Hit by a Car in a Parking Lot

Parking lot crashes are one of the situations listed on our pedestrian and bicycle accidents page, and they raise a question street crashes do not: which rules apply on private property? Many people assume that the Vehicle Code's right-of-way rules govern a grocery store or shopping center lot the way they govern a city street. Most of them do not, at least not directly. That does not leave a person on foot unprotected. California's general negligence rule reaches drivers and property owners wherever they are.

This guide explains which laws apply in a lot, who may be responsible besides the driver, how fault is shared, and what to do in the first days after being hit.

How is responsibility decided, step by step?

Identify the kind of lot. A privately owned store or shopping center lot is treated differently from a city-owned lot or garage, because the rules of the road apply on "highways," meaning ways publicly maintained and open to the public for vehicle travel (Vehicle Code 21001 and 360).
Apply the driver's basic duty. Everyone is responsible for injury caused by a lack of ordinary care in the management of their property or person (Civil Code 1714(a)). A driver must use reasonable care, keep a lookout for pedestrians, and control the speed and movement of the vehicle (CACI 700).
Check for street rules that reach the lot. A city or county may extend the basic speed law and certain other provisions to a private lot by ordinance, but only if the owner posts the required notice at each entrance (Vehicle Code 21107.8). Reckless driving is a crime in an offstreet parking facility open to the public (Vehicle Code 23103(b)).
Look at the lot itself. A person who owns, leases, occupies or controls property must use reasonable care to keep it reasonably safe, and to discover and repair or warn of conditions that could be expected to harm others (CACI 1001).
Look at the exits. A driver leaving a lot must yield to anyone approaching on the sidewalk before crossing it (Vehicle Code 21952), and must yield to traffic on the street, which includes pedestrians (Vehicle Code 21804 and 620).
Divide the fault. If the person on foot was also careless, the jury assigns percentages and reduces that person's damages by their own share (CACI 405).

Who may be responsible?

Who	Why they may be responsible	Rule
The driver	Failing to keep a lookout, backing without checking, driving too fast for the lot	Civil Code 1714; CACI 700
The driver's employer	A driver on the job, such as a delivery driver, may make the employer responsible	See our employer and owner guide
The lot owner, tenant or manager	Not using reasonable care to keep the lot reasonably safe, such as poor lighting or a layout that hides walkers	Civil Code 1714; CACI 1001
A city, county or other public owner	A dangerous condition of public property that the entity created or had notice of in time to fix	Government Code 835; claim within six months under Government Code 911.2
Your own auto insurer	If the driver had no insurance or fled, your uninsured motorist coverage may protect you on foot	Insurance Code 11580.2

Do the crosswalk and backing rules apply in a parking lot?

Not directly in most private lots. The Vehicle Code's rules of the road "refer exclusively to the operation of vehicles upon the highways, unless a different place is specifically referred to" (Vehicle Code 21001). A highway is a way or place "publicly maintained and open to the use of the public" for vehicle travel (Vehicle Code 360). A store's privately maintained lot does not fit that definition. So the crosswalk rule in Vehicle Code 21950, and the rule that a driver may back up on a highway only when it can be done with reasonable safety (Vehicle Code 22106), are written for streets. Our guide on when a driver must yield to a pedestrian covers those street rules.

That matters less than it sounds. The duty of ordinary care in Civil Code 1714 applies everywhere, and the jury instruction on a driver's basic standard of care covers conduct the Vehicle Code does not address (CACI 700). A driver who backs out of a space without looking, or cuts across empty stalls at speed, can be negligent in a private lot just as on a street. The street rules can still help show what a careful driver does, even where they do not bind.

Some rules do reach lots. Reckless driving, meaning willful or wanton disregard for safety, is a crime in an offstreet parking facility held open to the public, which includes free private lots held open for retail customers (Vehicle Code 23103(b) and 12500(c)). And under Vehicle Code 21107.8, a city or county may, after a public hearing, declare that the basic speed law and certain other provisions apply in private lots open to the public, but only where the owner has posted a notice at each entrance, at least 17 by 22 inches, saying the lot is subject to public moving vehicle laws. Look for that sign at the entrance where you were hit.

When is the lot owner responsible too?

A property owner is not responsible just because a crash happened on its lot. The question is whether the owner, or the business that leases or controls the lot, failed to use reasonable care to keep it reasonably safe. The 2026 jury instruction lists factors a jury may weigh, including the location of the property, the likelihood that someone would come onto it the way the injured person did, the likelihood and seriousness of harm, whether the owner knew or should have known of the condition, how hard it was to protect against the risk, and how much control the owner had over the condition (CACI 1001).

In a parking lot claim, those factors point to conditions such as burned-out lights over the walkways, a drive aisle that sends cars past a store entrance with no marked walkway, missing stop signs at the end of aisles, or landscaping that blocks the view at a corner. Evidence that the owner knew, such as earlier complaints or incident reports, can matter, as it does in other property claims. Our guide on how to prove a property owner knew about a hazard explains notice.

If the lot or garage belongs to a city, county or other public entity, the claim is about a dangerous condition of public property. A public entity is liable only if the property was in a dangerous condition, the condition caused the injury, the risk was reasonably foreseeable, and the entity either created the condition or had notice of it in time to protect against it (Government Code 835). A written claim to that entity is due within six months (Government Code 911.2).

