Common Types of Auto Accidents

With so many vehicles on Texas roads, car accidents are an everyday hazard for many Texans. Some crashes are unavoidable. But many accidents are preventable and are caused by another driver’s carelessness, inattention, or disregard for safety.

If you’ve been seriously injured in a motor-vehicle crash in Texas caused by someone else’s disregard for safety, you may be entitled to seek significant compensation. The Dallas car accident lawyers at Kraft & Associates, P.C., are available to review the details of your accident and discuss the legal options available to you.

With 50 years of experience handling personal injury cases, our skilled attorneys are ready to stand up for you and help you seek full compensation for your injuries. We won’t let insurance companies take advantage of you when you are injured and struggling to regain control of your life. Get a free initial consultation with one of our car accident lawyers by calling (214) 999-9999 or filling out our contact form.

Types of Car Accidents

While every collision is unique, there are patterns to how crashes occur. Being aware of them could help you avoid an accident.

The most common types of car accidents in Texas are:

Rear-End Collisions

Rear-end collisions often result from drivers failing to pay attention to the road or following too closely. When a motorist doesn’t maintain enough space from the vehicle in front in traffic, then the rear driver may lack the time and space to brake and avoid a collision if traffic ahead stops suddenly. Drowsy driving, impaired driving, and driving while distracted are all common contributors to rear-end collisions.

While the rear driver often causes the crash by driving too close to the forward vehicle, they’re not always at fault. The forward driver might be at fault if he or she stopped suddenly in an active traffic lane or reversed without reason.

Injuries in rear-end collisions run the gamut from minor to severe. Even at low speeds, rear-end accident victims can develop severe injuries such as broken bones, neck injuries, and damage to the spinal cord.

Head-On Collisions

Head-on collisions are among the most dangerous kinds of crashes, though less common than other types of auto accidents. Because both vehicles are moving toward each other, the force of impact is magnified.

As a consequence, head-on collisions are much more likely to result in severe injuries or death than other types of car accidents.

Common causes of head-on collisions include distracted driving, driving while impaired, driver fatigue, speeding, and reckless driving. Injuries from head-on collisions are often severe and may include traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, internal organ damage, broken bones, and more.

Side-Impact Collisions

Side-impact collisions occur when a vehicle moving in one direction strikes another vehicle at a perpendicular angle. The vehicles often form a “T” shape when they collide.

Side-impact collisions are especially dangerous for occupants in the vehicle that is struck in the side. The sides of vehicles have less mass to absorb the impact of a collision than the front and rear ends of a vehicle.

Side-impact collisions are often caused by drivers failing to yield, failing to stop at intersections, or disregarding traffic signs and signals. A driver who is distracted, impaired, or driving recklessly may cause a side-impact collision and may be held financially accountable for the injuries that others sustain in the crash.

Sideswipe Accidents

Sideswipe accidents occur when two or more vehicles are traveling parallel to one another, and one vehicle strikes the side of the other car. Drivers failing to turn their heads to check their blind spots before merging lanes or changing lanes frequently cause side-impact collisions.

Sideswipe accidents are dangerous because the initial impact can cause one or both vehicles to lose control and careen off the road or into other lanes of traffic. The vehicles may hit other cars, pedestrians, cyclists, or objects on the side of the road.

The injuries from sideswipe accidents can be severe, especially when there is a secondary impact after the initial crash. Common injuries include whiplash, broken bones, internal organ damage, spinal cord damage, head injuries, and traumatic brain injuries. Sideswipe collisions often result from driver inattention, speeding, recklessness, distraction, and impairment.

Single-Vehicle Accidents

Single-vehicle accidents are surprisingly common. Single-vehicle crashes generally result from a driver striking something in their path, such as an animal, dropped cargo, or debris in the road from another vehicle such as a truck tire tread. Single-vehicle accidents can occur when a hazard causes the vehicle to veer off the roadway, where it might hit a light pole, guard rail, or another obstacle.

