Rear-End Collisions: Causes and Common Injuries

Rear-end collisions are considered to be one of the most prominent types of auto accidents in the country. These are considered to be a common cause of accidental injuries.

In present times, distracted driving is highly prevalent. However, it is not the only cause of rear-end collisions. These collisions can be caused by:

• Distracted driving
• Speeding
• Heavy traffic
• Weather conditions
• Road rage
• Mechanical failure
• Fatigued driving

Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
In order to prevent and mitigate rear-end crashes, go for the Forward Collision Avoidance Systems. These systems allow a vehicle to automatically brake without driver action when a crash is likely to occur. However, unfortunately, even with this technology, accidents are still likely to happen. The common injuries you could experience as a result of a rear-end collision can differ. It may differ based on certain factors.

 

What are some of the common rear-end injuries caused?

 

Whiplash
Whiplash is certainly one of the most common injuries that can result from a rear-end collision. This injury is usually caused by a violent, sudden movement of the neck and head. It can cause serious soft tissue damage.

The severity and extent of whiplash injuries vary from case to case. There are certain spinal injuries that demand more intensive medical treatment than others. These are the situations where the head, neck, and back move more violently. This heightens the likelihood of sustaining a serious injury. One of the most prominent dangers of a rear-end whiplash injury is that it isn’t immediately apparent. It could take days or weeks for the full symptoms of the injury to become truly visible.

Broken Bones
Broken bones arise from failure to brake. This is a prominent side effect of many collisions. These are associated with all auto accidents. However, in a rear-end collision, the most common breaks occur to certain parts of the body like hands, spine, ribcage, feet, and skull.

Many modern crash safety equipment exists today. However, broken bones can still happen when the collision is extreme. Unlike soft-tissue injuries, many of the breaks can be easily detected. This enables victims to get medical treatment just on time. However, when there are fractures to the skull, it can be way more serious. These fractures can indicate other problems such as traumatic brain injury, or TBI.

Traumatic Brain Injury
TBI-related deaths are way too common today. Just like whiplash, the early warning signs of traumatic brain injury may not be instantly visible. This could take days or weeks for the full effects of the injury to fully manifest.

There are certain common symptoms. These include loss of consciousness, dizziness, chronic fatigue, abnormal changes in behavior, impaired speech, lowered cognitive performance, etc. The bad thing is that traumatic brain injury can be extremely difficult to treat. Also, certain injuries can result in permanent impairments. Some might even lead to death.

Facial Disfigurement/Scarring
When it comes to rear-end crashes, occupants can be thrown against their restraints. There are times when an occupant could hit a dashboard or headrest in a manner that leaves them with permanent scarring or disfigurements. In such cases, the quality of safety measures and immediacy of treatment can be major deciding factors in preventing scarring.

Paralysis
When a spine or brain injury is pretty severe, it can leave you partially or completely paralyzed. There are multiple factors that can impact the degree of paralysis.

Seat Belt Injuries
Seat belts are vital when driving. But, surprisingly, when someone is involved in a rear-end car accident, seat belts can cause injuries! When your car is struck from behind, your seat belt tightens in order to hold your body firmly in place and prevent it from striking the steering wheel, dashboard, and windshield. The moment this happens, the seat belt can very well cut your skin when your body is thrust forward. The most common seat belt injuries are bruising or lacerations to the chest, neck, and torso.

You must see a doctor and have your injuries documented if you wish to file a claim. Make sure to seek legal representation. Get a monetary settlement for your injuries.
Usually, the Extent of Your Injuries has to be taken into account. This extent depends on certain common factors like type of vehicles involved, the rate of speed, the location of impact, if seatbelts were worn, airbag deployment, seat back angle, etc.

Keep in mind that headrests can be the most common source of protection against whiplash in rear-end collisions.

 

Steps to take after a Rear-End Collision

Right after a rear-end collision, you must contact the emergency medical service as soon as possible. Keep in mind that the timeliness of your treatment can make a huge difference in your recovery process. Once you have properly taken care of your health needs and the needs of any other occupants in your vehicle, consider contacting an experienced auto accident attorney.

You must keep in mind that many things can happen in the aftermath of a severe rear-end collision. Some of these include astonomical medical bills, adjusted insurance rates, lost time and wages, etc. so, many of you might stress over financial trouble right after such an accident.

Keep in mind that you do not need to face a financial emergency due to the recklessness of others. Make sure to contact an experienced auto accident attorney in your community to represent you. Try to rightful earn you the compensation for injuries, property damage and medical treatment associated with such a collision.

