Lane Change Accidents Can Be More Dangerous Than You Thought

When we are driving, we often look to our sides to make sure we aren’t T-boned by an oncoming car. Likewise, we may be careful coming to a stop, to make sure we’re not rear ended. But there’s another kind of car accident that many of us don’t think much about: lane change accidents.

High Speed Accidents

One thing that makes lane change accidents so dangerous, is that when they happen, the vehicles colliding are often going at a high rate of speed.

In an intersection accident, one of the vehicles might at least have the chance to apply the brakes to lower the speed on collision, and the same is true of rear end accidents.

But lane change accidents can happen when both cars are going full speed—and when the collision happens, the victim often has the task of trying to control an out of control vehicle, going at full speed, which has now been knocked off its path, and potentially careening into a dangerous area, like into foliage or off the road, or worse.

There are actually a number of ways that lane change accidents can happen.

• In a hurry, people may often change lanes, without even looking whether the adjacent lane is clear or not. According to government studies, this is the most common cause of lane change accidents.
• In intersections where two lanes are making right or left turns, drivers may carelessly veer into the adjacent turn lane. This is the second most common cause of lane change accidents.
• The adjacent lane may be clear—but because of a driver going far above the speed limit, the speeding driver occupies the adjacent lane before the victim even knows what’s going on-suddenly, the once-clear lane is occupied by the speeding driver
• Drivers who are distracted or tired, may simply veer into adjacent lanes of traffic
• Weather can cause a vehicle to get off of its path; even a slight slip can lead to a car occupying an adjacent lane
• Overcorrection is where a driver who veers into a neighboring lane, and realizes that the lane is occupied, instinctively moves the car in the opposite direction, trying to get back into the original lane. The vehicle veers into a neighboring lane on the other side, or goes completely off the road, or the driver may simply lose control of the vehicle.

Who is at Fault?

Where the drivers argue and dispute who is at fault for the accident, lane change accidents can be difficult to prove. That’s because the location of damage on the vehicle, often doesn’t tell you who was at fault, or how the accident happened, the way it does in other kinds of accidents.

There may not even be skid marks on the ground, as lane change accidents often don’t involve last minute application of breaks by a driver to try and avoid an accident.

Contact our Rhode Island personal injury lawyers at Robert E. Craven & Associates at 401-453-2700 today for help if you were involved in a lane change accident.

Sources:

nhtsa.gov/document/analysis-lane-change-crashes

nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/doths809571.pdf