Depending on where the accident occurs, the vehicle may roll over or fall into a ditch. Despite only involving one vehicle, injuries in these crashes can be severe when the vehicle strikes a large or heavy object and when the car rolls over.

Common causes of single-vehicle crashes include drivers abusing drugs or alcohol, driving while overly fatigued, speeding, poor weather conditions, and animals in the roadway. Some single-vehicle accidents are caused by another party’s negligence, such as an improperly designed road work zone or reckless driving that causes another driver to swerve and run off the road to avoid hitting the reckless driver.

Multi-Vehicle Accidents

Accidents of three or more vehicles can be catastrophic. The involvement of multiple vehicles means there are more people who may be injured and more insurance policies that may be available to provide compensation to the injured. Multi-vehicle accidents are often the result of a chain-reaction rear-end collision.

When one vehicle is sandwiched between two other vehicles, the occupants of the middle vehicle may suffer catastrophic injuries.

Determining fault for multi-vehicle collisions can be challenging. More than one driver may be partly at fault and insurance companies often try to shift the blame. It’s crucial to get help from an experienced Texas car accident attorney at Kraft & Associates, P.C. if you have been injured in a multi-vehicle accident in Dallas.

Rollover Accidents

Rollover accidents happen under a wide range of circumstances and are more likely to cause catastrophic injuries. The force of being flipped in a moving vehicle often inflicts serious injuries on anyone inside the vehicle. Rollover accidents can lead to vehicle fires from spilled fuel or cargo igniting, which can inflict additional injuries or be fatal if the vehicle explodes.

A rollover accident can also lead to the driver’s or passengers’ ejection, causing catastrophic injuries on impact. Some common causes of rollover crashes include speeding, distracted driving, impaired driving, driving while fatigued, driving off the road shoulder, and other vehicles or objects forcing vehicles off the roadway.

Blind Spot Accidents

All drivers are supposed to check their blind spots before changing lanes or merging, but not everyone does so consistently. When drivers fail to check their blind spots, they can easily collide with another vehicle and cause a blind spot accident. This driver error is also one of the most common causes of sideswipe accidents.

Small cars and motorcycles can disappear in the blind spot of a larger vehicle. They are especially vulnerable to side-wipe accidents because of their smaller size. Large trucks on the road have proportionally larger blind spots that make them a serious risk for other motorists. Depending on the speed, angle of impact, and other factors, blind spot accidents can lead to significant injuries.

Low-Speed Accidents

Even at seemingly low speeds, a 2,000-to-3,000-pound car or 5,000-to-6,000-pound SUV can generate a substantial force on impact. Pedestrians and cyclists are at extreme risk regardless of the speed of the vehicle that hits them.

The angle of impact often matters more than the impact speed. Common injuries from low-speed accidents include whiplash, crush injuries, neck and back injuries, severe bruising, broken bones, and injuries to the head or face.

Merging Accidents

Merging into a crowded lane of traffic can be difficult even for experienced drivers. It is no surprise that merging accidents are common. Drivers trying to merge into traffic can cause an accident if they fail to check their blind spots, don’t match the speed of other traffic, or drive recklessly.

In some circumstances, other drivers can cause merging accidents when they speed up to cut someone trying to merge on a highway. Merging accidents tend to happen at fairly high speeds, so the resulting injuries to drivers and other occupants are often serious.

How Our Car Accident Attorneys in Dallas Can Help

If you were injured in an auto crash due to someone else’s negligence or recklessness, you have the right to demand fair compensation. Let the Dallas car accident lawyers at Kraft & Associates, P.C., review the details of your accident and discuss how we can help you seek a financial recovery to rebuild your life and move forward.

We can investigate who was liable for your injuries, calculate your losses due to the accident, and identify all the insurance policies that may provide compensation. Once we’ve gathered evidence to support your claim, we’ll negotiate aggressively on your behalf with the appropriate insurance companies for a full and fair settlement. If the insurance company refuses to offer a fair settlement, our attorneys will be prepared to take your case to court. Throughout the claims process, you’ll have an experienced car accident attorney advocating on your behalf. Get a free, no-obligation consultation by contacting us.