Auto accidents can be extremely serious, resulting in grievous bodily injury and long-term effects to your usual way of life. For that reason, it's important that victims of any motor vehicle collision or their families get in contact with our Melbourne personal injury attorneys. By getting the help that you need early on, a legal team will be able to provide you with sound advice so you can focus on healing.
While head-on and rear-end collisions can both be very serious, sideswipe accidents can also lead to major damage and injury as well. We'd like to take this opportunity to look at sideswipe accidents and what they involve.
About Sideswipe Accidents
Sideswipe accidents refer to auto collisions in which vehicles are impacted on the side. This can occur with moving vehicles as well as parked vehicles. One example of a sideswipe accident is a car hitting a car next to it while merging into traffic or changing lanes. Another example is a car hitting the side of a stationary vehicle while trying to maneuver around it.
How common are sideswipe accidents?
It's been estimated that roughly 242,000 sideswipe accidents occur each year. This results in an estimated 27,000 injuries and 2,500 deaths annually. Our personal injury lawyers in Central Florida have helped many clients all across the region deal with these kinds of accidents.
Common Causes of Sideswipe Accidents
The most common causes of sideswipe accidents include:
- Failure to signal
- Failure to check blind spots
- Inattentive driving
- Reckless driving
- Speeding
- Driving too close to other motorists
- Driving while intoxicated
Why Sideswipe Accidents are Serious
While the impacts are not directly in front or behind the motorist, sideswipes can be extremely serious, particularly when moving vehicles are involved. When struck from the side, a vehicle can easily lose control, swerving into other vehicles in the process and turning a relatively minor bump into a multi-car accident. This is especially true with sideswipes on highways, where vehicles are traveling at high speed; or when sideswipes involve large trucks, which can crush smaller vehicles or drastically affect their path of movement. That's why our Melbourne auto accident attorneys don't think you should take these sorts of incidents lightly.
How Sideswipe Accidents Can Be Avoided
There are a few ways for motorists to prevent sideswipe accidents from occurring. These include the following:
- Be attentive while driving
- Always signal before merging into traffic or changing lanes
- Check blind spots before merging into traffic or changing lanes
- Drive with a safe distance separating you from other vehicles
- Maintain safe speeds and observe all rules of the road
In the event of a sideswipe accident or any sort motor vehicle collision, our legal team is here to help you with personal injury or wrongful death litigation. We will fight diligently on your behalf.
Learn More About Personal Injury Lawsuits
For more information about auto accident cases and how our legal team can help you during your time of legal need, be sure to contact our Central Florida personal injury attorneys today. The entire team here looks forward to meeting you in person and helping you make the best possible decisions about all of your legal options. It is our goal to ensure that our clients achieve peace of mind.
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