Anytime that multiple motor vehicles share a space while in motion, the potential for a collision exists. Crashes can be as unique as the circumstances that lead to them, but there are certain kinds of collisions that are far more common than others.
You can’t always prevent a crash, but you can make choices that minimize your personal risk of one. Refreshing yourself on the most common types of collisions that occur could help you make driving decisions that reduce your risk of experience of getting hurt in traffic.
Head-on collisions
When two vehicles are in the same lane of traffic and heading in opposite directions, the resulting crash is called a head-on collision. Especially when the rate of travel is high, such collisions can lead to people getting thrown from the vehicle or suffering severe injuries even if restraints keep them inside.
Rear-end collisions
When traffic is heavy, people don’t always leave adequate space between their front bumper and the vehicle in front of them. When one vehicle can’t stop as quickly as the vehicle in front of it did, a rear-end crash occurs where the front bumper of one vehicle hits the rear end of another. These crashes can be particularly concerning when the vehicle in the rear is a commercial truck.
T-bone collisions
Also known as broadside collisions, a T-bone occurs when the front end of one vehicle strikes the side of the other, often hitting the doors of the passenger compartment of the vehicle. Such collisions are common during left-hand turns and can be particularly dangerous for backseat occupants and drivers.
Multi-vehicle collisions
During times of bad weather or heavy traffic, collisions can occur that involve multiple vehicles. Jackknife incidents where commercial trucks end up blocking all lanes of traffic are a perfect example. Multi-vehicle collisions can often be very complicated both because it can be difficult to determine who is ultimately at fault and because there will be secondary and even tertiary collisions that occur as more vehicles end up involved in the wreck.
Regardless of the type of crash that someone experiences, they may need to make use of insurance to repair their vehicle and pay for medical treatment. Knowing how to protect yourself from a car crash can be as important as knowing what steps to take after you get into one.