Which lane should you be in? Diagram!

[CactusUmbrella]

If you were driving from where the red arrow is towards the roundabout, and going straight ahead to where the green arrow is, which lane should you be in?

Context is that I had a collision on this roundabout over 2 years ago, still hasn't been resolved and is now likely to go to court! Other driver claiming they were in correct lane, I believe I was...

I was quite careful in my wording as they had already been a bit off with me. I provided a quote for one of the two repairs that needed doing, and said we could settle outside of insurance if they paid that. I didn't actually specify "go halves" or anything to that effect!

Let the taxi driver’s insurance pay for all the repairs!

That was only if they settled out of insurance - since I had to claim on insurance I included all damage in the claim.

I think either is allowed but I would be in left unless a lot of traffic waiting to turn left for instance due to a hold up

Left lane, open and shut case.

Taking a wild guess but there are some lazy tw.ats who would be in the right lane and try to cut someone up.

I think it's quite clear from your additional photos and info that you will win. If the person continues to argue that they are right, you might find they'll settle right before the court appearance. You know you're right. You weren't at fault, stick to your guns. You see it all the time - people can't work out what lane to be in and just cut across.

Good luck and keep us posted

From the road sign the OP posted, before the roundabout is reached, it looks as if the 'straight on' is actually beyond the 12 o'clock position. That was what I was advised nearly 30 years ago. Yes, I know that changed to 'the appropriate' lane, but it's still a good guide. Like the taxi driver I might have been in the right lane ( or maybe not)

But I don't think this will be totally about who was in the right lane. If the taxi driver was in the right lane and he wasn't in front of you, or level with you as you both entered the roundabout, he should have been aware that you in the left lane might be going straight on - but there isn't a lot of time from that diagram to realise you weren't taking the first exit.

It does sound like he wasn't paying attention properly to what was going on around him ( i.e your car) in which case the fault would be his. A good driver also anticipates that others may be in the wrong lane, responds to what is going on around them etc. Especially on roundabouts. If he hit you and then scraped alongside you anywhere from the mid point of your car towards the back probably all his fault. If much further forward then possible you might be expected to have been aware he was also trying to turn left and braked?

I don't think it will be found to be 100% your fault, however it goes

From Highway Code video it is left lane, you determine the position from the road signs

I don’t think it matters (even though I’d have said both lanes were ok) because the taxi should have checked there wasn’t a vehicle/bike on his left before turning.
Anything could have happened incl a car from the road on your left entering the roundabout and stoping him from turning.

Stick to your guns OP. Always been told left lane for straight ahead unless road markings indicating otherwise

Wish people would stop saying it’s his fault because he’s in the wrong lane. It’s his fault because he didn’t observe OP’s existence and drove into her.

It seems to me from your description that he was in the lane nearest to the roundabout, to the right of the dashed circle, then changed lane into the lane you were already in.

Rule 133 makes it clear that the driver changing lanes is responsible for ensuring that they do not force another road user to change course or speed.

Rule 186 says "Drivers should take extra care when entering a roundabout to ensure that they do not cut across cyclists, horse riders or horse drawn vehicles in the left-hand lane, who are continuing around the roundabout" because these vulnerable road users are supposed to stay in the left-hand lane no matter what exit they are taking. Had the taxi driver been looking out for these vulnerable road users, he would have seen your car. He clearly wasn't looking.

Definitely left lane … but drivers think they can do what they like nowadays 😡

Left lane, you were definitely correct

From the highway code, Rulen185 - https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/using-the-road-159-to-203:

1

Left

left lane and stay in lane, no cutting

I actually know the roundabout your talking about learnt to drive using it. As a local it's always been the left lane, it was originally done using arrows on the lanes until they started so many road changes in the area and they took them off. It only has a single lane ahead and the left turn is a housing estate. Right lane always used to be marked right turn only. Just highways not putting it back on the road.

If you don't know if the exit is dual or single then you should be keeping left. But there would normally be signs that the road was narrowing to one lane.

Good luck OP - let us know how you get on. You’re in the right here (by being left!) and it annoys me that the insurance company won’t do the right thing. But then they never do.

That's not what the Highway Code requires, and if you look at the photo of the road sign it shows that the straight ahead route has the same importance as the road entering the roundabout, and that the two roads to either side are lesser roads (indicated by narrower width on the sign). There is nothing to indicate the road is narrowing.

The Highway Code states that "the appropriate" lane should be used without specifying which.

I would say left lane , though we do have a roundabout like that near our home and everyone uses right lane for going ahead.

i would think he obviously wasn’t using his mirrors if he didn’t see you beside him.

I just can't work out, if he was in right hand lane and you slightly ahead of him in left, you turned into the exit - where he was expecting you to go?

You hadn't turned off at exit 1 so you were clearly either doing what you were doing, or were going to continue round the roundabout, in which case he'd have gone straight into you even more?!

To those saying left hand lane look at the diagram someone posted.
The green arrow car is in the right hand lane. They are then exiting from the right hand^ lane^
So if there was a car (where I gave drawn pink) in the left hand lane how would this work in your mind.

The answer is either lane can go straight. But you should be moving into the left hand lane as you approach the exit. And use indicators.