Read-end accidents are considered the most common type of crashes. Almost thirty percent of car accidents are rear-end crashes. Such accidents are the reason for a big number of deaths every year.
Every year, about 1.7 million rear-end crashes occur in the United States. About 1700 people die and about half a million are injured in such accidents.
These accidents are taken very seriously by medical workers and insurance companies.
If you were involved in a rear-end crash in Indianapolis, seek help from a car accident attorney.
Common Causes of Rear-end Accidents
In most cases, these accidents occur because of a distracted driver. The driver fails to notice the vehicle in front of them on time, so they don’t have enough time to stop and avoid the crash. Distractions such as eating, texting, adjusting the radio, or AC, are the most common reasons for distracted driving.
Other common causes of rear-end accidents are drunk driving, aggressive driving, driver fatigue, hazardous weather. These factors can contribute to the crash, for both the vehicle that is crashing and the vehicle that is crashed. It’s essential to be aware of these potential factors to avoid crashing.
How to Avoid Causing a Rear-end Accident?
Drivers who end up crashed from the back can’t do a lot to avoid it. But, to avoid hitting another vehicle from the back make sure you avoid drinking and driving. Don’t drive if you feel tired or fatigued. Stay alert if it’s heavily raining or snowing. Make sure you pay attention to the road instead of texting, eating, or setting the radio, GPS, AC. Avoid tailgating or other aggressive driving activities.
Most Common Injuries from Rear-end Accidents
Although there’s an opinion that such accidents cause only minor damages or injuries, in reality, people suffer severe injuries from this type of crashes. If you’re involved in a rear-end accident you might feel the effects of the crash for months or years afterward. Here are some are only some examples of injuries that can plague you after a rear-end crash:
- Neck injuries – this is the most common injury that occurs in such accidents. You can easily injure the soft tissue on the neck, straining the tendons or ligaments. The soft tissue can be sprained and tore. Rear-end accidents cause your head to move violently, which will cause pain, stiffness, and trouble moving your neck. Neck injuries generally require physical therapy and time to rest without doing your usual physical activities.
- Back injuries – Muscles, joints, and soft tissue on the back can easily be injured in this type of accident. Every movement includes the back (upper and lower) so these injuries can seriously endanger your state. Long recovery and physical therapy would be needed, but in some cases back surgery as well.
- Brain injuries – Traumatic brain injury is the most common type in such accidents. Even if the airbag opens, you can easily hit your head on the roof of the vehicle, or the windows. Even a sharp jolt of your head can damage the brain, even if you don’t hit your head in anything. This is an especially serious injury that could affect your cognitive and physical abilities.
- Spinal injuries – Your spine is vital and any injury can affect your entire moving, organ functioning, and sensory capabilities. Usually, in such accidents, you can suffer damaged or compressed discs. Such injury can cause temporary paralysis and requires hospital treatment. An injured spine in most cases means having some form of disability for life.
- Broken Bones – Bones break easily in any type of accident, and that is no exception in rear-end collisions. The airbag can easily break the face, hands, and arm bones (this especially is risky for the driver). Legs and knees can break from impact with the dashboard. The good thing is that some broken bones heal with a few medical appointments and with time the patient won’t have any issues using their legs and arms again. Other fractures might require surgeries, longer time to heal, and may have permanent effects.
Ending up injured in a rear-back accident can be stressful and change your life forever. Although not every injury is life-threatening, the treatments are unavoidable. The time you’ll need to recover and the medical treatments will affect your budget. This is why it’s essential to contact a car accident attorney. Rowe & Hamilton attorneys are offering you a free consultation where we will review your case and answer any questions you have.
