Types of Car Accidents and What Causes Them

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A traffic collision or car accident occurs when a road vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, road obstacle, or animal.  These accidents can result in injuries, property damage, and even death.  The type of car accident a driver is in can tell investigators a lot about how and why the accident occurred. 

Specific types of car accidents are more likely to cause serious injuries, while other kinds may just result in property damage and not an injury.  Examining all the different characteristics of a car accident can help determine how and why it happened.  Every year millions of people are involved in car accidents.  Statistics show that someone is in a car accident every 10 seconds in the United States.  Most car accidents can be classified into one of the following categories:

Rear Impact

A rear impact collision can range from a minor fender bender accident, to a total of both cars involved.  The most common way this type of accident happens is when the front car makes a abrupt stop, causing the car behind it to crash into the back of it.

Side Impact

This type of accident occurs when one car hits the side of another car.  This can happen while merging lanes, running stop signs, or lost control of the vehicle.  The most common type of this accident is the T-bone collision.  This involves one vehicle driving head on into the side of another car.  It is more likely for the person in the vehicle that is being hit to be injured then the person driving the other car.


A rollover accident occurs when an automobile flips over onto its side or roof.  Large vehicles such as SUVs and trucks are more likely to experience this type of accident than smaller cars.  Larger cars have a greater risk of rolling over because the center of gravity in the car is located at the top.  In other words they are more top heavy then smaller cars.

Head-on Collision

This type of accident happens when one vehicle’s front hits the front of another moving or stationary automobile.  Statistics show that head-on collisions have the highest rate of fatalities among all types of car accidents.

Car accidents can be traumatic and destructive for everyone involved.  When making car accident claims it is important to take note of where the damage is located on your vehicle.  Also being able to your classify an accident into one of the above categorize will greatly assist in the insurance claim process.