Multi-vehicle crashes are among the most complicated accidents in Michigan. Several drivers may give different accounts of what happened, and each insurance company may try to place responsibility somewhere else. When the crash causes a catastrophic injury or death, determining how it happened and who is responsible becomes especially important.
Why Are Multi-Vehicle Crashes More Complicated?
In a two-car accident, the main question is usually which driver caused the collision. A multi-vehicle crash may involve several separate acts of negligence occurring within seconds.
One driver may have been following too closely. Another may have changed lanes without checking for traffic. A third may have been speeding or failed to react when vehicles ahead suddenly stopped. In a chain-reaction collision, one impact can push a vehicle into another lane or into the path of an approaching driver.
Identifying who caused the first impact may not answer every question. Investigators may also need to determine whether another driver had time to avoid a later collision, whether each impact caused separate injuries, and how much each person’s actions contributed to the final outcome.
How Does Michigan’s No-Fault System Apply?
Michigan’s no-fault system is often confusing after a serious crash. Personal Injury Protection, commonly called PIP coverage, provides benefits for certain medical expenses, wage loss, replacement services, and other allowable expenses regardless of who caused the accident. The available benefits depend on the applicable policy and the circumstances of the crash.
While PIP benefits provide important support, they do not cover every loss resulting from a catastrophic injury. When someone suffers death, a serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement, Michigan law may allow a third-party claim against the driver or drivers who caused the crash. These negligence claims seek compensation for pain and suffering and excess economic losses that PIP insurance does not cover. In a multi-vehicle case, the injured person may need to pursue claims against several drivers or other responsible parties.
Can Multiple Drivers Be Held Responsible?
Michigan uses comparative-fault rules when more than one person contributed to an accident. A judge or jury may assign each responsible party a percentage of fault based on that person’s role in causing the crash.
For example, one driver may cause the initial collision by following too closely, while another contributes to a later impact by speeding or driving while distracted. The driver who caused the first collision may not be the only person held responsible.
The injured person’s conduct may also be considered. If the injured person is found to share responsibility for the crash, their compensation may be reduced. A person who is found more than 50 percent at fault generally cannot recover noneconomic damages, such as pain and suffering, from the other drivers.
Because these rules affect how much each insurer may be required to pay, insurance companies often dispute fault and point to the conduct of other drivers. A detailed investigation, best performed shortly after the accident, provides invaluable insight regarding who was responsible for causing the accident.
What Evidence Can Show How the Crash Happened?
Evidence can disappear quickly after a multi-vehicle collision. Vehicles may be repaired or destroyed, roadway debris is cleared, and camera footage may not be kept for long. Witnesses may also have difficulty remembering the exact sequence of events as time passes.
Important evidence may include:
- Photographs and video from the scene
- Dashcam or surveillance footage
- Police reports
- Witness statements
- Vehicle damage patterns
- Event data recorder information
- Cellphone records
- Commercial driving and maintenance records
- Medical records
Accident reconstruction professionals may analyze vehicle speeds, impact angles, braking patterns, and the order of the collisions. This can be especially important when several drivers give conflicting accounts or when multiple impacts may have contributed to the injuries.
The investigation may also need to determine which collision caused which injury. That issue can affect how responsibility is divided among the drivers and insurers.
What Claims May Be Available After a Fatal Crash?
When a multi-vehicle crash is fatal, the personal representative of the deceased person’s estate may be able to bring a wrongful-death claim. That claim may seek compensation for losses suffered by the estate and qualifying family members.
Depending on the circumstances, damages may include funeral and burial expenses, medical expenses related to the final injuries, lost financial support, loss of companionship, and pain and suffering experienced while conscious before death.
The estate must still identify every person or business whose conduct caused or contributed to the death. When several parties are involved, the claim may need to proceed against multiple defendants, each with a different insurance company and legal team.
Different parts of the case may also be subject to different filing or notice requirements. Families should not assume that one general deadline applies to every potential claim.
How Can an Attorney Help With a Multi-Vehicle Crash Claim?
Multi-vehicle crash claims often involve several drivers, insurance companies, and competing explanations of what happened. An attorney can investigate the sequence of collisions, preserve available evidence, and determine whether responsibility extends beyond the drivers to an employer, trucking company, vehicle manufacturer, maintenance provider, or another party.
An attorney can also handle communications with the insurers and respond when one party attempts to shift blame to someone else. In catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases, legal counsel can help document the full extent of the medical, financial, and personal losses while coordinating the different claims that may arise from the same crash.
Speak With Miller, Tischler & Vislosky, PC
A multi-vehicle crash may involve several drivers, competing insurance companies, and conflicting explanations of what happened. When the accident causes a catastrophic injury or death, a thorough investigation is often necessary to determine who should be held responsible.
Miller, Tischler & Vislosky, PC represents clients across Michigan, including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, and surrounding counties. If you or someone in your family was seriously injured in a multi-vehicle crash, or if you lost a loved one, contact the firm to discuss the accident and your legal options.
