Rear-End and T-Bone Collisions: Fault, Injuries and Evidence

What a Car Accident Attorney Looks at After a Rear-End or T-Bone Crash

Rear-end crashes and T-bone collisions are two crash types that come up often in injury claims. The label describes how the vehicles met, but it does not decide who was at fault. A car accident lawyer reviewing one of these crashes usually begins with the sequence of events, from each car's speed to the signals that controlled traffic.

What causes rear-end collisions

Many state traffic laws bar drivers from following another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent, with attention to the speed of traffic and the condition of the road. Distraction is a frequent factor. NHTSA notes that sending or reading a text takes a driver's eyes off the road for 5 seconds, which at 55 mph is like driving the length of a football field with eyes closed. A car crash https://kamerontxte570.stonefielddigest.com/posts/car-accident-statistics-from-nhtsa-data lawyer will sometimes request the other driver's phone records if distraction is suspected.

The trailing driver is often found at fault in a rear-end crash, but that is not automatic. A car that cuts in and brakes suddenly, brake lights that do not work or a vehicle backing up may shift part or all of the fault. In a chain-reaction crash, every impact is its own event, and a middle vehicle pushed forward may not be responsible for the second impact.

Whiplash and soft tissue injuries

Rear-end impacts are often linked to whiplash, a neck injury caused by the head snapping back and forth. Symptoms such as neck pain and headaches may not appear until hours after the crash, which is one reason a prompt medical evaluation matters. Insurers sometimes dispute injury claims from low-speed rear-end crashes, pointing to light vehicle damage. Photos of both cars and the medical records help respond to that argument, along with imaging such as an MRI when a doctor orders one.

What causes T-bone crashes

In a T-bone crash, the front of one vehicle strikes the side of another, most often at an intersection. Typical causes include failing to yield on a left turn and running a red light or a stop sign. A car's sides have less space to absorb crash forces than its front or rear, which is why the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) rates side protection in a separate side-impact crash test. Occupants on the struck side can suffer serious injuries, including traumatic brain injury and pelvic fractures.

These crashes often turn on who had the right of way. Evidence can include signal timing records, intersection camera video, nearby business surveillance footage, dashcam video and witness statements, plus the event data recorder (EDR) in each car, which may hold speed and braking data from the seconds before the crash. A car crash lawyer will usually try to collect video quickly, since many systems overwrite footage within days or weeks.

Shared fault and comparative negligence

Fault is often shared. Most states apply some form of comparative negligence, which reduces a recovery by the injured person's percentage of fault. In states with modified comparative negligence, a person whose fault reaches 50 or 51 percent, depending on the state, may be barred from recovery, while pure comparative negligence allows a reduced recovery at any level of fault. A few jurisdictions still apply contributory negligence, which can bar recovery for any fault at all. A motor vehicle accident attorney can explain which rule applies where the crash happened.

Deadlines and general information

Every state sets its own statute of limitations for injury claims, and claims against a government agency can require written notice much sooner. This is general information and not legal advice, and no article can predict how a claim will turn out.