What if the driver had no insurance or drove away?

Your own auto policy may help even though you were on foot. In a policy issued to an individual, uninsured motorist coverage protects the named insured, a spouse, and relatives living in the same household, whether in a vehicle "or otherwise" (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)). Our guide on whether your own car insurance helps when you are hit on foot explains how that works.

If the driver left without stopping, report it to the police right away. For an unknown driver, the coverage requires physical contact, a report within 24 hours, and a sworn statement to your insurer within 30 days (Insurance Code 11580.2(b)(1) and (2)). Our guide on what to do after a hit-and-run in Sonoma or Marin County covers those steps and the other options.

What changes the answer?

The lot is publicly owned. A city lot or garage brings in the dangerous-condition rules and the six-month claim deadline (Government Code 835 and 911.2). See how to file an injury claim against a city or county.

The crash happened at the exit. Once a driver crosses the sidewalk or enters the street, the street rules apply again: yield to people on the sidewalk (Vehicle Code 21952) and to traffic on the street, including pedestrians (Vehicle Code 21804 and 620).

The driver was working. A delivery or company driver may make the employer responsible. Our guide on holding the driver's employer or the car's owner responsible explains when.

You were working in the lot. A store employee gathering carts who is hit by a customer may have workers' compensation and a separate claim against the driver. See crashes while working.

You were also careless. Civil Code 1714 itself excepts injury a person brought on themselves by a lack of ordinary care, and under comparative fault a jury reduces the recovery by that share (CACI 405). Walking out from between parked vans without looking may count against you; it does not erase the driver's duty to look.

It was dark. Poor lighting can bear on both the driver's care and the owner's. Our guide on crashes involving a person walking at night explains the headlight and speed rules on streets.

What could this look like? An example

For example, imagine a woman walking from a grocery store to her car one winter evening in a shopping center lot in Rohnert Park, pushing a cart down a drive aisle because the lot has no marked walkway. A driver backing out of a space, checking only a mirror, hits her and breaks her wrist.

The lot is privately owned and maintained, so the Vehicle Code's backing rule for highways does not apply directly. The driver still owed ordinary care (Civil Code 1714) and had to keep a lookout (CACI 700). Photos and the store's maintenance log show that half the lights over that aisle had been out for weeks, and the manager had logged a customer complaint about them. She may have a claim against the driver and, if a jury finds the owner failed to use reasonable care to keep the lot reasonably safe, against the owner too (CACI 1001). If the jury also found she should have looked behind the car, her damages would be reduced by her share (CACI 405). Her lawsuit, if needed, would generally be due within two years (Code of Civil Procedure 335.1). This example is made up to show how the rules fit together; it says nothing about any real case.

What mistakes do people make after a parking lot crash?

Accepting a claim that a person on foot must always yield in a parking lot, when the driver's duty of ordinary care still applies (Civil Code 1714).
Leaving without the driver's name, license plate and insurance, or the names of witnesses.
Not asking the store to keep its camera footage and its incident report.
Not photographing the lighting, signs, markings and sight lines, especially at night.
Assuming the store is not involved without asking who owns and maintains the lot.
Waiting too long on a city-owned lot, where the claim is due within six months.

What should I do this week?

Write down exactly where you were hit: the store, the aisle or row, and which way the car was moving.
Ask the store manager, in writing, to keep camera footage from that day and to give you a copy of any incident report.
Photograph the spot, the lights, the signs at each entrance, the markings and anything that blocked the view.
Get the police report number if officers came; our guide on getting a crash report in Sonoma County lists the offices.
Find out who owns the lot; for a city or county lot, mark the six-month claim date now. Our page on personal injury cases in Sonoma County lists the public claim offices.
Get medical care and keep every bill and record.
Read California personal injury deadlines and mark the two-year date.

Frequently asked questions

Is a parking lot crash always the driver's fault?

No, but the driver's duty of ordinary care applies there as anywhere (Civil Code 1714). If the person on foot was also careless, a jury divides the fault and reduces that person's recovery by their share (CACI 405).

Will the police take a report for a crash on private property?

For an injury, call 911 and ask. A written report helps with the insurance claim either way; our guide on getting a crash report in Sonoma County explains how to request one.

Does the driver's car insurance cover a crash in a lot?

Insurance Code 11580.2 describes auto liability policies as covering liability "arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use" of a motor vehicle, words not tied to public streets. Ask the driver's insurer for a claim number in writing, and if it questions coverage, ask it to quote the policy language it relies on.

What if the store says the lot belongs to a landlord?

The duty belongs to whoever owns, leases, occupies or controls the property (CACI 1001), so more than one business may be involved. Ask for the property manager's name and the owner's insurance information in writing.

What if I was hit at a gas station or drive-through?

The same principles apply: the driver's ordinary care, and the property owner's duty to keep the property reasonably safe. Where the driver crossed a sidewalk to enter or leave, the sidewalk rule applies (Vehicle Code 21952).

How long do I have to file?

Generally two years from the injury (Code of Civil Procedure 335.1), or six months for a claim to a public entity (Government Code 911.2).

If you were hit by a car in a parking lot or garage, contact Young Law Group today at (707) 343-0556 or through our contact page for a free consultation.

I was hit by a car in a parking lot: who is responsible?