Head-on collisions don’t usually happen, but when they do, both parties involved collide with speed and usually result in catastrophic injuries. Hence, you must know what head-on collision is and how fault is determined. Consider this article a guide to understanding how fault is determined in a head-on collision.
What Is A Head-On Collision?
A head-on collision happens when vehicles that are traveling in opposite directions forcefully collide with each other. Given that the front of both involved vehicles is damaged, then the chances are that it was a head-on collision. This collision can happen with cars, trucks, even motorcycles. If the front of the involved vehicles crashed into each other, it’s a head-on collision irrespective of the type of involved vehicles. This accident usually occurs when a driver switches lanes and joins oncoming traffic. This collision also occurs if a driver is driving in the wrong traffic.
How Is Fault Determined In A Head-On Collision?
Like any other type of car crash, determining the fault in a head-on collision is done the same way. In this case, negligence is a point to look into. Negligence is known as failing to take precautions to avoid causing harm to someone. Therefore, in a head-on collision, negligence is failing to take precautions to avoid causing harm while driving.
Reasonable care and taking precautions is when a driver is attentive to the road, reading road signs, not switching lanes into oncoming traffic, and not driving in the wrong lane of the road. Failure to do these, determining who is at fault, would be a lot easier.
Causes Of Head-On Collision
There are several causes of Head-on collision, and they usually come from when a driver fails to use reasonable care while driving and they include:
- Traveling on the wrong lane
- Centerline crossing
- Over speeding
- Falling asleep behind the wheels
- Failing to follow road signs
- Driving when drunk
- Distracted driving
- Driving in poor weather conditions
Some lawyers could help determine the cause of the collision by navigating all available resources.
Consult An Accident Attorney
Most people wrongly assume that their insurance company will cover everything if ever involved in a head-on collision. However, you should know that insurance companies aim to make profits. One of the ways they make profits is by reducing the amount of money they have to pay in claims. In head-on collisions, the medical bills are high due to how severe the crash was. This suggests that a huge sum of money might be involved in claims. Insurance companies seek the termination of claims with a huge sum of money.
Upon hiring a professional accident attorney, you will have someone who knows insurance companies’ moves and how they reduce liability. For example, if you are in LA, Your head-on collision lawyer in Los Angeles can proceed with the whole process on your behalf so that you can concentrate on getting healed.
If the insurance company of the at-fault driver contacts you, be sure never to give a statement or sign whatsoever document that they might send. Instead, reply to the insurance company that you wouldn’t sign or discuss anything till you talk to an attorney. Your attorney can then take on the communication with the insurance company and do it the right way.
A Driver Is At Fault By Going The Wrong Way
Normally, if a driver travels in the wrong lane, the driver is blamed for causing the head-on collision. For instance, a drunk driver may start weaving sides on the road, and at a point, the driver may swerve deeply to the other lane of oncoming traffic.
Another instance could be that a driver isn’t familiar with a street and had no idea that the street is a one-way lane. The driver then drives through the one-way lane in the wrong direction and crashes into an approaching vehicle. However, the case may not always be like this. In most cases, a crash between vehicles traveling together on the same lane sends the other vehicle into the other lane of oncoming traffic. In this case, whichever driver bumped the other would be found guilty.
Also, in other cases, a head-on collision may not be the fault of any of the drivers. For instance, if a driver has an urgent medical emergency, steering problems, a tire blowout, is driving in a poorly constructed road, or the road sign to indicate traffic was removed.
How To Prove Who Is Actually At Fault
In most cases, the at-fault driver would admit to causing the head-on collision. And in other cases, both parties will have different opinions of what happened and may even go to the extent of lying about it to escape the blame. On the contrary, both parties may not even remember what happened due to the severe impact. In these circumstances, evidence comes in handy to prove the driver that is at fault for causing the head-on collision. However, figuring this out may not be entirely easy.
Also, unfortunately, law enforcement doesn’t focus on preserving all the available evidence from a scene. In addition, upon getting in contact with a lawyer, most of the evidence may no longer be available. Therefore, if you get involved in a head-on collision, you should handle the preservation of evidence yourself before they are gone.
Irrespective of who is proven to be at fault, both parties should consult experienced accident attorneys upon the head-on collision. As earlier mentioned, evidence from a head-on collision can be hard to preserve, but with the help of your attorney, all the necessary facts to build your case will be acquired. Your attorney can also have access to an accident reconstruction expert who will help patch together the true event of the head-on collision.
