Rear End Collisions

Imagine the scenario, you’re out driving and you approach a junction. As you slow down, without warning, you are thrown forwards by the force of another vehicle hitting the rear of your car.

This is the situation thousands of people find themselves in every year after being involved in one of the most common types of non-fault road traffic accident, the rear-end collision, otherwise known as the rear-end shunt.

Rear-end collision accidents are typically caused by motorists driving too close to the vehicle in front, leaving insufficient space to brake if the car in front suddenly slows down. Alternatively, if both vehicles are stationary, such as at a junction or a set of traffic lights, then a rear-end collision can happen if a car accelerates away more rapidly than the vehicle in front, causing it to catch up to, and then crash into the rear of that vehicle. In both situations, the driver of the vehicle that rear-ends the other vehicle is considered to be at fault.

Rear-end collisions can create very serious accidents, as the sudden impact to the rear of a car can cause the driver to lose control of his or her vehicle, resulting in a more serious crash, either from the car spinning and leaving the roadway, or from a further collision with another vehicle. In situations of heavy slow-moving traffic, it is quite common to find a domino effect collision, in which one driver rear-ends another vehicle, which is then pushed into the rear of a third vehicle, and so on. Even when both vehicles are moving, the force of a rear-end collision can cause a large amount of damage to both vehicles, and injuries to their drivers and any passengers.

Common rear-end collision injury claims

Of all injuries likely to be suffered in a rear-end collision, probably the most common injury, at least in low-to-moderate speed accidents, is whiplash. The rear-end collision directs the force of the impact forwards through the car, producing the classic setting for whiplash to take place, which is a sudden sharp acceleration, followed by an equally abrupt deceleration.

The sudden forwards then rearwards movements caused by a rear-end collision cause the ligaments and soft tissue in the neck to over-extend. This soft tissue damage causes the long lasting pain and discomfort that is the major complaint of people who have suffered whiplash-type injuries. Often this soft tissue damage can take longer to heal than would a broken bone, as it is more difficult to keep a soft tissue injury immobile. You can learn more about making a claim for this type of injury on our whiplash compensation claim information pages.

Another injury that might be caused by a rear-end collision is a spinal disc herniation, or to give it its more common name, a slipped disc. The violent forces in a rear-end collision car accident can cause damage to the cartilage between the bones in the spine. This cartilage forms the intervertebral disc, which allows slight movement of the vertebrae, or bones, in the spine.

Trauma from a rear-end collision can damage this cartilage, causing some of it to bulge out from between the spinal bones. This bulging, or hernia, to give it the correct medical name, can cause intense pain and discomfort which may last for several weeks, or even months, depending on the seriousness of the injury.

Read-end collision compensation claims with Camps Solicitors

Camps Solicitors are the specialists when it comes to making a non-fault accident compensation claim. Each year our road accident lawyers help hundreds of people – people just like you – who have been injured in accident where they were not to blame.