Rear End Accident Attorneys

The most common motor vehicle accident is the rear-end accident.

This usually results when a vehicle is slowing down or stopping for traffic on the road, and the driver behind him or her isn’t paying attention and can’t stop in time, crashing into the back of the vehicle in front.

Florida law previously recognized a presumption of negligence on the part of the driver of the rear-ending motor vehicle. With this presumption, the rear-end accident victim had a head start on proving that the rear-ending motor vehicle operator was negligent in causing the accident and therefore would be made responsible for the injuries caused to the occupant of the vehicle that he crashed into. The idea was that automobile drivers have the responsibility to be on the lookout for traffic in front of them. If a truck or car drives into the back of a vehicle that was on the road in front of him, he would have to take responsibility for the crash. This concept recognized that the driver in the front wouldn’t be able to prevent an accident that resulted from what happened with the motor vehicle that was behind him.

In recent years, this presumption has been eliminated. Florida law recognizes the legal concept of comparative fault. In short, this means that when an accident results, the cause of the accident can be shared by more than one person and that not every driver is necessarily either 100% at fault or 0% blameless. You can read the Florida Supreme Court decision that changed the presumption here. Although many times, an accident happens because of the sole and exclusive fault of one driver, there are many instances when fault can be shared and a jury is charged with the task of apportioning the fault to more than one person, even the victim who had the least responsibility in the circumstances that led to his injuries.

With Florida now embracing comparative fault, the courts have decided that the presumption of fault for rear end accidents no longer applies. If a rear end accident happened, a jury should consider whether or not the vehicle in front contributed to causing the accident in any way. An example could be when a driver cut into ongoing traffic that had little or no chance to safely brake and avoid crashing into the rear of the vehicle that forced its way into fast moving traffic.

There has been one unfortunate circumstance that has resulted with the elimination of the presumption of negligence for the rear-ending driver.

Now, insurance companies who should be taking full responsibility for their policy holders who are the 100% cause of rear end accidents look for any way to avoid taking personal responsibility and blame the innocent injured person.

That’s where we come in. We represent those who are injured in rear end accidents and are prepared to fight insurance companies seeking to avoid personal responsibility when their insureds cause a rear end accident. We believe that full justice requires full compensation and insurance companies need to be made fully accountable.

Call us today if you have been injured in a rear end motor vehicle accident and speak to one of our Rear End Accident Attorneys for your Free case evaluation.