BajaNomad

Bad Accident Monday on TJ-Rosarito Free Road - Lessons Learned

ElFaro - 5-8-2008 at 10:59 AM

The son of a couple we know who live in the Guadalupe Vlly. area was towing a trailer Monday about 7-9 AM on the
TJ-Rosarito Free Road when the trailer separated from the vehicle and crossed over into the other lane. A hi speed
car going in the opposite direction hit the trailer head-on went off the road flipped over several times and crashed
killing the driver. Several other cars were involved but only minor injuries. Their son was jailed (felony in Mexico)
pending bail. The parents were down in southern Mexico and had to grab a flight back to handle the situation. The
family of the killed driver (who are of considerable financial means) were making the situation very ugly for our friends
(understandable given family members death). Our friends who own their house in Baja had to put their house in hock
to get bail for son's release. After negotiations with the family they have to pay for the funeral services and replace
the car. As of yesterday they got their son released from jail and are looking at a $15-20,000 bill as settlement with
the family. The case is not over as it relates to the police. He was looking at possible federal penitentiary time but they
have told us this probably will not happen. Their son is married and has a small child. After things settle down I will
try and find out some of the technical aspects of the accident and add a follow-up report. Namely what type of trailer
it was (I'm guessing a utility trailer), hitch setup, safety chains (?), brakes, loading factors, speed, turns, what were the failure points, etc. I also don't know if their son is an Amer. or Mex. citizen. I plan to find out how the process
played out from moment of accident to final settlements of all involved parties. A couple of lessons already confirmed to me are... check your trailer hitch, safety chains, and brakes thoroughly before heading South. Another...know what your
insurance covers you for "what-if" scenarios.

vgabndo - 5-8-2008 at 11:19 AM

Please keep us posted on the trailer separation issue. This could be a good lesson for us all. I always thought I was a REALLY careful trailer guy until recently when I had my head where the sun don't shine and failed to change out a 2" ball for the 2 5/16" required by my utility trailer. It popped off in the whoops on a dirt road and was caught by the chains. No loss except for confidence in myself. Mine could have been a sad accident too.

Toll Road Accident

bajaguy - 5-8-2008 at 12:42 PM

I was northbound on the toll road on Monday, 5-5-08 at about 7-7:30 AM and passed a wreck at Cantimar. Looked like a trailer over the edge, but couldn't tell.

vacaenbaja - 5-8-2008 at 04:51 PM

I believe that there will be at least two parts to the legal
mess. One is the dealing with the family which looks like an accord was made. (civil?) The second will be by the city/state legal
system which can take exception to the death of a citizen and press for some type of jail time. It will depend on how aggressive the state is. There is of course the "damage to the federal highway cost " to settle for any divots scatches
broken kilometer bats etc.

HotSchott - 5-9-2008 at 07:41 AM

Of all the things that I don't understand about Mexico, more than the violence or any cultural differences, The fact that someone can cause an accident resulting in a death and pay $20K to make it go away seems absurd. The same accident in the US would easily bankrupt a family, go on for years in a courtroom, shatter people's lives.

As a landscaper in San Diego I haul a trailer every day with tons of material all over the county. Every time I hook that trailer up I feel like I am towing the title to my house around town. My entire mindset from point A to B until that thing is parked in front of my house is about avoiding tragedy. I wouldn't tow a trailer on Mexican roads for all the Vatican's gold!

The irony is that a Mexican National driving without a license or insurance in an unregistered vehicle, here illegally...can cause an accident and walk away. With nothing to lose, there is nothing to gain by going after them. They can get a free ride to the border if the accident is bad enough.

We live in strange times indeed. I miss the days when I had very little to lose and everyday risks seemed insignificant.

Hook - 5-9-2008 at 11:17 AM

I agree with you completely, HS.

My take on the story is where is the mitigation of the insurance company in all of this? Why do we pay for liability, if not to mitigate these financial losses?

Also, somebody is at fault in the hookup of a trailer when a primary and secondary attachment system fails. That's gross negligence IMO.

lizard lips - 5-9-2008 at 12:13 PM

Here in Baja California I'm sure everyone has seen a Mexican national drive a vehicle with California plates with a sticker for the 1990ies and is obviously not currently registered and you know they don't have insurance. If a driver in Mexico City, Monterrey or Guadalajara and many more areas in Mexico drives a vehicle that is not properly licensed the driver will be pulled over and the vehicle will be impounded until the car is registered and this may cost several hundred dollars. They enforce this law in these areas and it should be the same here in Baja.

