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I posted the other day on side impact car wrecks and wanted to continue the discussion about the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (“NHTSA”) statistical analysis of varying types of car wrecks. Today we will discuss the findings of the NHTSA as they relate to rear end crashes.

Now it may seem obvious, but a rear end collision is a collision where an automobile typically crashes into the vehicle in front of it. The most typical injuries we see in Oklahoma as a result of rear end crashes are whiplash and in severe cases herniation of discs in the back and neck.

The NHTSA study found that rear impact car wrecks in 2005 accounted for 29.6% of U.S. car crashes. That percentage consisted of over 1,824,000 wrecks of a rear end nature. Surprisingly the study, states that rear end crashes only consist of 5.4 % of US fatal crashes

Road conditions often play a role in rear end crashes. For example wet and/or icy roads typically increase stopping dangers. Other distractions we often see that result in rear end car wrecks are cell phone usage (talking and/or texting), intoxicated driving, impaired driving (prescription drug usage) and inattentive driving.

It is my firm belief that rear end accidents can be greatly diminished by the general driving public simply being attentive to road conditions, traffic conditions and avoiding the unnecessary distractions discussed above. I recognize they are obvious but the majority of drivers seem to forget these basic rules. Simply abide by one rule, don’t allow distractions to cause severe injury or harm to another.

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