Side impact crashes – when another motorist hits the side of your vehicle directly or swipes it – are exceptionally common and exceptionally dangerous. These accidents are often the result of driver distraction, aggression, or excess speed, and there are no signs that these deadly accidents will decrease in number anytime soon. If another driver’s negligence leaves you injured in a side impact crash, reach out for the professional legal guidance of an experienced Florida car accident attorney today.
Side Impact Accidents Are All Too Common
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reports that side impact crashes accounted for a full 26 percent of all fatal car accidents in a recent year. The sides of the vehicles we drive don’t have the same degree of cushioning that the crumple zones at the front and the rear afford them, and as a result, a side impact can be that much more dangerous. Further, being hit from the side can send your vehicle out of its lane – setting the stage for further losses.
Negligence and Side Impact Accidents
While every side impact accident is unique to its own specific details and virtually any form of driver negligence can be the cause, there are several dangerous driving practices that are most closely associated with these accidents, including:
- Excess Speed – Excess speed increases the risk that every type of accident will happen, and side impact accidents are no exception. The faster a motorist travels, the greater the risk they will lose control of their vehicle and collide with the side of another.
- Failure to Yield – The rules of the road are clear, and this includes when specific motorists are required to yield the right of way. Motorists who fail to yield appropriately often cause side impact crashes.
- Improper Lane Changes – When motorists change lanes, the risk that accidents will happen spikes, and when they fail to ensure that it’s safe to proceed before doing so, it’s a recipe for sideswipe accidents.
- Distraction – Plain old, garden variety distraction is often at the root of side impact crashes. A motorist who is involved with their phone, for example, is far more likely to drift into the neighboring lane and swipe another vehicle’s side.
- Impairment – Drunk drivers suffer physical, sensory, and cognitive impairments that are closely associated with driver drift, which is a common cause of side impact accidents.
- Aggression – Aggressive drivers are on the move, and a common practice among them is zipping in and out of lanes at whim, which greatly increases the risk of sideswipe accidents.
An Experienced Florida Car Accident Attorney Is Standing By to Help
If you or someone you care about has been injured in a side impact accident, the formidable Florida car accident attorneys at Matthews Injury Law have a wide range of imposing experience successfully guiding challenging claims like yours toward advantageous outcomes, and we’re in your corner. To learn more about how we can help, please don’t put off contacting or calling us at 941-877-5800 today.