Where Do Broadside Collisions Most Commonly Occur?

Do you feel

jolt of

nxiety eve

y time you d

ive th

ough

n inte

section? It’s e

son

ble

ction if you’ve eve

been <

ef=”https://c

inju

yvictims.com

vices

–

ccident-

tto

ney-houston

“>t-boned by

d d

ive

. > Once you’ve been the victim of

dside c

sh, the t

sticks

ith you. You feel ne

vous

hen you think c

e coming

t you f

ll di

ections. The

e’s

nce th

t one of them

ill miss

stop sign,

ed light, o

efuse to yield to you

ight of

d d

ive

s often m

ke selfish,

eckless decisions like these. They <

ef="https:

inju

yvictims.com

l-speeding-

ccident-pe

cent/”>igno

e speed limits<>,

nd inste

d of slo

ing do

tffic sign

l t

nsitions f

om g

een to yello

, some d

ive

s m the g

s ped

l to m

ke it th

ough even f

ste

. They m

ke you

nd eve

yone else in the inte

section

victim of thei

negligence. By the time you notice the e

nt vehicle, it’s often too l

te to

void

dside csh,

nd the se

ious

nd c

ophic inju

ies c

n ch

nge you

life fo

eve

s pe

son

l inju

y lye

e see these

ccidents

ll too often. Belo

e discuss the cont

ibuting f

cto

s of b

dside collisions, the inju

ies they m

y c

use,

nd ho

you c

n get help.

Inte
sections: Pl
nned Points of Conflict

hen discussing b

dside

ccidents, you c

n’t

void t

lking

bout inte

sections. Most side-imp

ccidents occu

in inte

sections bec

use

pendicul

flo

of cs c

tes the pe

fect position fo

one to csh into the side of

nothe

. In f

ct, the Fede

l High

dministtion desc

ibes inte

sections

s “<

ef=”https://s

fety.fh.dot.gov

inte

section

“>pl

nned points of conflict<>.” City pl

nne

s, enginee

nd chitects put

lot of thought into

nd inte

sections. They design

nd build them to p

omote

nd cont

ol inte

ction

mong vehicles, t

ucks, bicycles,

nd pedest

ns. To

ccommod

te the

nticip

ted tffic, they enh

nce most inte

sections

ith sign

ls, signs,

nd p

vement mkings. Unfo

tun

tely, even the most ingenious s

fety cont

ols, tffic sign

ls,

nd signs c

n’t stop the inevit

ble mist

kes d

ive

ill m

ke,

nd inte

section collisions still occu

eve

y d

B
o
dside
ccidents
nd Inte
sections

dside

ccident is

lso kno

“T-Bone,” side-imp

ct, oight-

ngle collision.

ll of these

efe

ccidents

e the f

ont of one vehicle cshes into the side of

nothe

vehicle. Th

t sounds simple enough, but he

e e the f

cts:

side-imp
ct c

sh occu
s
hen one vehicle hits
nothet
ny point
long the side of the vehicle.<
li>

B
o
dside
ccidents
lso occu
in pking lots
nd
esidenti
l st
eets
hen one d
ive
negligently b
cks up his c
nd st
ikes the side of
nothe
c.<
li>

Side imp
ct cshes don’t
l

ys end in

ight-
ngle, “T-Bone” fo
m
tion. The imp
ct is often
ngul
hen
csh occu
s
hile
d
ive
is completing
left tu
n o

ight tu
n,
nd c
n c
use the c

s to spin o
slide.<
li>

hen vehicles diffe
in size,
eight,
nd height, inste
d of just hitting
c

’s side, l

ge
vehicles sometimes csh into the side-gl
ss
long
ith the uppe
doond
oof.

P
ssenge
s in the sm
lle
vehicles sust
in se
ious
nd f
t
l inju
ies mo
e often th
n p
ssenge
s in the l

ge
vehicle.<
li>

hen
l

ge t
uck–think 10,000 pounds g
oss vehicle
eight o
mo
e–b
o
dsides
c

, the inju
ies e sometimes c
t
st
ophic o
f
t
l,
eg

dless of the s
fety me
su
es t
ken.

n inte
section is
ny cont
olled o
uncont
olled point
he
e t
o l
nes of t

vel inte
sect.<
li>

B
o
dside
ccidents
lso occu

t inte
sections
ith public
nd p
iv
te d
ive

ys, p

king lots,
nd othe
points of
o
d

y ent
y.<
li>

The Hum
n F
cto

Most b
o
dside collisions occu

t inte
sections bec
use they b
ing togethe
good
nd b
d d
ive
s f
om fou
diffe
ent di
ections. It’s

oll of the dice: Speeding, d
inking, d
ug-influenced,
nd distcted d
ive
s tvel th
ough the s
me inte
sections
s gndm
s, commute
s,
nd c
utious pents d
iving
ith child
en.

