The most common personal injury accidents are motor vehicle related. This includes car accidents and motorcycle wrecks, which lead to thousands of serious injuries and deaths every year. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), we’ve seen a recent spike in crash fatalities after a steady decline. Consequentially, the car insurance accident claims have also increased considerably.
The main contributor to these crashes tends to be driver error. This includes speeding, following too closely, distracted driving, failing to yield and driving while impaired.
Rollover Collisions
2016 saw the most dramatic increase in fatalities involving multi-vehicle rollovers. For obvious reasons, rollover accidents are much more dangerous than other kinds of car accidents. While there are various causes of rollover accidents, they typically depend on driver behavior, vehicle type (SUV’s, pickup trucks, and higher profile vehicles are at higher risk), and road conditions. Roads with speed limits of 55 or more have a higher incidence rate, and nearly half of all of them involve a drunk driver.
Single Car Collisions
Single car collisions are typically caused by driver error, distraction, intoxication or sleepiness.
Rear-End Collisions
When drivers are distracted or following too closely, it’s easy for rear-end collisions to occur. Unfortunately, the injuries sustained in these accidents can vary from whiplash to traumatic brain injuries, and even to death. Determining the cause can be difficult, and having a knowledgeable attorney on your side can help significantly.
Side-Impact Collisions
Commonly referred to as T-bone collisions, side-impact crashes occur when a vehicle crashes into the side of another vehicle; usually while traveling perpendicularly. They typically happen at intersections, and can lead to serious injuries due to the vulnerability of the side of cars and the lack of protection they provide.
Sideswipe Collisions
Sideswipe collisions typically involve cars travelling in the same direction, and are commonly caused by one person trying to change lanes while it is already occupied by another vehicle or while passing. They also happen when drivers swerve to miss a hazard on the road and forget that there are other vehicles nearby.
