California, in general, and Los Angeles, in particular, has some of the worst traffic in the nation. Along with traffic, inevitably come traffic accidents. Rear-end traffic accidents are common, and they can result in serious injury or even death.

Often, rear-end collisions have clear liability: the trailing car should have taken steps to avoid the accident. When you were rear-ended by another driver, you typically deserve compensation for your injuries. At Fisher & Talwar, we are prepared to fight for the compensation you deserve. Please contact us today to understand your options and what compensation you might be able to get. 

Causes of Rear-End Collisions

When driving, a following car has a responsibility to attend to the flow of traffic and not just respond to the vehicle in front of them, but also to anticipate the actions of that vehicle to be prepared for how they might respond to changing traffic conditions in front of them. Failing that, they need to respond quickly to the actions of the driver in front. If everyone did that, rear-end collisions would be rare. Instead, rear-end collisions are common, caused by:

  • Driver distraction: In a 100-driver naturalistic crash study of rear-end collisions, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that nearly 90% of crashes were caused by driver distraction. Sources of driver distraction included:
    • Cell phones
    • Pets in the car
    • Daydreaming or thinking about things outside the car
    • Looking out the car window
    • Eating or drinking
  • Driver fatigue: Being tired or even asleep was the most common cause of driver impairment in rear-end collisions
  • Alcohol and drug use: Although uncommon, the use of alcohol and drugs made a significant contribution to rear-end collisions. 
  • Speeding and aggressive driving: Driving faster than the speed limit, close following, and aggressive lane-changes all increase the risk of rear-end collisions.
  • Driving slowly or being stopped in a traffic lane: On the other hand, sometimes a car gets rear-ended because it was driving slowly or was stopped in the traffic lane.

Although these are the most common causes of rear-end collisions, this list is by no means comprehensive. Nor does the presence of a specific behavior mean that you either can or can’t get compensation for your injuries. 

What Makes Rear-End Collisions More Serious

Rear-end collisions can occur at all levels of severity, from property-damage only (PDO) crashes to fatal crashes. However, an NHTSA study of fatal rear-end crashes makes it clear that some factors can significantly worsen the results of a rear-end collision:

  • Speed disparity between vehicles: When the striking vehicle is driving much faster than the vehicle it strikes, collisions tend to be much more dangerous. The cause of disparity might be that the following vehicle was speeding, driving aggressively, or being distracted. Or it might be because the lead vehicle stopped suddenly, either because of traffic or inexplicably.
  • Size disparity between vehicles: When the striking vehicle is either much larger or much smaller than the vehicle it strikes, the result can be very serious injuries. Note that size can be both in terms of mass as well as bumper orientation. Truck underride or override can be deadly. These days, most heavy trucks are supposed to have underride protection, and failure to have these guards constitutes dangerous negligence. 
  • Multicar crashes: In a two-car crash, the struck vehicle can disperse some of the impact energy by rolling freely. However, when multiple vehicles are involved, a struck vehicle can be trapped, forcing it to absorb more of the impact energy and pass it on to the riders. 
  • Defective restraints: Seat belts, seat backs, and secondary restraint systems (SRS) like airbags are supposed to keep people safe during crashes. Their design should factor in the important elements of rear-end collisions. However, sometimes these restraints are defective. Seat belts can fail, SRS can explode, causing injury, and seat backs can inflict injury. When this occurs, you may have a product liability lawsuit in addition to a rear-end collision lawsuit.

In these situations, people are more likely to suffer serious injuries in rear-end collisions. 

Common Injuries in Rear-End Collisions

As rear-end collisions can vary significantly in severity, they can also cause many different types of injuries. Some of the common injuries people experience in rear-end collisions include:

Whiplash is often thought of as the most characteristic injury of a rear-end collision. In this injury, the body is restrained by the seatbelt, but the head and neck move freely, putting significant strain on the vertebrae and soft tissue of the neck. In addition, the brain can be jolted dangerously by the acceleration and/or deceleration in a rear-end collision. 

