If you get rear-ended, you may feel shocked. You may not have even seen the other car coming in your mirror, and you certainly know that you didn’t make any driving mistakes. The accident happens suddenly and without warning.
You’re correct in the fact that you likely did not make a mistake. In the vast majority of cases, the driver behind you is the one who is going to be at fault. So, if the other driver is the one who made an error, what might that look like? Why do these crashes happen?
Distracted driving
One of the most common reasons is just that drivers get distracted. Someone may be slowing down at a light when they decide to look at their phone, for instance, and they don’t slow down quite enough until they run into the vehicle at the back of the line. Drivers can also be distracted by children, pets, music, passengers and much more. Any minor distraction is enough to cause an accident.
Drowsy driving
Tired drivers could also cause rear-end accidents because their reaction times just aren’t as good as drivers who are alert and awake. The same can be said for drunk drivers. Whenever there is a delay in reaction, it increases the odds of a rear end accident.
Additionally, experts note that people tend to make worse decisions when they’re feeling fatigued. This can lead to driving mistakes that the person later regrets – mistakes that they would not have made if they weren’t so tired behind the wheel. But your brain is simply not functioning at 100% when you’re exhausted.
Tailgating
Finally, a lot of these rear-end accidents just happen because the person behind is tailgating. They may not even notice it, believing that they have a long enough following distance. They may know exactly what they’re doing, driving aggressively on purpose. Either way, driving too closely means that rear-end crashes are very likely if there is an unexpected stop.
If you’ve been injured in this accident, be sure you know what legal steps you can take to seek compensation. This can help cover medical bills and other costs.