No t

ffic sign
ls, ls, o
s
fety st
nd

ds c
n sep
te good d
ive
s f
om b
d ones.
e
ll m
ke mist
kes,
nd
hile s
fe, sobe
d
ive
s

e st
tistic
lly mo
e likely to follo
the
ules, the NHST
points out the
e
ill
lys be<
h
ef="https:
/
.nhts
.gov/
isky-d
iving”>
isky d
ive
s<>
ho simply don’t o

on’t.

isky D
ive
s
isky d
ive
s t
ke ch
nces th
t s
fe
d
ive
s conside

eckless. They speed, text
hile d
iving,
nd eng
ge in othe
uns
fe beh
vio
s – sometimes
ll
t once!

Dist

cted d
ive
s

e often so eng
ged
ith thei
digit
l devices, sn
cks, o
he
ted conve
s
tions, they miss c
itic
l tffic cues
nd don’t p
y
ttention to
h
t othe
d
ive
s e doing. D
o
sy d
ive
s f
ll
sleep
t the
heel
nd neve

e
lize they’
e he
ded fo csh. These e mo
e th
n just b
d d
iving h
bits; these c
n be f
t
l eo
s.

You kno
d
ugs
nd
lcohol imp
i
judgement, but did you kno
they
lso inspi
e b
d d
ive
s to speed,
un
ed lights,
nd dis
eg

d othe
vehicles tveling th
ough
n inte
section? The offici
l DUI blood
lcohol concent

tion of .08 pe
cent is the leg
l indic
to
of intoxic
tion, but B
Cs
t lo
e
levels
lso
lte
the b

in’s
bility to think,
e
son,
nd function. These
bilities e c
itic
l to s
fe d
iving.
ith <
h
ef=”https://c

inju
yvictims.comh
t-to-do-if-you
e-inju
ed-by-
-d
unk-d
ive
/”>d
unk d
ive
s<> like this
ll ove
ouo
ds,
se
ious inju
y to
nothe
d
ive
is not just isk, it’s
n inevit
bility.
Olde
D
ive
s
s d
ive
s
ge, they expe
ience mo
e n
vig
tion issues
t inte
sections. P
oblems occu
due to ch
nges in vision o
medic
tion side-effects. Medic
l conditions such
s
lzheime
’s
nd P

kinson’s Dise
se
lso cont
ibute to
ccidents
hen
n olde
d
ive
is behind the
heel.

In
ddition to tdition
l dist

cted beh
vio
s involving digit
l devices, senio
s

e
lso mo
e susceptible to <
h
ef=”https://
.iihs.o
g/
pi
d
t
sto
edocument
st
tus-
epo
t
pdf/50/2″>cognitive dist

ction > involving in
ttentiveness c
used by d
yd
e
ming o
intecting
ith
p
ssenge
. Olde
d
ive
s
lso expe
ience g
p-judgment p
oblems
he
e they unde
estim
te the speed o
dist
nce of oncoming vehicles.

D
ive
s
ith B
d
ttitudes

ese

ch study
nd focus g
oup conducted by the<
h
ef=”https://
.fh.dot.gov
public
tionsesech
s
fety
05158/05158.pdf”> Fede

l High

y
dministtion<> dete
mined th
t some young
dult d
ive
s simply h
d b
d
ttitudes. Some d
ive
s m
de
conscious decision to
un ed light
nd ente

n inte
section. It sn’t just
n impulsive mist
ke, eithe
: fo
some,
ed light-
unning s thei
“def
ult” d
iving mode. Othe
s ente
ed busy inte
sections by “fo
ce.”
hen encounte
ing these d
ive
s, vehicle ope

to
s
ith the leg
l
ight of

y h
ve t
o options: they c
n eithe
yield to this b
d beh
vio
, o
c

sh.

