Multiple Vehicle Accident in Thousand Oaks

I’m Ed Smith, a Thousand Oaks car accident lawyer. A multiple vehicle accident in Thousand Oaks on U.S. Route 101 on June 30 resulted in one person being transported to a hospital for medical treatment. No information is available on how long the lanes were closed while officers from the California Highway Patrol investigated the cause, and debris was cleared from the crash site.

What Happened

A representative of the CHP reported that the crash happened just after 6:30 in the evening on the side of the highway heading northbound near Moorpark Freeway when a pickup, Mustang and a third vehicle collided. The vehicles were reported to have been blocking two lanes following the accident. The person who was taken to a hospital for treatment was reported to have injuries described as minor.

How Multiple Vehicle Accidents Happen

Multiple vehicle accidents usually happen in one of two ways. A vehicle in front can slow down or stop and gets rear ended by the cars behind it. The other way is when a car rear ends another vehicle on the road and causes the front vehicle to crash into another or one or more of the vehicles ends up crossing over the centerline and crashing into vehicles driving in the opposing lanes.

Driver Error Causes Most Accidents

According to a report by Stanford University, 90 percent of accidents are caused, at least in part, by driver error. The causes of driver errors were reported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Forty-one percent of driver errors are due inattention and distractions, either inside the vehicle or outside. Decision errors account for 33 percent of accidents. These may be caused by speeding, taking a curve too fast or misjudging another driver’s speed. Eleven percent are due to performance errors such as overcorrection or just bad driving. Lack of adequate sleep or falling asleep at the wheel accounted for seven percent of the accidents.

Accidents Involving Multiple Vehicles

This type of accident can cause more traumatic injuries because one or more vehicles in the crash can be hit multiple times. Assigning fault involves investigating what each driver was doing at the time of the crash. Was one of the drivers speeding? Was one texting on a cell phone? Was one driving recklessly or following too closely to avoid a crash? Was one of the drivers drunk or using drugs?

California is a pure comparative fault state. This means that percentages of fault can be assigned to the drivers involved in a crash. When multiple parties in a crash are partially at fault, a percentage will be assigned to each. Those who are partially at fault may still recover damages for their injuries, minus their percentage of fault. For example, the plaintiff (injured person) in an accident may seek $100,000 to cover their expenses and pain and suffering in a crash but is found to be 20 percent negligent themselves. This means the 20 percent would be subtracted from the award. The plaintiff would still receive $80,000 in compensation.

Accident Lawyer, Ed Smith

Thousand Oaks Car Accident Lawyer

I’m Ed Smith, a Thousand Oaks car accident lawyer. Freeway accidents are all too common along California roadways and cause serious injuries or even the death of a loved one. When you or your family have been injured or a loved one lost due to the negligence of another driver, call me please at (805) 372-0200. I have advice to offer you that is friendly and free. Outside the area code, please use my (800) 404-5400 toll-free line.

For 35 years, my experienced legal team and I have defended the rights of Californians injured through negligence with their wrongful death and personal injury claims.

Past client reviews can be found here: Google, Yelp, Avvo. You can learn more about verdicts and settlements here, which illustrates the positive results we have obtained for former clients.

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Multiple Vehicle Accident in Thousand Oaks