Vehicle accidents are common on Australian roads and all drivers need to know what incidents they are most at risk of when they are on to the country’s roads. This is also true for tourists who may not be familiar with the many different driving conditions they will encounter on NSW roads.
While these accidents can occur, those involved in a collision still have the chance to seek injury compensation from the responsible parties.
The insurance company AAMI has researched the types of accident that are occurring on Australian roads, with nose-to-tail collisions the most frequent. These incidents account for almost 28 per cent of all the cases tracked in the study.
Hitting parked cars also ranked highly (21 per cent), while failing to give way accounted for a fifth of all accidents. Although these may seem small-scale, even a low-speed collision can result in an injury to one of the parties involved.
According to Transport NSW, speed, fatigue and alcohol are the main factors causing accidents on the state’s roads, responsible for over 7,000 collisions in 2012. For those affected by a crash, the long-term medical impact can be considerable, as well as the potential for lost income as a result of an injury.
Truck accidents increasingly common
While accidents involving large vehicles like trucks are much less common than smaller vehicles, they are still something that every driver needs to be aware of.
That’s because the number of truck accidents in Australia is increasing, according to National Transport Insurance (NTI). The organisation found there were 549 accidents involving a truck in 2013, compared to less than 500 in 2011.
New South Wales roads were the most frequent for truck accidents, with the Pacific and Hume highways seeing the most incidents out of any stretches of road in the country.
If you are involved in an accident, either involving another car or a larger vehicle like a truck, it is important to contact an accident lawyer to seek compensation for any harm you have suffered.
Make sure to also consider a lawyer who can offer a no-win, no-fee structure. This arrangement means that your legal costs are absorbed by the law firm representing you for as long as the matter takes to settle. These costs are then deducted from your compensation payout, meaning you are never out of pocket. We are also unique in that we pay for all your specialist medical reports, maximising your claim settlement.