It seems as though rear-end collisions are in the news almost every day. A recent crash illustrates just how dangerous they can be. In that crash, a Greyhound bus ran into the rear end of a tractor-trailer on I-80 in central Pennsylvania, killing one person and injuring 45.

Rear-end collisions are one of the most common causes of automobile accidents, and they can happen anywhere. When traffic suddenly slows or stops on a busy highway, in the presence of large semi-trucks that can’t stop quickly, rear-end collisions frequently occur. Even off the highways, when traffic is stopped at a red light, cars often plow into stopped traffic, causing catastrophic results.

Two of the main causes of rear-end collisions are:

1. Distracted driving. Drivers are distracted for many reasons, including texting, changing the radio station, talking on the phone, eating, and many more reasons.

2. Speeding. It only takes seconds for a rear-end collision to occur. The stopping distance of a vehicle is the total distance it takes to stop from the time the driver first sees a problem to the time the vehicle comes to a complete stop. If you are traveling at 70 miles per hour, your stopping distance can be as much as a whopping 532 feet, depending upon the weight of the vehicle and weather conditions, among other factors.

If you are stopped in traffic and you suddenly see a semi-truck or car approaching fast in your rearview mirror, there is not much that you can do. However, you can pump your brakes to alert traffic from behind to the fact that you are stopped or slowing down.

If you are injured in any kind of automobile accident, rear-end or otherwise, contact our experienced New Jersey auto accident lawyers to help get you the compensation that you deserve.