 

Ways to prevent rear-end collisions

Drivers must check your mirrors more often. When coming to a stop at a traffic light, try to look in the rearview mirror to be sure vehicles behind you are stopping. Make sure to check your mirrors to be sure traffic is stopping behind you.

It is also important to stay focused on your driving. When you slow to a stop, try to detect an escape route. Never rush up to a stop sign or red light. While stopped, try to visualize what you can do should the vehicle behind you not show signs of stopping in time.

What Does a Typical Personal Injury Case Look Like?

You might wonder as to what goes on in a typical personal injury case. You might wonder as to how long it takes.

Getting medical treatment
This is the very first thing that you should do after getting injured in a certain accident. If you are injured, make sure to go to the hospital or visit a doctor. When it comes to health, this is the right thing to do. If you do not see a doctor for some time after an accident, the insurance adjuster and the jury will surely assume that you were not that hurt.

Picking a lawyer
This comes next. If you have a strong claim, it is important to choose a South Florida personal injury lawyer. You must make sure to choose the lawyer right after the injury. You can settle a minor personal injury claim yourself. However, you should still consider talking to a lawyer. If you have suffered from severe injuries or losses, you will need a lawyer for any personal injury claim.

If you are out of work for more than a few days, you should hire a lawyer. You must decide to talk to some lawyers. Once you choose a lawyer and sign a fee agreement, he/she will start to work on your injury case.

Investigating the injury claim
This is a major step. The medical records also need to be reviewed. The lawyer interviews you about how the accident happened, your medical condition, your background, and medical treatment. The attorney wants to know everything that might be relevant to the accident. He/she will make sure to ask all questions to know more about your injury and treatment. Usually, lawyers do not really want to be surprised. So, you must go ahead and answer all the questions honestly.

It is then that the lawyer will get all of your medical records plus bills associated with the injury. Also, he/she will get your medical records for any treatment that you have ever had associated with the condition at issue. This can take some months.

Once the lawyer collects all the medical records, the lawyer will review them in order to see if there is a possible case. Now, the lawyer might be able to determine that there is no case. In that case, he/she will deliver the bad news to the client early on.

Making Demands
There are many small personal injury claims that are settled prior to the filing of a lawsuit. If the lawyer is of the opinion that the case can be settled, they will go ahead and make a demand to the other lawyer or the insurance company of the other side.Else, your lawyer might go ahead and file the lawsuit. Generally, if your claim is about permanent injury or impairment, a genuine personal injury lawyer will not settle it prior to filing suit.

A genuine personal lawyer will not make a demand until the plaintiff has attained a point of maximum medical improvement that is referred to as MMI. MMI is the stage when the plaintiff has ended his/her medical treatment. This is mainly because when the plaintiff has reached MMI, the attorney does not know the actual value of the case.

The attorney should not file a lawsuit until MMI. This is mainly because if the plaintiff is not at MMI when the case goes to trial, the jury might give less value to the case. It could take some months or years for the plaintiff to attain MMI. However, a genuine lawyer will decide to wait, if the plaintiff can afford to wait financially. Of course, if the plaintiff requires money, then the attorney should put the case in a suit early on.

Filing of the lawsuit
The filing of the lawsuit usually begins the clock running on when the case is getting to trial. The pretrial procedures of every state vary. However, it will take some years for a personal injury case to get to trial. You need to remember that a lawsuit is required to be filed within certain time limits. These time limits are set by every state has set by passing a law that is referred to as a statute of limitations.

The Discovery Process
The discovery process is a procedure in which all the parties look into the legal claims and defenses of the adversary. They usually send interrogatories and document requests to one another. Also, they take depositions of every relevant witness in the personal injury case. It usually begins with the plaintiff and the defendant. This process can last for 6 months. It depends on the court’s deadlines as well as the complexity of the personal injury case.

Mediation and Negotiation
With the ending of the discovery period, the attorneys will start talking about settlement. Certain times, the lawyers can go ahead and settle a case by talking among themselves. However, some tend to go to mediation. Mediation can be defined as a process in which both clients and lawyers go in front of a mediator in order to settle the personal injury case.

Trial
In general, mediation works. However, if it does not work, the case is likely to go for trial. Depending on the severity of the injury case, a personal injury trial can last a day, a week or even longer. The duration of the injury case may be increased since, in many states, trials are held for only ½ a day and not a full day. This pretty much doubles the duration of a trial. However, it also lets the lawyers and judges get certain other things done.

When a lawsuit is scheduled for trial, it does not mean that the trial will occur on that date. Trials tend to get rescheduled due to the schedules of the judge. If your trial gets canceled due to some reason, you should not assume that the lawyers are conspiring against you. In general, trials are delayed all the time.