The study found this
ttitude most p
ev
lent in m
les 18 to 35 ye

s old. Olde
d
ive
s
nd
omen
e
e mo
e likely to follo
tdition
l t

ffic l

s. If
n inte
section p
esented
p
oblem, they sometimes chose
n
lte
n
te
oute to thei
destin
tion.

The
e’s simply no y of kno
ing if the oncoming c
he
d of you is being piloted by
n <
h
ef="https:
/c

inju
yvictims.como
d-

ge/”>
ng
y out-of-cont
ol d
ive
<> o
someone out to put othe
s
t
isk.
Inju
ies F
om Side-Imp
ct C

shes

Du
ing
b
o
dside
ccident, the st
iking vehicle’s size,
eight, imp
ct,
nd speed dete
mine
h
t h
ppens to the occup
nts of the side-imp
cted vehicle. Side
einfo
cement, se
t belts, child s
fety se
ts,
nd othe
s
fety devices
educe inju
ies
nd minimize de
ths due to vehicle int
usion, but they c
n’t p
event them completely.
n “Inju
y Epidemiology” study published by the N
tion
l Institutes of He
lth
n
lyzed<
h
ef="https:
/
.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
pmc/

ticles/PMC5045916/#C
16"> side-imp
ct
ccident inju
y seve
ity<>. They dete
mined th
t p
ssenge
s se
ted on the side
he
e the imp
ct occued
e
e mo
e likely to sust
in se
ious o
f
t
l inju
ies. Left
e p
ssenge
s
e
e
lso likely to sust
in mo
e se
ious inju
ies th
n the d
ive
,
s d
ive
s h
d mo
e
dv
nced s
fety technology.
Inte
section C

sh St
tistics

Ye
fte
ye

, the st
tistics tell the s
me sto
y: inte
sections

e
kno
n s
fety h
z

d. This is cle

b
sed on<
h
ef="https:
/cd
n.nhts
.gov/STSI.htm”> N
tion
l High

y T

nspo
t
tion S
fety
dminist

tion >
nd<
h
ef=”https://
.iihs.o
g/topics/f
t
lity-st
tistics
det
il
p
ssenge
-vehicle-occup
nts"> IIHS<>
n
lyses of 2018 Csh D
t
.

N
tion
lly, side-imp
cts c
used 5,350 de
ths in 2018. Th
t’s<
h
ef="https:
/
.iihs.o
g/topics/f
t
lity-st
tistics
det
il
p
ssenge
-vehicle-occup
nts"> 23%<> of
ll t

ffic f
t
lities.

Sm
lle
vehicle p
ssenge
s in side-imp
ct cshes sust
in mo
e f
t
l inju
ies mo
e f
equently th
n those in othe
vehicle types: Pickup t
ucks, 785 f
t
lities; SUVs, 855 f
t
lities; Cs, 3,823 f
t
lities.<
li>

In Tex
s, 734 people lost thei
lives due to Inte
section
ccidents in 2018.

In Louisi
n
, 125 people died bec
use of inte
section
ccidents in 2018.<
li>
hen vehicle occup
nts su
vive
se
ious side-imp
ct c

sh, they often de
l
ith se
ious
nd c
t
st
ophic inju
ies
s
ell
s c
ccident PTSD. The seve
ity of inju
y inc
e
ses
hen the imp
ct involves
vehicle mism
tch
he
e one vehicle is signific
ntly lge
, highe
, o
he
vie
th
n the othe
. P
ssenge
s involved in the most se
ious side-imp
ct collisions de
l
ith se
ious he
d t

um
,
hich m
y include tum
tic b

in inju
y. They
lso sust
in uppe
body t

um

hich m
y involve spin
l co
d d
m
ge
nd inte
n
l o
g
n d
m
ge.

Vehicle S
fety Enh
ncements

e G
e
t, But Not Enough

Inju
ies f
om T-bone
ccidents tend to be seve
e bec
use the sides of you
c

don’t h
ve
s much p
otection
s the f
ont
nd
e c
umple zones. Du
ing ongoing <
h
ef="https:
/
.iihs.o
g/

tings/
bout-ou
-tests#side-c

sh-test”>side-imp
ct csh
o
thiness testing<>, the Insunce Institute fo
High

y S
fety found sevel t
ends
el
ted to side-imp
ct collisions
nd inju
ies:

It’s difficult to p
otect p
ssenge
s du
ing side-imp
ct
ccidents bec
use the
e is ve
y little
oom bet
een the c

sh imp
ct end the p
ssenge
s’ se
ts.

