Road accidents. This type of event is easier in autumn
Rear collisions accounted for almost 13% of all crashes in 2018, more than frontal collisions. Such accidents are mild in autumn, when bad habits such as braking late or not keeping a safe distance, in wet or icy conditions, can be especially severe. Crashing into the back of a car is dangerous, especially for rear-seat passengers, where children are most likely to drive. How to prevent such events?
Rear collision is a fairly common type of accident. Last year there were almost 4 of them, which corresponds to 12,6% of all accidents. Compared to the total number of such accidents, they are relatively rare fatalities, accounting for 7,5% of all fatal accidents*. On the other hand, many participants in such accidents are injured. In the event of a rear impact, passengers may face, in particular, the risk of injury to the cervical spine.
Such accidents often occur in populated areas at low speeds. However, they are most dangerous on the highway or highway. When one car follows another at a speed of several tens or more kilometers per hour, such a collision can end tragically. Passengers sitting in the back (and often children) are especially at risk, especially when the luggage compartment is relatively small and the distance to the rear of the car is small. In addition, in many car models, access to the rear seats is more difficult than to the front. For this reason, emergency services can later reach the victims and provide assistance to them.
What are the most common causes of rear collisions? The main mistake is not keeping a safe distance from the car in front. If we maintain a sufficiently large distance, then even in the event of a sharp braking in front of the car in front, we should have time to react. This distance should be correspondingly greater when driving on slippery surfaces, which often happens in autumn, say the coaches of the Renault Driving School.
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Rear collisions in most cases occur due to the fault of the driver behind. In the event of a collision in built-up areas, they may be the result of inattention, for example due to the use of a mobile phone while driving. Haste is also often to blame - incl. when the driver accelerates, hoping to pass the intersection before the traffic light turns red and the car in front of him comes to a stop. However, it is most difficult to avoid a rear collision on a freeway or freeway where the sudden braking of one vehicle could lead to a collision.
If we do not want to be injured in a rear impact, we must avoid hard braking, which requires maximum concentration on driving and constant observation of the road ahead of us in order to anticipate hazards. In the event of emergency braking, you can turn on the hazard warning lights to warn drivers behind you. In many new cars, this happens automatically when we brake hard while driving at high speed.
Our driving style also influences the risk of another vehicle colliding with the back of our vehicle. Intelligibility of driving is very important: slowing down and braking early, using turn signals, observing the situation behind when braking. These advanced methods often allow us to avoid a situation in which someone will let us pass or not slow down, says Adam Knetowski, director of the Renault Driving School.
* policeja.pl
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