Multi-storey and underground car parks are often the only chance of finding a parking space in our city centres. However, steep entrances, narrow lanes and narrow parking pockets virtually provoke parking damage. Even if it is usually only damage to the car body, there are a few things to bear in mind.
In our guide, you can read which rules apply in car parks and how to behave correctly in the event of an accident in a car park or underground car park.
What rules apply in the multi-storey and underground car parks?
In underground car parks and multi-storey car parks, the German Road Traffic Regulations (StVO) apply as normal. The basic rule "right before left" therefore also applies in multi-storey car parks, but there are also restrictions: according to case law, "right before left" only applies in multi-storey car parks if the intersecting lanes in the car park can be compared with a normal road. So even if you drive out of a parking space on the right, you do not automatically have right of way.
Although the normal road traffic regulations are basically the same as on a normal road, they cannot be applied 1:1 to the situation in a multi-storey car park or underground car park. The top rule when driving through a multi-storey car park is therefore special duty of care and mutual consideration.
To avoid a car park accident, we recommend that you observe the following rules of conduct:
- Drive especially cautious.
- Be even more aware of other road users than usual. Consideration.
- Do not drive faster than walking pace.
- Expect crossing traffic at all times Pedestrian and therefore be constantly ready to brake.
- Be careful and always be aware of cars entering and leaving your car park.
- When parking in and out of blind or challenging situations, ask for outside guidance.
- Even if the StVO applies in multi-storey car parks, it can be useful in certain situations to on your own Right of way to do withoutfor example, to make manoeuvring easier for other drivers or to prevent a car park accident.
In car parks you are confronted with a high number of Dangerous situations confronted with. In addition to vehicles entering and exiting parking spaces, these are above all Pedestrianthat can spontaneously cross the carriageway. For this reason, you should only drive at low speed in underground car parks.
Have you caused damage to your vehicle in the car park?
Many car park damages are self-inflictedare caused without the other party being involved in the accident. They are therefore a case for your own comprehensive insurance or payment out of your own pocket.
We are familiar with the following from our daily regulatory practice frequent causes of damage:
-
- Barrier systems
An absolute damage hotspot in the car park are the entrances and barrier systems. Inexperienced car park visitors in particular find it difficult to calculate the correct distance to the ticket machines at the barrier. There are hundreds of collisions with the outer edges of the bumpers and collisions with the wing mirrors every day.
-
- Columns
The unavoidable pillars, which are often in the driver's blind spots, pose a particular danger. Accordingly, the typical white scuff marks in mudguards and side doors are very common after drivers have driven into pillars in the car park.
-
- Curve radii
A classic cause of self-inflicted damage to multi-storey car parks is the often tight radii of access roads and driveways. Particularly in vehicles with a longer wheelbase, such as touring saloons, minibuses and vans, the corners of the bumpers quickly come into unwanted contact with the car park wall.
-
- High kerbs
The black and yellow striped, extra-high kerb is often installed in multi-storey car parks to limit the narrow lanes. Low-lying front aprons shatter here with a painful cracking noise.
Contact with the expensive wheel rim is a recurring annoyance in connection with tight cornering radii. The black and yellow scratched wheel is, so to speak, the classic unwanted car park souvenir.
-
- Low ceiling height
Many underground car parks are designed with a ceiling height of approx. 2.05 to 2.30 metres. This is already too low for many minibuses and vans. And even if it often looks funny from the outside, it rarely is for those affected: The "forgotten" roof box or even the bicycles on the roof rack. They cause spectacular damage to driveways. Even if the height of the driveway is still suitable, there are often low-hanging ventilation pipes or notice boards inside the garage that cause ugly scratching noises and corresponding damage.
Tip: Be sure to pay attention to the height information signposted at the entrance! If in doubt, get out once and check the fit.
-
- Narrow
Naturally, the car park operator wants to rent out as many parking spaces as possible. The parking spaces in many car parks are correspondingly narrow.
Most car park users are familiar with the annoyance of parking their vehicle next to their own parking space inaccurately, making it a challenge to get in and out. Because the neighbour is parked too close to the parking space markings, the risk of damage from Opening the vehicle doors on walls, pillars and neighbouring vehicles.