Side
i
b
gs
nd cu
t
ins
educe inju
ies by p
otecting p
ssenge
s on imp
ct
nd sp
e
ding the fo
ce so it’s not concent

ted in one

e
of
pe
son’s body.<
li>

Studies of
e
l-
o
ld events confi
m the v
lue of side-imp
ct csh
o
thiness testing, consequent s
fety upg

des,
nd vehicle s
fety

tings.

“good” s
fety

ting me
nt th
t d
ive
s in
side-imp
ct c

sh
e
e 70% less likely to die th
n in
vehicle
ith
“poo
” ting. D
ive
s in cs ted “
ccept
ble”
e
e 64% less likely to die. Those in vehicles
ith
“mgin
l”

ting
e
e 49% less likely to die.

These st
tistics sho
th
t, even in the s
fest vehicles, side-imp
cts still c
use seve
e inju
ies
nd de
ths.

S
fety enh
ncements ove
the p
st dec
de h
ve
educed the ch
nces of seve
e inju
y due to side-imp
cts.
hen used p
ope
ly,
i
b
g cu
t
ins
nd imp
oved child s
fety se
ts
educe the ch
nce of inju
y in some side-imp
ct events. Ne
e
vehicles
lso h
ve
einfo
ced p
ssenge
comptments th
t p
otect p
ssenge
s f
om se
ious imp
cts.

Ho
eve
, these enh
ncements do little to p
otect vehicle occup
nts
hen
b
o
dside imp
ct is fo
ceful enough to c
use int
usion into the p
ssenge
’s sp
ce. This often occu
s
hen
lge
vehicle c

shes into the side of
much sm
lle
vehicle. It’s
common occu

ence du
ing
c

sh
ith
n SUV o

l

ge t
uck.
n SUV’s highe
bumpe
pl
ces it
t side
indo
level,
he
e the
e’s
limited suppo
t st
uctu
e. This is even mo
e common
ith lge t
ucks. Thei
speed
nd
eight e
sily ove
come vehicle side s
fety enh
ncements.
Negligent D
ive
s
on’t Ch
nge;
e Must Ch
nge Inte
sections

N
tion
l
nd loc
l s
fety
gencies h
ve spent yes discussing <
h
ef="https:
/c

inju
yvictims.com
c

–
ccident-
t-
n-inte
section-
ho-is-
t-f
ult
“>inte
section
ccidents >. In the p
st, n
tion
l
gencies
nd loc
l communities h
ve c
e
ted public

eness c
mp
igns such
s “<
h
ef="https:
/s
fety.fh.dot.gov
inte
section
convention
l
sign
lizedl
/fh

s
11016
fh
11016.pdf">If You
un

ed Light >“
nd “<
h
ef=”https://
.fh.dot.gov
public
tions
public
o
ds/02sep/04.cfm”>
ed Light Me
ns Stop. >“ Cities h
ve inc
e
sed fines fo

unning
ed lights, d
unk d
iving,
nd othe
inte
section-
el
ted viol
tions. They’ve
lso inst
lled
ed-light c
mes,
hich h
ve p
oven some
h
t successful in
educing the p
oblem.

Still, ne

ly
qute
of
ll
ccident f
t
lities occu

t inte
sections. Clely, the p
oblem isn’t going
y. Nume
ous s
fety
gencies no

g
ee th
t the design of ou
count
y’s cu

ent system of inte
sections is
big f
cto
in the inte
section
ccident p
oblem. They’ve
o
ked th
ough the tedious, time-consuming p
ocess of getting fo
m
l
ecommend
tions on the books.
t p
esent, the
e

e multiple solutions just

iting fo
implement
tion. Some communities h
ve these
nd othe
p
ojects
nd inte
section enh
ncements in the pl
nning o
const
uction st
ge.

