I saw that car coming way early.
Due to the way that the cars were parked, you could see nothing, at first. There was a gap, through which you could see the SUV's approaching the intersection. Then the parked cars obscured vision.
I am assuming that you saw the SUV when I did: through the gap in the parked cars.
I understand the driver did not stop and look for oncoming cars...perhaps absolving you of at fault. But, seriously, in Vegas, I drive as if that sort of thing can happen at any moment. All drivers should...if you like your car.
As long as he told it the right way to the constable, Massachusetts law absolves him of fault. That road looks familiar. There is no mistaking where he is for anything but Massachusetts. I checked Original Poster's profile page and it verified my suspicions.
You didn't seem to slow down much or swerve away.
He did change lanes, but did not slow. I would have changed the lanes, as did he, but, I would at least have let off the throttle.
It could be an economic total, meaning the repairs are worth more than the vehicle is valued at.
People think "total" means that you
so totally like wrecked it, man, like it was totalled, Jack. No, "total" means that it is a "total" loss. You must learn your insurance jive, here. In case of a loss caused by the insured, the insurer is obliged only to restore the person who suffered the loss to the state in which he was before the occurrence that resulted in said loss. In dollars and cents, this means that the insurance company is on the hook for the value of the vehicle. In most states, this is the Actual Cash Value of the vehicle. There are methods to determine the ACV. The ACV is almost always far less than the replacement value (RV). If the cost of repairs is, say, six thousand five hundred dollars, but, the ACV of the vehicle is only five thousand, the vehicle is by definition a "total loss", thus the insurance company is on the hook only for the five thousand dollars. This would be the same if you or the other guy is at fault. If you are at fault and are carrying "collision" coverage, your insurer is on the hook only for the ACV, unless you purchase Replacement Value insurance.
limited visibility situation,
It was limited visibility both for you and the other guy. You could see him only for a moment as you passed between the parked cars. He might have been able to see you between the parked cars; he might not have.
I initiate a lane change.
You only half did your job. In addition, you should have laid off the throttle and had your foot poised over the brake pedal.
So far, consensus seems to be to slow down as soon as you see the suv.
While you might not have had to go to the brakes, at least do not maintain speed.
Maybe that's what it takes to never crash. It seems, to me, also like a good way to never get anywhere.
Stepping on the brake is a good way to get nowhere. Coasting for a minute is a good way to avoid a collision.
.......and you took a risk that you did not have to take and got burned for it.
Dude why weren't you anticipating that? You can see the SUV approaching between the parked cars on the right.
(emphasis added)
The emphasised part is precisely why this collision could have been avoided. Original Poster was right; he could have been dead right.
I personally would have taken a moment to see if they would stop. The parked cars make that a place where you would want to be doing about 15mph since it's blind.
I do not know if I would have slowed that much, but, I would have taken my foot off the throttle and coasted, at least.
This occurrence demonstrates why there is more to this job than simply turning the key, taking off the brake and putting the car in gear. You learn the proper way to handle something like this from experience driving. I could have avoided this had I been either party.
Had I been driving the Prius, I would have been watching for the side streets. If this is a neighbourhood that I know, I would be keeping in mind where the side streets are. This is one place where the cab driver's knowledge is valuable and where a GPS can not help you. This shows just how full of it the
Boston Globe is when it says that the GPS has made my knowledge obsolete or superfluous......how ironic that this occurrence was in Massachusetts......................
As I am observing, I would have noted the SUV through the gap. If my seeing the resumption of the row of cars and the concomitant blocking of vision did not occur to me as I looked through the gap and saw the SUV's approaching the intersection, it would have occurred to me as I passed the gap. As soon as I saw that car, I would have changed lanes, as did Original Poster. Further, I would have begun to coast, taken note of anything else surrounding (children, animals, other traffic), then looked to my right to see what that SUV was doing at the soonest possible moment. Fractions of seconds count, here. I would have been mentally prepared both to brake and swerve.
All of this comes as second nature if you drive enough. You do not think about it. Once you are sure that the danger has passed, you simply return to your former state of mind. It just happens.
Had I been driving the SUV, I would have noted the limited visibility. I would have guessed that traffic was moving at least at thirty miles per hour. I would have noted the gap and tried to see if I could see anything on the road through that gap.. If I did, I would have waited until the vehicle that I had seen passed, checked again, and, if I saw nothing, I would turn toward the right and inch forward until I could see that there was nothing competing for the same space that I was. Further, I would have turned right and toward the shoulder.
Especially watch out for them Lyft and Uber ant drivers. They make Taxi drivers look like saints of the road.
I learned how to look out and look ahead of me from driving a cab.
EDITORIAL NOTES:
I looked at the dashboard camera footage again. Number two had room to duck onto the shoulder of the main road which he could have used had he entered the intersection with any caution.
Original Poster did not initiate the lane change when I thought that he had. He did so only when he was approaching the intersection. Had he noticed the SUV through the gap in the parked cars, he could have and, should have, initiated the lane change then. This is also a good way to avoid a collision on a freeway. If you are on the freeway, as you approach the ON ramp, you give to the left, if possible. If you can not, you take your foot off the throttle. Yes, you have the right of way, but, you must assume that the car that is trying to merge is going to violate your right of way. It almost always does.