Can I hold the car park operator liable for damage to my own car?
You only have a chance of holding the car park operator liable if you can prove that the structural conditions of the car park were the clear cause of the unavoidable damage. However, unless parts have fallen from the car park ceiling onto your vehicle, this is usually difficult to prove in practice.
Have you damaged the car park or its infrastructure?
Can the car park operator hold me liable for any damage I cause to their car park?
In theory, as the person responsible, you are of course also liable to pay compensation to the car park operator for the damage you have caused.
The costs of removing car paint marks, plaster damage or collision marks on the building structures - for example, if you have driven into a pillar in the multi-storey car park - are a case for the motor vehicle liability insurance of the person responsible. A barrier system that has been hit can quickly cause tens of thousands of euros in damage. In practice, however, many perpetrators "forget" to report the damage to the car park operator and their insurance company.
If you damage the car park and leave the scene of the accident without reporting it, you are committing hit-and-run. As in road traffic, this is also a criminal offence.
Have you caused damage to another vehicle in the car park?
Anyone who damages another vehicle in a multi-storey car park is obliged to exchange personal details with the injured party. If you leave the scene of the accident beforehand, this usually constitutes an offence. Hit and run represent.
Important: Even if the perpetrator of parking damage only quickly leaves a note with their contact details on the damaged vehicle and then simply drives off without informing the police, the offence of parking damage is often committed. Hit and run fulfilled.
As with every Accident have secured the scene of the accident and First aid top priority. Anyone who has hit a parked car, whose Holder absent must also wait a reasonable period of time or the Police if he does not wish to be informed because of Hit and run wants to make you liable to prosecution. As the person responsible for the accident, you have the dutya certain time - something 15 to 30 minutesfor more severe damage up to one hour - wait at the scene of the accidentuntil the owner of the other car appears.
If this does not appear, you must report the car park accident with the police report.
If the vehicles in the car park accident have only suffered minor scratches or bodywork damage, it is usually sufficient to contact the other party to discuss the Exchange personal data and insurance information.
In addition, you should always check the Documenting accident damage. Take as many photos as possible of the damage and the conditions on site.
The parking damage caused by you to the other vehicle and/or the car park is a case for your own motor vehicle liability insurance. Report the damage to your motor vehicle liability insurer immediately.
My parked car has been hit - what should I do?
Annoying, but not that rare: When you return to your vehicle, you find damage. If you are lucky, the person who caused the damage is waiting for you or has at least left their contact details on your vehicle. However, we know from our many years of settlement experience that the joy of the supposed contact details is often short-lived. This is because many polluters now only pretend to fulfil their obligation to report an accident and leave false contact details.
However, you need to know who caused the damage in order to be reimbursed by the party responsible.
You have three options for determining this:
- Take a close look at the damage and then search the car park for matching vehicles with corresponding signs of damage. Often the ignorant Causing minor damage in the immediate vicinity.
- Look for witnesses in the car park. It is often worth waiting for returning car park users who are parked in the immediate vicinity of your vehicle.
- Contact the car park operator and ask for observations or camera recordings. With a bit of luck, the staff in guarded car parks will have noticed something or there is actually a usable recording and you will be given a licence plate number.
Accident victims in your situation simply get the best support from fairforce.one.
Depending on the cause of the accident, customers receive an average of €4802 Additional payment
Callback within 5 minutes.
Car parks have cameras. Is it possible to identify offenders with video surveillance?
Car park operators run a considerable liability risk under data protection law when operating camera systems. In order to minimise this, instead of "monitoring", the term "control of regular operations" is usually used and recordings are largely dispensed with. If you are lucky enough for the operator to actually still create and keep records, you will now be helped by the fact that the hit-and-run offence of the perpetrator is considered a criminal offence per se. This is because, according to Section 6 (3) sentence 2 of the Federal Data Protection Act, the recordings may only be released to avert public danger or to prosecute criminal offences. But you must act quickly. Because video recordings are supposed to be deleted after 72 hours. If the data protectionists have their way, the deletion should even take place immediately after leaving the car park or underground car park. Accordingly, your chances of obtaining usable information from the car park operator are limited.