Some key factors that impact the settlement value are the defendant's assets, the plaintiff's losses and liability.

What Should I Expect after Hiring a Fort Lauderdale PI Lawyer?

After you hire an experienced lawyer in Fort Lauderdale, you need to focus on lawyer communication, competence, ethics, fees and many other things!

Your Ft. Lauderdale personal injury lawyer should give you advice about your legal situation, keep you informed about your case, tell you what he thinks will happen in your case, allow you to make certain decisions regarding your case, provide you with an estimate about what your case should cost, notify you of any changes, or setbacks, give you the information you need to make good decisions etc.

Here are some of the basic things that you can expect after hiring a lawyer:

Lawyer Communication

Lawyer communication includes the correspondence and communication between a client and his attorney. In case you face a problem related to lawyer communication, it might force you to wonder whether you ended up hiring a bad attorney who is not diligent enough. The truth is that there are many states that have laws regarding when and how a lawyer must communicate with clients. Usually, you need to be able to expect to get a general overview of your case at the time when you request it from your lawyer.

Also, your Fort Lauderdale attorney must call you back or return your emails just in time. In case your hired lawyer does not respond within a business day, he should give you a reason why they failed to answer your question. This might happen if your lawyer is working on many cases. In such cases, your lawyer is likely to be burdened with court work.

If your personal injury lawyer does not communicate effectively, you are likely to worry. It is alarming if your attorney fails to keep you updated on what is happening with your case. Your repeated phone calls must be answered. If there is no response for over the course of a week, you must discuss your lawyer communication problem with your lawyer. In case your attorney does not show any sensitivity to your worries, you might need to go for another legal representative to help yourself.

Lawyer competency

The lawyer communication problems are the most common ones. However, apart from that, you may also have problems with the competency of your lawyer's work. Competency implies the core knowledge and expertise of a specialized PI lawyer in handling a client's legal issue. Lawyers are humans. You must not forget that! They might just make a mistake. There is nothing like flawless work! After your attorney passed your state's bar exam, he probably has not had to take a test. In fact, passing the bar exam does not really guarantee that your lawyer is competent to represent you in court! Sad but true!

There is a bunch of bar associations that claim that they deal with various issues regarding the competency of lawyers. However, you will not get any proper response if you complain about your attorney's work. This is mainly because the State bar associations are understaffed. Thus, they fail to lead proper investigation on whether attorney is working in a competent manner.

But, you may claim for legal malpractice if your attorney makes a mistake that no reasonable attorney would make, under normal circumstances. This error might cause you to lose money or even get harmed in some manner. In such cases, you can sue your attorney. You can go forward and claim that he did not act in a reasonably competent manner. These mistakes can be procedural in nature as well. These might include not filing your lawsuit on time. Some mistakes are ethical in nature. You must know that there are plenty of malpractice lawsuits that are pretty expensive to pursue. These might even be very hard to win. So, you cannot always blame the attorney for losing the case.

Ethics

Every state has their own bunch of ethical rules. By these rules, attorneys need to conduct their business.These usually have certain common themes that run throughout all of them. The lawyers are required to maintain the attorney-client privilege, perform their duties well, represent their client's interest with utmost loyalty and integrity, work within the bounds of the law, maintain separate bank accounts for client money, prioritizing their client's interests no matter what etc.

Every state has an agency that is responsible for disciplining attorneys and other legal professionals in Fort Lauderdale that sway away from the ethical rules and regulations. These disciplinary actions can give way to paying fines, returning stolen money, suspension from the practice of law, revocation of a law license etc.

Amount of fees

Most of the disputes related to attorneys' fees are the most common type of problem that arise. Fee disputes can come up due to multiple reasons. The most common reasons might include:

1. Complaints about bills that are regarded to be too costly
2.  Disagreements over what type of fees would be charged to the client
3.  Disagreements over whether an itemized bill would be provided
4. Concerns that a lawyer took a really long time to get done with an easy task
5. Argument that since an attorney did a job unsatisfactorily, the bill should be lowered
6. Billing at an attorney's rate for work done by a paralegal
7. Complaints associated with charging more for time given to a case

After you hire a good PI attorney in Fort Lauderdale, you need to make sure that you get the fee agreement in writing. This will help you to understand the cost factor. In case a term in the fee agreement is not that clear to you, do not shy away from asking the attorney to write it again in a way that is clear to you in every possible way. If your state does not require a written fee agreement, you should still have one. In case you do not want to have your fee dispute end up in court, you must ensure that a mandatory arbitration clause is included in the fee agreement. This way the dispute can take place in front of a neutral, third party in the most rightful manner.

