The Domino Effect: The Chain Reaction Of Lawsuits Following A Car Pile-Up Accident
Recently, in the state of Wisconsin, there was a very serious accident on a highway. One hundred thirty-one cars all smacked and crashed into each other, and included a few semi-trucks in the mix. Seventy-plus people went to the local emergency rooms, most of which were treated and released, but a few were admitted to the hospital for overnight observation and care.
One teacher died in the accident, and several cars had to be cut open like tin cans with the "jaws of life" to get drivers out of their vehicles. It all started with one car going too fast in white-out conditions and suddenly sliding sideways into three or four cars ahead of it. So, in a tragic and incredible case like this, who sues who?
Start With Your Car Insurance
If you ever find yourself part of a mega car pile-up like the accident above (which, by the way, made history as the largest in the state ever), start with your car insurance. Given the nature of dozens of cars and trucks repeatedly crashing into each other and being shoved into more vehicles, it would be very difficult to determine fault in an accident like this. Your insurance company can address the situation as one where your vehicle and injuries need to be taken care of first. If your insurance is non-compliant in this matter, an accident attorney can help you sue them.
All the Cars You Hit, and Who Hit You
Car pileups rely on collecting insurance information from the cars that you hit, and the cars that hit you from behind and from the side. You have to keep track of who hit who, since your insurance and their insurance will want to get in touch and communicate which company has a responsibility to pay what. Your company may have to pay drivers you hit, while other drivers who hit you may have to pay you.
In the end, the insurance companies may have to do quite a bit of calculating to see if things are a wash or if there is an insurance company somewhere in the midst of everything that still owes you or another driver something. If it is too big and too messy a legal issue, lawyers may get involved and treat it as a class action suit, especially if there are a record-breaking number of drivers, passengers, and cars involved in the accident.