Types of Car Accidents in the Bronx

New York’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) estimates 309,000 traffic crashes occurred in 2017 in New York, resulting in more than 170,000 injuries and fatalities. More than 13,000 of them occurred in the Bronx. Car crashes can happen because of human factors, vehicle factors, or environmental factors, but the fact remains that the vast majority of car accidents are preventable.

Many accidents in the Bronx resemble common accidents around the state and across the nation. An understanding of the following common types of car accidents can help to prevent you from causing a crash and maybe even to avoid becoming the victim of one.

If you have been hurt or a family member has tragically died in a car crash, New York law entitles you to seek compensation for your injuries and losses related to the accident. Contact The Law Offices of Ivan M. Diamond in the Bronx at (718) 588-2000 to learn about how we might be able to help you.

Head-on Collision

The National Highway Transportation Safety Association (NHTSA) reports that head-on collisions occur more often in rural areas than urban areas, but that doesn’t mean they don’t happen in the Bronx. With all of the one-way streets and major thoroughfares in the Bronx, opportunities abound for negligent drivers to cross into another lane of traffic or go the wrong way on an exit ramp or street, resulting in a head on collision with another car. Speed often plays a large role in causing head-on collisions. Higher speeds also cause more damage and injury in a head-on collision, leaving the drivers and occupants of the vehicles with severe injuries, or even potentially ending their lives.

Rear-end Collision

For most of the last decade, the NHTSA estimates that rear-end collisions account for approximately one-third of all motor vehicle accidents across the nation. With New York City’s notoriously heavy traffic across all of its boroughs, including the Bronx, it’s likely that the percentage of rear-end collisions here are even higher than the national average.

New York is a no-fault insurance state that requires drivers to carry personal injury protection coverage to pay for injuries sustained in an accident, regardless of fault. When severe injuries cause a driver to exceed the limits of their personal injury protection policy, however, they may seek to recover additional damages through a personal injury lawsuit.

While it can be difficult to assign blame or liability in some car accidents, rear-end collisions are usually fairly straightforward; they are almost never the fault of the lead driver whose rear-end sustained damage. Far more often, it is the tailing driver who, because of distraction, following too closely, driving too fast for conditions, or violating some other traffic regulation, failed to stop in time and collided with the lead vehicle.

Broadside Collision

A broadside collision, sometimes referred to as a side impact collision and informally as a “T-bone,” typically occurs at an intersection. The NHTSA categorizes broadside collisions as “angle collisions,” which are the second most common type of car accident after rear-end crashes.

Broadside collisions often occur when a driver ignores or, or is too distracted to notice, a stop sign or traffic signal. The driver proceeds through the intersection and collides with the side of a vehicle entering the intersection from the right or left. These crashes might also occur when motorists try to “beat” a yellow light or when traffic signals malfunction.

Broadside accidents are some of the most dangerous and most likely to be fatal, especially for passengers in the rear seats. Drivers and front seat passengers usually have better safety technology than back seat riders. Yet, when high speeds are involved, passengers seated on the side of impact face the highest risk of a catastrophic or fatal injury, whether they are in the front seat or back seat.

Sideswipe Collision

Motorists traveling on one of the many roads and highways in the metro area with more than one lane face the risk of being sideswiped. Although icy or snowy conditions might lead to a sideswipe accident, they can occur at any time, under any road conditions. For example, the at-fault driver can be distracted, driving while impaired, or drowsy, causing him to swerve into another lane.

Drivers who don’t check their mirrors and clear their blind spots before making a lane change also risk sideswiping another vehicle. Large trucks frequently sideswipe motorists in passenger vehicles. All motor vehicles have blind spots, but the size of these hazardous areas increase with the size of the vehicle.

Multi-vehicle Collision

Many different scenarios might lead to a multi-vehicle crash, which usually is the result of a chain reaction beginning with an initial accident or incident that causes secondary collisions. The initial incident can vary _ a truck might have spilled something all over the road, roads might be icy, someone may have rear-ended another vehicle at a high speed, and so forth. Once that occurs, other motorists may lose control of their vehicles while trying to avoid a collision.

Accidents that involve multiple vehicles often result in catastrophic and or fatal injuries. In a multi-vehicle accident, passengers in larger vehicles have a higher likelihood of avoiding injury and fatality, however.

It’s almost always in your best interest to consult with an attorney after a traffic accident, but those involved in a multi-vehicle collision especially need the guidance of an experienced lawyer. Once victims’ New York no-fault insurance policy limits have been exceeded, a multi-vehicle accident can devolve into an ugly fight among multiple insurance companies over who should bear the cost of everyone else’s injuries and losses. A skilled attorney can help guide you through this complex challenge.

Contact Bronx Auto Accident Attorney Ivan Diamond

Auto accidents that result in severe or catastrophic injuries cause emotional stress and financial hardship, in addition to the physical pain of injury and associated recovery. When another driver’s careless actions on the road cause you injury and pain, you shouldn’t have to shoulder the extra expenses that your personal injury protection insurance fails to cover. You deserve full and fair compensation for economic and non-economic losses related to your injury.

If you or a loved one have been injured in a car accident in the New York City area, contact Attorney Ivan M. Diamond at (718) 588-2000 to discuss the details of your accident and injuries and determine the best course of action for your circumstances.