You can suffer serious head and neck injuries even if your head didn’t hit anything in the car accident.

How Much Is My Rear-End Collision Lawsuit Worth?

After your rear-end collision, you can seek compensation for all losses sustained as a result of the accident. This can include both economic damages – those related to specific dollar costs – and noneconomic damages – damages that are just as real, but aren’t related to specific dollar amounts. Examples of compensatory damages include:

  • Medical bills: past, ongoing, and future
  • Lost wages
  • Diminished earning ability
  • Property damage
  • Pain and suffering
  • Disfigurement
  • Emotional distress
  • Loss of enjoyment of life

Working with a rear-end collision lawyer can help you get more compensation for both economic and noneconomic damages. With economic damages, you might know to ask for compensation related to medical bills you’ve already seen, but how do you know how much your medical bills will total in the future? An experienced rear-end collision lawyer has worked with other people in your situation, and they can make a much more qualified estimate than you can. In addition, noneconomic damages can be hard to communicate to insurance companies and juries. A lawyer who has worked with other victims knows how to make your pain clear, which can improve settlement offers and verdicts.

In addition to economic and noneconomic damages, in rare cases, a court might award punitive damages. These are designed to punish negligence or deliberate misconduct on the part of other parties in the accident, and are only awarded at trial, although most rear-end collision lawsuits settle long before going to trial. 

Contributory Negligence in Rear-End Collisions

Another factor that can impact the compensation you receive for your rear-end collision is contributory negligence: if you are partly responsible for your collision. You are still able to pursue compensation as long as you aren’t completely responsible for the accident. However, your compensation will be reduced by the degree to which you are responsible for the accident and/or your injuries.

For example, if the court determined that you were 20% responsible for your accident, with the rest being evenly split between the other driver and the car manufacturer, whose defective restraint system made your injuries worse than they should have been. In this situation, you would only be able to get compensation for up to 80% of your damages, with half coming from the other driver and half being paid by the car manufacturer.

Dividing responsibility for your injuries can help you get full compensation when one party, such as the other driver, has limited coverage and/or money.

Why Choose Fisher & Talwar for Your Rear-End Collision Lawsuit

If you have been hurt in a rear-end collision accident, you should take care to choose the best lawyer for your case. At Fisher & Talwar, we believe we are the best choice for many people in Los Angeles and across California because of our proven track record, the personal attention we provide, and our compassionate pricing.

  • A record of success: We have helped many people from Los Angeles and throughout California get compensation after traffic accidents, including rear-end collisions. We have experience handling traffic accident lawsuits that include defective product elements, and we have won millions for our clients in these lawsuits. 
  • Personal attention: When you work with Fisher & Talwar, you know that your lawsuit will be handled by one of our partners. We will put our full skill and experience at your service, never passing you off to a junior attorney. We can do this because we are highly selective in the cases that we take. If we agree to take your case, it’s because we believe we are the best attorney for you, and we will get you more compensation than if you work on your own or with a different attorney. 
  • No Win, No Fee: At Fisher & Talwar, we handle rear-end collision lawsuits on a contingency basis. That means that you don’t pay us anything if we don’t win money for you. 
  • You never pay our expenses: When you are choosing a lawyer, ask them about how they handle expenses as well as fees. Some lawyers will offer you a low fee, but expect you to pay their expenses, which can be a surprise bill that takes away from the money you were counting on to meet other needs. Worse, you might be expected to pay expenses even if they don’t win money for you. At Fisher & Talwar, our expenses are included in our fees. You never pay a surprise bill, and you won’t pay us anything if we don’t win money for you.

With these benefits, you should talk to us before making a decision about your rear-end collision lawyer. 

Contact Us for a Free Consultation

After your rear-end collision accident, it’s common to feel overwhelmed. There are substantial bills, you might not be able to work, and you might still be in significant pain. We can make everything simpler: just call and ask us about your options. We will answer all your questions so you can make an informed decision. It’s completely free, and there’s no obligation. Please contact us today for your free consultation.

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