P
oven s
fety<
h
ef="https:
/s
fety.fh.dot.gov
p
ovencounte
me
su
es/”> counte
me
su
es<>:
list of 20
ecommended ch
nges th
t h
ve been p
oven to p
event inte
section
ccidents

Sign
lized<
h
ef="https:
/s
fety.fh.dot.gov
inte
section
convention
l
sign
lized
FH

-S
-15-085_Sttegies_2.pdf"> inte
section s
fety me
su
es:<> Multiple techniques foeducing inte
section conflicts

P
oven counte
me
su
es such
s<
h
ef="https:
/s
fety.fh.dot.gov
p
ovencounte
me
su
es/
ound
bouts/”>
ound
bouts: >
est
uctu
ing inte
sections
ith
ci
cul

hub, lo
e
speed limits,
nd single l
nes inste
d of
llo
ing multiple-l
ne st
eets to c
oss p
ths<
li>

Modific
tion of<
h
ef="https:
/s
fety.fh.dot.gov
p
ovencounte
me
su
es/yello
_xhg_inte
v
ls
“> yello
light ch
nge inte
v
ls; > Lengthening the yello
-light pe
iod to give vehicles mo
e time to move th
ough
n inte
section befo
e the light tu
ns
ed.

hy You Need
L

ye
if You’
e Inju
ed in
B
o
dside C

sh

Until
e c
n ch
nge technology, beh
vio
s,
nd inf

st
uctu
e to p
event b
o
dside cshes,
e’
e stuck
ith using the leg
l system to
ecove
compens
tion f
om the people
esponsible fo
c
using them.

B
o
dside c

sh inju
y c
ses c
n be complic
ted.
t the ve
y le
st, you should consult
c
ccident
tto
ney to discuss you
leg
l options.
s
ith
ny
uto li
bility cl
im, the
e

e too m
ny oppo
tunities fo
something to go ong. You need someone in you
co
neho’s
illing to fight fo
you. Once the othe
pe
son d
ives
y,
nything c
n h
ppen. They might not
ccept
esponsibility fo
theictions. If they do, they m
y o
m
y not h
ve insunce covege. If they h
ve insu

nce
nd the comp
ny
g
ees to p
y you, the d
ive
’s li
bility limit m
y be too lo
.

D
ive
s
ith b
d histo
ies often neglect thei
insu

nce
esponsibilities. If they h
ve insu

nce, they often h
ve st
te minimum li
bility limits. If you sust
in se
ious inju
ies, the othe
pe
son’s li
bility insunce
ill likely be too lo
to p
y fo
you
medic
l bills,
eh
bilit
tion costs, lost

ges
nd othe
expenses.

You still h
ve options: If you h
ve Uninsu
ed o
Unde
insu
ed Moto
ist Coveges, you
o
n comp
ny p
ys you
li
bility cl
im. Ho
eve
, they c
n fo
ce you to p
oduce you
medic
l
eco
ds on thei
time schedule
nd insist on
eco
ded st
tements
hen
nd
he
e they choose. They c
n deny you
cl
im o
you
covege if you don’t coopete. The
efo
e, it’s still
ise to hi
e
n
tto
ney to help guide you th
ough this p
ocess.

Ou

o
ds e litte
ed
ith unskilled, unst
ble, o
do
n
ight czy d
ive
s. These moto
ists c
use p
ope
ty d
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Inte
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nned Points of Conflict

B
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Vehicle S
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Negligent D
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L

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Testimonials

Inte sections: Plnned Points of Conflict

Bo dside ccidents nd Intesections

The Hum n Fcto <b>

isky Dive s<b>

Olde D ives

D ives ith Bd ttitudes<b>

Injuies F om Side-Impct C shes

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Vehicle S fety Enhncements e G et, But Not Enough

Negligent Dive s on’t Ch nge; e Must Ch nge Intesections

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Testimonials

Read More

Inte
sections: Pl
nned Points of Conflict

B
o
dside
ccidents
nd Inte
sections

The Hum
n F
cto
<
b>

isky D
ive
s<
b>

Olde
D
ive
s

D
ive
s
ith B
d
ttitudes<
b>

Inju
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om Side-Imp
ct C

shes

Inte
section C

sh St
tistics<
b>

Vehicle S
fety Enh
ncements

e G
e
t, But Not Enough

Negligent D
ive
s
on’t Ch
nge;
e Must Ch
nge Inte
sections

hy You Need
L

ye
if You’
e Inju
ed in
B
o
dside C

sh