Multi-Car Pileups Cause Serious Injury & Legal Complications

According to WBIR.com, a Knoxville traffic collision near the West Hills exit in early February was the catalyst that caused another four-vehicle crash on I-40. The original crash occurred when a wheel came off of a vehicle and forced that car to stop in the middle of the interstate. The wheel hit the side of another vehicle as well.

As police were responding to the original accident, a third car traveling on the interstate was forced to brake to avoid the vehicle that had lost its wheel. When this third car hit the brakes, the tailgating vehicle behind crashed into it. Subsequently, two more vehicles then hit those cars. In total, this means that four cars were involved in the second crash, which was originally caused by one car losing a wheel.

Our Knoxville injury attorneys know that these types of multi-vehicle crashes happen far too often. Multi-car pileups are especially likely to occur in high traffic areas where drivers are traveling in close quarters. While they may sometimes be difficult or impossible to avoid, there are certain things that drivers can do to try to avoid this type of crash. Further, drivers also need to understand the legal complications inherent in multi-vehicle accidents.

Avoiding Multi-Vehicle Crashes

Multi-vehicle accidents are most likely to occur when there are problems with low visibility (due to fog or bad weather, for example) or when cars are traveling very closely to each other with nowhere to get out of the way after an accident.

To try to avoid becoming a victim of one of these multi-vehicle accidents, it is important to:

• Always keep your eyes on the road. Driving while you are texting, talking on a phone or distracted by anything else in the car can up your chances of becoming involved in a multi-vehicle wreck. Unfortunately, you may not see the crashed cars in time to stop if you aren’t focusing on the road.
• Try to avoid driving in bad weather conditions or when there is low visibility. Bad weather increases the chance of an accident happening that can be the catalyst for a multi-vehicle pileup.
• Never tailgate and always leave a safe following distance. This way, if the car in front of you has to come to a sudden stop due to an accident, you won’t rear end that vehicle.

Understanding Your Legal Rights

All drivers can take steps to reduce the risk of multi-vehicle crashes, but sometimes there is nothing you can do and you are involved in an accident through no fault of your own. When this happens, it can be difficult to determine who should be held liable for your damages since there are so many cars involved.

An experienced attorney can assist you in resolving the issues, working with you to evaluate and gather evidence and even engaging an accident reconstruction legal professional if necessary to unravel who is to blame in the crash.

Once you have identified the responsible driver, he or she can be held legally accountable for the harm caused to you in the multi-vehicle pileup.

If you have been injured, contact G. Turner Howard III, Attorney at Law at (844) G3-Help-Me or 865-558-8030.