder’s court, but “[a]n admission by plea of guilty is only a circumstance to be considered along with other evidence by the jury.”

The court nonetheless reversed a partial summary judgment on liability, because the defendant offered an affidavit that the street was wet, the car skidded despite braking at 25 miles per hour, and the collision was an accident. Failing to stop at a stop sign and failing to yield “would constitute negligence per se as being breaches of specific standards prescribed by law,” the court said, but “the establishment of negligence per se does not deprive defendant of raising his affidavit-supported defense of accident.” It added, relying on Buckhead Glass Co. v. Taylor, 226 Ga. 247 (1970), that whether such negligence proximately caused the injury is ordinarily for the jury to decide.

When Both Drivers Share Fault

Fault is spread across all who caused the crash, whether named in the case or not; the plaintiff’s own share reduces the damages, and a share of 50 percent or more bars them (OCGA 51-12-33(a), (c), (g)).

For example, imagine a driver who runs a red light and a driver with the green light traveling well over the posted limit. The speeding driver sues, and a jury finds total damages of $100,000 and assigns 30 percent of the fault to that driver. The judge reduces the award by 30 percent, to $70,000. If the jury had assigned 50 percent to the plaintiff, the plaintiff would recover nothing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the driver with the right of way still have to watch for cross traffic?
Yes. Even a driver with the right of way must keep a proper lookout and use ordinary care in controlling speed and movement to avoid a collision that, by ordinary diligence, could be seen to be threatened or imminent (Hite v. Anderson, 284 Ga. App. 156 (2007)).

Can a driver turn right on a red light?
After stopping, a driver facing a steady circular red signal may cautiously enter the intersection to turn right, but must stop for a pedestrian in the crosswalk on or approaching that half of the roadway and must yield the right of way to other traffic lawfully using the intersection (OCGA 40-6-21(a)(3)(B)).

What does a steady yellow light mean?
It warns that the related green movement is ending or that a red indication will follow immediately, when vehicular traffic may not enter the intersection (OCGA 40-6-21(a)(2)(A)).

Where must a driver stop at a stop sign with no stop line?
Before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection or, if there is no crosswalk, at the point nearest the intersecting roadway where the driver can see approaching traffic before entering it (OCGA 40-6-72(b)).

  • OCGA 40-6-20(a), (b), (e); OCGA 40-6-21(a)(1)(A), (a)(2)(A), (a)(3)(A), (B); OCGA 40-6-70(a); OCGA 40-6-71; OCGA 40-6-72(b), (c)
  • OCGA 51-12-33(a), (c), (g); OCGA 9-11-36(a), (b)
  • Hite v. Anderson, 284 Ga. App. 156 (2007)
  • Williams v. Calhoun, 175 Ga. App. 332 (1985)
  • Buckhead Glass Co. v. Taylor, 226 Ga. 247 (1970) (as quoted in Williams v. Calhoun)

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about right-of-way rules and liability in intersection collisions under Georgia law. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Who held the right of way depends on evidence that can be lost, and the filing deadline runs whether or not the evidence has been preserved. Anyone injured in an intersection collision should consult a licensed Georgia attorney promptly about the particular situation.

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