Many people envision rear-end car accidents as fender benders in which one motorist is traveling too close to the lead driver, who slows down, leaving no time for the rear motorist to pull back, tapping the lead and denting the car’s bumper. Or it could happen when a driver stopped at a red light is tapped by the car drifting into it from behind after letting up on the brakes. In reality, it is often more serious than that.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) about 7 percent of vehicular fatalities are caused by rear-end collisions, and these types of accidents account for about 32.5 percent of all crashes. With even minimal force involved, whiplash is common, and back injuries, too. If you or your child are injured in rear-end car accidents in Cocoa, a consultation with a motor vehicle injury lawyer can shed light on the next legal choices you make.
Establishing negligence is a necessary element for proving one motorist caused a rear-end accident and should compensate the injured motorist. The plaintiff’s attorney must prove the at-fault motorist acted below the quintessential standard of a reasonable person in a similar situation and their actions caused the accident that injured the plaintiff. A reasonable person follows all traffic laws and Florida statutes, like refraining from driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. By acting responsibly, all motorists do their part to keep those sharing the road safe.
When a rear-end accident occurs, prima facie evidence supports assigning fault to the rear driver for failing to maintain a safe distance and controlling the car. Prima facie is a Latin term that means ‘on its face’ or ‘at first glance.’ In legal terms, it also means responsibility is assigned until the defendant can rebut the presumption.
Traffic rules usually prescribe that motorists leave one car length between them and the lead motorist for every 10 miles per hour, or an elapsed time of four seconds between when the lead driver and rear driver pass the same point. Rear-end car crashes in Cocoa are the rear driver’s fault unless that driver can offer contradictory evidence.
Prima facie evidence supports the negligence of the rear driver, but to be awarded damages for the plaintiff, an attorney must also prove that the defendant’s actions are the cause-in-fact and the proximate cause of the accident.
A proximate cause is one that you can reasonably foresee leading to the type of accident the defendant initiated. The cause-in-fact is the actual cause of an accident that applies the ‘but-for’ test; but for the defendant’s negligent act, the plaintiff would not have been injured.
For example, the defendant rear-ends the plaintiff, and the plaintiff suffers several cracked vertebrates. This is a foreseeable result of rear end car accidents and, but for the defendant’s act, the injuries would not have occurred. Our Cocoa attorneys at The Umansky Law Firm are tireless advocates for our clients. We strive to recover compensation to pay for your medical care, lost wages, property damage, emotional trauma, loss of the enjoyment of life, the realization that you will be disabled, pain, and depression.
Florida has adopted a no-fault auto insurance system. According to the Florida Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law, all drivers must acquire Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage because after an accident, each driver’s insurer pays for their client’s losses, regardless of who caused the crash. The minimum PIP coverage is $10,000. The insurance covers 80 percent of your medical bills and 60 percent of lost wages. Because that cap was set in the 1970s, it if often woefully inadequate to pay for a motorist’s losses today. If your injuries after rear-end car crashes in Cocoa exceed the amount of PIP coverage, our attorneys can explore filing a lawsuit against the at-fault driver.
If someone carelessly rear-ends your car and you are injured, Florida’s insurance laws make it more complicated to recover all that you need to be whole again. We navigate the insurance and legal systems for you, while you are recuperating from your injuries.
Contact us to learn more about our successful advocacy, winning fair compensation for our clients, and let us learn more about you. Rear-end car accidents in Cocoa are an unfortunate occurrence that we have solutions to.
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