Auto accidents can be pretty frightening, but in most cases, the cause is straightforward. In a chain-reaction crash, however, determining fault is not so easy. Also called multi-vehicle accidents, multi-car accidents, or pileups, chain-reaction auto accidents are collisions involving more than two vehicles rear-ending one another in a series (or chain) of crashes, primarily resulting from the force and impact of the first collision. Chain-reaction accidents usually occur because the last vehicle in the chain hits the vehicle in front of it, causing that vehicle to hit the vehicle in front of it, and so forth.

What are the causes of chain-reaction automobile accidents?

Since they are basically a subtype of rear-end accidents, rear-end collisions and chain-reaction accidents share the same causes, most of which are related to driver error. These common causes include:

• Tailgating
• Distracted driving
• “Rubbernecking”
• Drunk driving
• Speeding
• Bad weather
• Road hazards
• Mechanical failure of the car, possibly because of defective auto parts

Chain-reaction accident victims suffer a wide variety of injuries, and many of them are serious. Spinal cord trauma and traumatic brain injuries can result, as can broken bones and soft tissue damage. Chain-reaction accident victims often experience “whiplash,” or the violent stiffening and snapping of the neck, shoulder, and spine. Whiplash, though it has a bad rep, can often leave a person incapacitated and in chronic pain if the snap was severe enough.

But you can also suffer injuries caused by your seatbelts. Seatbelts are designed and intended to hold the vehicle occupant or occupants in place and prevent them from hitting the steering wheel, dashboard, windshield, etc. When you are suddenly thrust forward due to a collision and/or seatbelt malfunction, you can suffer chest and hip bruising and tearing caused by the seatbelts.

Recovering damages requires a good auto accident attorney

Recovering damages from chain-reaction accidents can be extremely difficult because multiple drivers are involved, so it looks like everyone shares a piece of the blame. In order to recover compensation, you need to prove that another party was negligent.

But determining negligence is not always easy. Let’s say Car A is stopped at a light. Car B’s driver isn’t paying attention and collides with Car A, pushing it into an intersection. Car C happened to be driving through that intersection at the time, and Car B ends up hitting Car C. Who is to blame in this situation for the damage to C? When you have even more cars involved, determining fault can be a nightmare.

Fortunately, certain things often help chain-reaction accident victims in recovering damages. These helpful things include:

• Witness statements made by drivers, passengers, pedestrians, etc.
• Official reports filed by the police
• Accident scene evidence preserved via photographs, videos, and the like

This is why you need an experienced Tennessee auto accident attorney on your side. There is a lot of evidence to document, and there is bound to be a lot of finger pointing, too. You want someone who knows how to help you, so that you will be compensated for your medical bills, your lost wages, your property damage and your pain and suffering.

Another limitation to recovery in a multiple automobile wreck is the availability of funds to compensate you for your injuries. If one party is deemed at fault for a four-car accident, that one person’s insurance will be responsible for all of the victims. When we consider that the minimum coverage in Tennessee is $25,000 per person injured up to a total of $50,000 per accident, it’s usually the case that in most multi-party accidents there simply is not enough insurance funds to cover all the affected parties. This is why we advise everybody to obtain a significant uninsured/underinsured motorist policy so that you have coverage for accidents like these.

If you were in chain-reaction collision and were injured as a result, you can trust the Sevierville auto accident attorneys at the Delius & McKenzie. For more information, call us at (865) 428-8780 or fill out our contact form. We proudly serve Sevierville, Gatlinburg, Seymour and Pigeon Forge.