Almost all the drivers in those big cities also have vehicle insurance. I have seen the insurance adjusters in these cities drive motorcycles around town and are dispached by that company to go to an accident scene right after it occurs to complete a investigation report regarding damage and injury.

I believe if you drive a vehicle in Mexico you must have insurance and have the vehicle properly registered without question. I don't care if this person is too poor and he can not afford it, TAKE THE BUS.

I was recently rear ended and my insurance guy came to the police station in Ensenada and handled everything for me. The other driver actually stopped after the collision and accepted responsibility which was very unusual. He was a nice kid that knew what he did and he eventually paid the $500 (he was short $50) but I let him slide.

I don't know the circumstances regarding the accident involving the trailer but it appears that the safety devices that should have been used were not and it was the fault of the driver. PERIOD...... I assume he did not have insurance. Now he is going to jail and pay a lot of cash. If he would have had insurance he would not have had to pay for the replacement of the other vehicle but he is responsible for the death of the other person and must be charged for his negligent behavior. A prison term is a little extreme.

At one time here in Ensenada there were vehicles that were operated by the state police that would pull vehicles over that were not registered. This operation lasted for many years however it was discontinued about three years ago when the officials were caught taking mordida. The state must take action and get these vehicle off the road and Mexico must have a law where everyone that drives a vehicle must drive with proper insurance.

If you are involved in a serious accident here in Mex and must pay a lot of money watch where the money goes. Judges, Attorneys, pay offs here and there. The money trail goes on forever. Every time I get in my car, just to go to the store, I drive very cautiously.

DO NOT DRIVE AFTER YOU HAVE BEEN DRINKING.....

If the accident is serious enough you will submit to a blood examination. If there are drugs in your system you will feel the cold steel of those hand cuffs covering your wrists and they will not care that you smoked that joint three days ago----It's in your system. Call home to Mommy and have her sell the house.

HotSchott - 5-9-2008 at 04:07 PM

Lencho,

I am saying that if someone dies as a result of one's actions behind the wheel of a car, $20K should not fix the problem. I don't know what is a fair amount to compensate an individual or family for the loss of a persons life, but 20 grand isn't it. I realize that $20k is more money than most Mexican citizens probably have.

Conversely, protracted legal battles resulting in rediculous huge settlements are hardly the answer - in either country.

I don't know the specifics of the accident, but I suspect the trailer was either not properly secured or was over-loaded. Maybe speed was a factor on both sides of the line.

I would not tow anything in Mexico on any paved road.

Additional Casualties

SeaShell - 5-12-2008 at 07:59 PM

Two women driving together towards the border that morning were also killed. Their purses were stolen from the accident scene.
I believe they had homes on both sides of the border as does our mutual friend who passed this information on.

Hook - 5-12-2008 at 08:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by SeaShell
Two women driving together towards the border that morning were also killed. Their purses were stolen from the accident scene.
I believe they had homes on both sides of the border as does our mutual friend who passed this information on.


You mean in this same wreck involving the loose trailer?

SeaShell - 5-12-2008 at 08:29 PM

This may be a different accident but very similar time and location and information has been passed on to me a bit at a time. But a mutual friend did know the women who were killed and they were all neighbor's residing about 15 miles south of Rosarito.
The women I mentioned were killed on the Toll Road Monday morning about 8:30am in the vicinity of Fox Studio's. I was told 2 other people were killed in this accident also.
What was reported back to us is that someone was speeding (in this case) and hit a pick-up truck which was knocked into oncoming traffic on the opposite side of the Toll Road and our friends car.
Perhaps this was another tragedy at about the same time and location. I am heading down tomorrow and will try to get more information.

[Edited on 5-13-2008 by SeaShell]

[Edited on 5-13-2008 by SeaShell]

capt. mike - 5-13-2008 at 07:48 AM

if you're worried about personal liability just get good insurance with high and smooth limits.
until we move away from a tort based injury reward system you are at the mercy of trial PI lawyers.
and your only stop gap against total loss and financial ruin is buy plenty of insurance, all you can afford.

PI litigation killed the general aviation industry.

bajanow - 5-14-2008 at 09:53 AM

Would you rather be at the "mercy" of the insurance industry?