But it doesn't cost anything to ask, because the words video surveillance - car park accident are not always mutually exclusive and there is a chance that the parking bump was recorded.
If there is no one to blame, can you hold the car park operator liable for damage to your own car caused by a third party?
As a rule, no. As a rule, you can only hold the perpetrator liable. Even in the absence of video recordings, it has hardly been possible to derive claims for damages against the operator in court.
It depends on whether it is a private Car park or a public space that is accessible to everyone. Private car park operators can set their own rules of use. Private car parks, for example, are all those that are either allocated to certain people or are only accessible to a certain group of people (e.g. with access controls).
Do I have to inform the police?
The Police should only be notified in the event of personal injury or major parking damage. It therefore also makes sense to call the officers in the event of major damage to property or if the question of fault is unclear. They will then draw up a Accident report and question witnesses if necessary.
Who pays for the parking damage?
If the question of fault can be clearly clarified in the event of an accident in a car park, the Liability insurance of the person responsible for the accident for the damage to the car. If it is not possible to Guilt If it is not possible to give only one party to the accident, all parties must bear a share of the costs.
As a rule, the Liability insurance of the person responsible for the accident. If both vehicles were in motion in the car park when the accident occurred, a Agreement between the two insurers necessary - depending on which driver Guilt in the car park accident.
The most important principle here is therefore always the Special duty of care for all drivers to point out. For example, if there is an accident in a car park because another road user has used the parking space to which another person is supposedly entitled, the Ignored right of waythe other party involved in the accident can also be Complicity be assigned. If the injured party contributed to the car park accident due to a lack of care, the blame cannot be placed solely on the other driver. In this case, there will be a so-called apportionment of fault, i.e. the proportionate division of blame. The motor insurers involved will then pay each other according to the quota.
The Liability insurance only covers the damage to the other party's car, not your own.
Accident victims in your situation simply get the best support from fairforce.one.
The right steps for fair claims settlement
Have you been involved in an accident in the car park? Then play it safe and contact us directly:
- Our competent team of experts will discuss the right next steps with you.
- If required, we can organise an expert to come to your home. He will prepare the important independent expert opinion
- Your full claims are calculated by specialised teams of lawyers using our software
- Your optimised claims are asserted with the insurance companies liable to pay benefits and paid out for you
- If required, our network of tested, reliable specialist workshops and replacement vehicles will support you
- You will be kept up to date on all regulatory progress via our innovative HIS (customer information system).
We can't undo your car park accident. But we will make the best of it for you, we promise!
FAQ on parking damage and accidents in car parks
Who is liable for damage in the car park?
As in public traffic areas, the party responsible for parking damage and accidents in multi-storey car parks is liable. For example, if you hit a parked car or drive into a pillar in a multi-storey car park, your motor vehicle liability insurance will cover the damage caused. If someone drives into you or causes damage to your car when getting out of the car park or similar, their liability is responsible. If both parties are partially at fault, liability is usually shared.
Who is liable for a hit-and-run in a car park?
Even if the person who caused the accident leaves the scene and commits a hit-and-run, their insurance company is liable. But first you have to get hold of him. Therefore, check whether there are witnesses or video surveillance to find out who is responsible. If you cannot find the person who caused the accident, you will unfortunately be stuck with the costs.
Call the police after parking damage in a multi-storey car park?
This is often not necessary for minor damage such as dents and scratches. Exchange contact and insurance details with the other party involved in the accident and document the damage. This is usually enough to settle the claim with the insurance company of the person responsible for the accident. You should only call the police in the event of personal injury, major parking damage, an unclear question of fault or if you cannot find the injured party.
Who is liable for damage in the underground car park?
Regardless of whether it is a multi-storey or underground car park, the person who caused the damage is always responsible. Settlement is therefore handled by the car park owner's insurance company.
Who is to blame for the car park accident?
As in road traffic, certain rules apply in multi-storey car parks regarding right of way etc. The question of who is at fault depends on whether there are any infringements and if so, which ones. As many drivers are often unaware of these rules and can quickly make the wrong decisions, you should drive particularly carefully in car parks.