Ways That Truck Accidents Are Different From Car Accidents?

When a person gets involved in a truck accident, he/she might be under the illusion that a truck accident is just like any other car accident. However, he/she needs to keep in mind that a passenger vehicle accident is way different from an 18-wheeler accident.

What causes the severity of truck accident injuries?

Usually, large trucks require a greater distance to stop than passenger vehicles. This clearly implies that a truck that is moving too fast or is being driven by a distracted truck driver can cause a catastrophic collision.

Most of the large trucks need more room than passenger vehicles to navigate a turn. Thus, they are prone to tipping. If a large truck tips, it might just crush a nearby passenger vehicle.

Here are some major differences between a truck accident and a car accident:

Larger Insurance Policies
It is a given that the size, nature, and interstate movement of a commercial truck, will be different from that of a car accident. The insurance policy the truck carries can be worth 50 times more than an insurance policy on a car. This amount of coverage is too important because a big vehicle, like the truck, can inflict greater damages. Such insurance policies can be worth millions of dollars. Thus, it is too important for the insurance carrier for the commercial truck to find a way out of liability. Most of the insurance carriers, in these cases, put their most experienced insurance adjusters on the case.

The highly experienced adjusters tend to employ larger tactics to lower their client’s liability. Their other major objective is to increase the blame on the injured party. When they are able to place a small amount of liability on the victim, they can reduce the claim to a great extent. In order to do away with a lump-sum payout, they might tend to offer a really large sum of money at the beginning. Their main intention is to distract the injured victim from the real value of their case. Being the victim here, you must never get into this trap. You must get the support of a truck accident lawyer, as soon as possible.


Fat Medical Bills
In usual, the injuries from a truck accident are way more intense than that inflicted by a car accident. Thus, the medical bills associated with personal injury are much higher, in general. Usually, traumatic injuries are caused by such accidents.

Such accidents often lead to longer stays at the hospital, more extensive treatments and greater repercussions. Such accidents often lead to lifelong injuries and medical conditions. This often leads to missed work. Thus, the victim’s financial situation is affected largely. This is a major factor that needs to be taken into account at the time of determining a settlement amount. When you have the support of an experienced personal injury attorney, he will know the right means to calculate the current as well as future costs. They will make sure that you end up getting the rightful compensation.


Greater Property Damage
Usually, trucks with a full trailer can weigh 80,000 pounds. This huge weight and the huge size of a truck is bound to inflict severe damage on anything that comes in its path. Thus, in most cases, it is noted that commercial truck accidents cause a significant amount of property damage.


More severe Injuries
When a giant truck goes up against a light-weight car, the results can be horrifying! Usually, the injuries from a truck accident are much more severe than those from an accident not involving a truck. The common injuries to the car passengers include severe whiplash, back injuries, broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, and death. Usually, the trucking companies carry larger policies to compensate for this risk. However, the effects of such an injury are highly life-altering in the worst possible way.

Difference in regulations
Most of the commercial trucks are interstate deliveries. Thus, truck drivers and trucking companies need to register with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Department of Transportation. These trucking companies are usually governed by plenty of more regulations than a usual passenger car. These regulations often include maintenance of the trucks, special driver’s licenses and qualifications, annual inspections, and logbooks. Such a large number of regulations open doors to gain compensation in various ways.

Usually, cars don’t have the same regulations. There is no doubt that truck accidents are much more complicated when it comes to determining the cause and liability of the accident.


Higher Chance of Death
As per the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), accidents that involve large trucks are responsible for almost 3,000 to 5,000 deaths each year. Usually, commercial truck accidents are more likely to cause a death than a wreck involving two passenger vehicles. If you or your loved one has been injured in such a drastic accident, you must speak with a personal injury attorney before you file any type of claim.

Different Attorney Experience
Usually, a reliable truck accident attorney plays a major role in ensuring that an injured victim receives the right amount of compensation. It goes without saying that an experienced semi-truck lawyer understands the tactics employed by the insurance companies. He/she will know about the regulations truckers must adhere to. The insurance policies are pretty complex. Only genuine lawyers will know about such complexities. You must never accept the first offer made by the insurance company.

How does the severity of truck accident injuries affect the case?

The impact is huge. Insurance claims get way more complicated. Both state and federal laws apply in these cases. Usually, many parties get involved. Many insurance policies are at play. Thus, personal injury claims stemming from truck accidents can be highly complicated. People injured in a collision with a large commercial vehicle need to consult an experienced truck accident attorney. A truck accident attorney is one who understands the applicable federal and state laws.

As per the Federal & State Trucking Laws, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has issued regulations that govern large trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds.