Finding fau

WITH all this com-
plaining about no-fault
imsurance, didn’t any-
one stop to think that
maybe we had it com-
ing?

P’ve heard many people
brag abour the fact they've
never been in a crash that was
their own fault, but they’ve
beea in a few crashes. For
example, a common conspic-
uous collision often occurs at
two-way-stop intersections
were someone “blew a stop
sign and plowed into me.”

Back in) my driving
instructor days I taught stu-
dent drivers to. pay attention
—— there are, afcer all, a lot of
- boneheads our there. When
you approach an. intersection,
scope it out. Check left,
where the mest iminediate
hazard will come from, then
right. You are looking for 2
car approaching a stop sign at
such as speed that they may
be intent on running it.

In this case, we slow down
and try and make eye contact
with. the potesitial collider,
maybe a little toot on the
‘horn. Iall else fails stop and
let. the idiot carry on.

Which brings up another
point touch on briefly last
week. As we all know, there
are numerous degrees of idio-
cy — from dumsy idiot to
selfish idiot to stupid idiot —
and we've ail seen the jarhead
idiot who refuses. to come to a

fall stop at the stop-bar or |

who shoots way into the
inrersection befure vaguely
stopping. —

‘These drivers, who shame-
lessly flaunt their own idiocy,
don’r..secm to realize that
they are confusing everybody
around them as to their true
inrentions. Wili they stcp? Do
they see me? Do they see the

“rest af us tying. to be courte-

A ous ro cach other? Are they

drunk or were they just bom
4 id?
The advice I offered for
encounters with idiots was to
tet them in front. o¢ you where
yout can. keep an eye on them
and, ebviously, don’t follow
tow closely lest they pull some
other bonehesd maneuver
and cause yet another prob-
_ lem for you. Or, let them
leave the area. And don’t get
mad, they’re idiots after all.
Pity them.

‘When explaining, to stu-
dents my warped version of
Murpby’s law (anything that
can. crash into vou will crash
S into you), some would ask
“bur if we crashed, ie’ be the
other guy’s faule, right?”

Then [ would bang my

head with my Sst and gnash

my teeth and calmly re-
explain that it doesn’t matter
who’s fault a crash is, if it can
be avoided, avoid it. Spend
your days patting vourself on
the bac« for side-stepping the
boneheads rather rhan stand-
ing beside your crumpled car
scrarching yuur head and av-

ing to asses blame. Driving,
good. Crashing bad.
Remember folks, when
you crash its an ICBC
adjuster who ste in a cubicle,
reads reports and arbitranly
decides who did what wrong.
It’s been my experience that
this is sometimes a hit and
nuss judgment chat will often
leave one party very unhappy.
News flash fotks: Adjusters
are just civic
employees
that weren’t
even there (at
the crash
scene). Sure,
they're edu-
cated people,
but how does
a poli-sci
degree make
yeu savvy to
the rules and
idiosyncrasies
of the reality
of today’s
driving?
Doesn't it
make more

sense to just leave them out of

it by avoiding idiots and
avoiding crashes?

ICBC is trying to bring in
this no-fault system because
they are tired of getting sued
and losing to people who
have better assessed actual
fault. They are losing to peo-
ple who sue for tens of thou-

“Back in my
driver instructor
davs I taught
students to pay
attenuon — there
are, after all, a lor
of boneheads
our there.”

it not difficult

sand on a 5 km-h whiplash
injury. “They are losing
because while they must
insure everybody who owns a
car in B.C, they are nor
ensuring chat dnvers can actu-
ay drive. Thev'll re-insure
convicted drunk drivers.

They charge more but still
insure people with « dozen
crashes under their hood.
They'll pur license plates on
anybody’s car
and then
remind them
to use their
“road sense”
without ¢ven
checking to
see if bone-
head had any
“road sense”
to begin with
— not unlike
telling a five-
year-old ro eat
his vegetaies
and then ler-
ting the dog
in and leaving
che room.

No wonder to-faulr is
looming. Sucely ICBC is as
fed up with red tape and
bureaucracy as we are. Crash
and rubber stzinp. Crash,
rubber stainp. Like we could-
n’t see it coming.

Here's a chought: Learn to
dnve. Dor’r be un idiot, be

# LEASING A SAT?!RN ISN'T

HARD, GIVING IT UP AFTER
36 MONTHS MAY BE!

‘The payments set out below are.
based on a 1997 Saturn SL. ‘They

f inchule transportation of $455.

Retailer preparation. a full tank

BN of gas act a acquisition fee of

$350. Some. thingy are ura, like

‘ taxes, licence, insuragce and a

$3u0 refundable security deposit.
‘This lease is. based on 60,080
km'’s aver 3 years. The option to
purchase is $9,074,

Bux Fon.

fease with 51.080 down or equal trae.
Ptus teres T.P. $7,948. 6.1% finance

Friday, March 28, 1997 — Narttt Shore News — 35

npn
All you have to do 1s dnve one
ee

BEFORE YOu VENTURE E ABROAD

RR Ty omy fey ae So ra
Bil d i ‘
E; ba

or Shin OY Be Need EG

Brine It HOME
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