When you see flashing emergency lights on the side of the road, do you know what you’re legally required to do?
North Carolina’s Move Over Law isn’t just a safety recommendation – it’s a legal requirement that could significantly impact your liability if you’re involved in an accident. Understanding this law could protect you from serious legal consequences and help keep emergency responders safe.
Understanding North Carolina’s Move Over Law
North Carolina’s Move Over Law requires drivers to take specific actions when approaching stationary vehicles with flashing lights on the roadway. This law was created to protect emergency responders, tow truck operators, utility workers, and other roadside personnel who face daily risks while performing their duties.
Who Does the Move Over Law Protect?
The law applies when you encounter stationary vehicles with flashing, blinking, or alternating lights. This includes police vehicles, fire trucks and emergency medical vehicles, tow trucks and wrecker services, utility company vehicles, NC Department of Transportation vehicles, garbage trucks, recycling vehicles, and other emergency or service vehicles with activated warning lights.
What Do Drivers Need To Do?
When approaching these vehicles, North Carolina law has specific requirements that depend on the type of road you’re traveling. On multi-lane roads like highways with multiple lanes in your direction, you must move over to the lane farthest from the emergency vehicle if it’s safe to do so.
On single-lane roads where changing lanes isn’t possible or safe, you must reduce your speed to at least 15 mph below the posted speed limit. If the speed limit is 25 mph or less, you must slow to 10 mph. In all situations, you must maintain reduced speed until you’ve completely passed the emergency scene.
What Are The Penalties for Move Over Law Violations In North Carolina?
Violating North Carolina’s Move Over Law carries serious consequences that extend beyond a simple traffic ticket. The penalties include Class 1 misdemeanor charges with potential jail time and a criminal record.
Financial penalties can reach fines up to $250 plus court costs, increased insurance premiums, and potential civil liability for damages. Your driver’s license may also be affected through points added to your driving record, possible license suspension for repeat offenses, and driver’s license reinstatement requirements.
Move Over Law Violations and Accident Liability
If you’re involved in an accident while violating the Move Over Law, this violation can significantly impact your legal liability.
Establishing Negligence
In North Carolina personal injury cases, proving negligence requires demonstrating that a driver breached their duty of care. Violating the Move Over Law provides clear evidence of this breach because you failed to follow a specific traffic law designed for safety, the violation directly contributed to dangerous driving conditions, and your actions put emergency responders and other drivers at risk.
Impact on Your Case
Move Over Law violations can affect accident cases in several important ways. If you’re found to have violated the Move Over Law at the time of an accident, this violation could establish contributory negligence, potentially barring you from recovering any compensation for your injuries even if other factors contributed to the crash.
Conversely, if you’ve been injured because another driver violated the Move Over Law, their violation can serve as strong evidence of negligence in your personal injury claim.
What to Do After a Move Over Law-Related Accident
If you’re involved in an accident where Move Over Law violations may be a factor, your immediate actions should focus on safety.
Ensure everyone’s safety and call 911, document the scene with photos if safe to do so, exchange information with other drivers, get contact information from witnesses, and avoid admitting fault or discussing the circumstances in detail.
From a legal perspective, Move Over Law accidents often involve complex liability issues. The presence of emergency vehicles, multiple lanes of traffic, and specific legal requirements create unique challenges that require experienced legal guidance.
The team at Paynter Law can help you understand how the Move Over Law applies to your situation, protect your rights during insurance negotiations, and ensure you receive fair compensation if you’ve been injured due to someone else’s violation of the law.
If You’ve Been Injured In An Accident, Paynter Law Can Help
If you’ve been injured in an accident because someone else violated the Move Over Law, or if you’re facing liability concerns due to your own actions near emergency vehicles, you don’t have to navigate the legal process alone. The experienced legal team at Paynter Law understands the complexities of North Carolina traffic laws and their impact on personal injury cases.
When another driver fails to follow the Move Over Law and causes your injuries, their violation can provide strong evidence of negligence in your claim. Our team can help you pursue the compensation you deserve for medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages resulting from their careless actions.
With over $500 million in verdicts and settlements and 75+ years of combined legal experience, our team has helped thousands of people throughout North Carolina obtain the compensation they deserve. We work on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay no attorney fees unless we win your case.
For a free consultation about your accident case, call Paynter Law today at (919) 245-3116. We’re here to help you understand your rights and pursue the compensation you deserve while you focus on your recovery.