Collisions

1. Collisions Chapter 16

2. 16-1 Collisions • Everyone pays in a collision • Direct Costs • Medical care • Legal fees • Funeral costs? • Property damage • Indirect costs • Higher auto and medical insurance premiums • Traffic delays • Crowded court dockets • Loss of wages and worker productivity • Emotional costs • Impossible to calculate

3. Causes of a Collision • Collision more accurately describes a vehicle crash than Accident • Accident means nothing could be done to prevent the crash • Almost all collisions are caused by driver error • Most common causes of crashes • Speeding • Failure to give Right-of-Way • Driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs • Failure to obey traffic signals • Improper turning • Following too closely • Staying alert, managing your speed, and being aware of vehicles around you will keep you from getting into a crash

4. Types of Collisions • Three collisions occur in a vehicle crash • Vehicle to vehicle • Driver to interior of vehicle • Organs of driver against the inside of the body

5. Types of Collisions • Solo Collision • Involves only one vehicle • Can be deadly if the crash involves a hard obstacle • Wall, bridge support, animal, cliff, ditch • Examples • Driver drives into a ditch because he/she fell asleep at the wheel or failed to take a curve properly

6. Types of Collisions • Head-On Collision • Two vehicles collide front to front • Results in the most serious injuries and the highest rate of death • Force of impact combines the kinetic energy of both vehicles

7. Types of Collisions • Side-impact Collision • Also know as “T-Bone” • Occurs when two vehicle collide side to side, side to front, or side to rear • Worst injuries occur when one vehicle directly impacts the passenger compartment of another

8. Types of Collisions • Rear-end Collisions • Occurs when one vehicle hits another from behind • Most damage occurs when the vehicle impacted is not moving

9. Types of Collision • Chain Reaction • A series of collisions involving vehicles that impact one after another • Most cases are rear-end collisions • Most common on highways and freeways • Cars are driving closer together at higher speeds or in conditions of low visibility

10. Types of Collisions • Rollover • A vehicle is flipped upside down or literally rolls over one or more times • Can be very serious • Occupants of vehicle may impact all sides of the vehicle • Resulting in head or neck injuries • Avoid vehicles with high centers of gravity

11. 16-2 What to Do at the Scene of a Crash • All jurisdictions require you to stop at the scene of a crash • To give aid and exchange information • Notify others in the event of property damage • Report the incident to the proper authorities

12. Stop at the Scene • The first thing you do if you are involved in a collision is stop immediately • Don’t have to have damage to your own vehicle to be involved • Must stop if you directly or indirectly cause a collision • NEVER leave the scene of an accident unless directed to by law enforcement or emergency personnel • “Hit & Run” • Leaving the scene or failing to stop following a crash • Felony crime • Do not have to stop at the exact spot of the collisions • If your vehicle is still drivable and you are not injured, move your vehicle out of harm’s way staying as close to the crash site as possible • Turn on hazards and locate crash victims

13. Giving Aid • Most people who die in collisions might otherwise live if they were to get immediate care from others • Depending on the site of the crash, emergency medical help could take a while • Provide care to the injured only if you feel comfortable doing so • Don’t hesitate if you are the only person available • Good Samaritan Law • Protects those who try to give first aid in emergency situations from being liable for injuries or fatalities that they may cause or assist in causing because of the quality of the first aid administered • In some jurisdictions, doing nothing is a punishable offense

14. Giving Aid (cont.) • Do not move crash victims or allow them to move • Unless location puts them in immediate life-or-death danger • Hazards include, but are not limited to: • Being in the path of oncoming traffic, being submerged in water, being near downed power lines, being near fire • If you must move them, make sure their neck is stabilized • Assess who needs help the most • Check for unconscious victims • Listen and look for breathing • Check for bleeding • Make victim comfortable

15. Warning Others • Mark the crash scene with flares, emergency triangles, or other warning devices • Place them from 100-500 feet behind vehicles involved in the collision • Higher the speed of traffic, farther back they should be placed • If you don’t have any of these • Open the hood of the vehicle • Use a flashlight or bright colored clothing

16. Calling for Help • Use your cell phone to call 911 • No cell phone or radio, try to find a pay phone • Be prepared to tell the dispatcher your name, phone number, what happened, number of victims, exact location of crash • Use landmarks, distance markers, cross streets, off-ramps, or any geographic features to identify where you are • Stay on the line until help arrives or dispatcher says so • If vehicle is undrivable, call towing service

17. Exchanging Information • Exchange names and addresses with all drivers and passengers, vehicle registrations number, license plate number, and driver’s license number • Insurance information should also be exchanged • If no information is available, get what you can • Remain calm, don’t yell and argue • Make a sketch or take photos of crash for documentation • Makes it easier to recall what happened

18. Property Damage • Take pictures with camera or cell phone • If you hit a parked car, try to locate the driver • If you can’t find them, leave a note with your information and a statement of what happened

19. Reporting the Crash • Must report the crash to proper authorities • especially if they did not show up to the scene • File your own report with local officials and the DMV • Even if they show up at the scene, file your own report • Notify your insurance company immediately • Give them all the information you have gathered

20. 16-3 Preventing Collisions • In most cases, you can avoid a collisions by preforming an evasive maneuver • By scanning and being aware of the driving environment at all times, you give yourself more time and space • Maneuvers you can perform: • “brake and hold” • Speeding up • Steering right or left • Driving off the roadway

21. “Brake and Hold” • Most drivers have a reflex action to brake and hold when faced with an impending collision • May not be the best option, but sometimes it’s the only option • Congested traffic with no escape route • Lower speed situations • Grip the wheel and press yourself against the back of the seat • Place your head against the head rest

22. Speeding Up • Sometimes you can avoid a collision by speeding up • When you are about to be hit from the side or rear • Situations in which speeding up can help avoid a crash include, but are not limited to: • When you are at an intersection • When a driver traveling in the same direction moves toward you • When you are about to be rear ended and have clear space ahead of you to accelerate • Even if you can’t avoid a crash by speeding up, you may be able to shift the impact toward the rear of the vehicle, minimizing damage

23. Steering Left or Right • When there is not enough time or space to brake, and you have room on both sides of an obstacle, you may be able to steer left or right to avoid a crash • Traveling at slower speeds, you may be able to steer quicker than brake • Remember: • To your left is either oncoming traffic or vehicles traveling in your own direction but at higher speeds • To your right is most often slower lanes of traffic, shoulder of the road, curb, or parked cars • Avoid making too sharp a turn at higher speeds

24. Driving Off the Roadway • Most drivers do not think of this action because they believe it is against the law or unsafe • It is legal to do so if you are trying to avoid a collision • Consider the environment • The terrain off the roadway can cause more problems than a collision • Consider your vehicle • 4x4 vehicles can manage harsher terrain than a low to the ground sports car • Types of surface • Traction can be effected • Slamming on your brakes can cause you to skid, an uncontrolled re-entry across other lanes of traffic, or a rollover

25. Avoiding Head-On Collisions • Possibility of serious injury or death is more likely with a head-on collision • Be aware of situations in which they are more likely to occur: • Two-lane highways • Narrow lanes • Near obstacles in the road • If a car is coming at you likely to collide head-on… • Flash your headlights/Honk your horn • Move to the right of your lane towards the side of the road • A vehicle may be more likely to move back onto his/her side of the roadway to your left than to your right • You have a better chance of being sideswiped than colliding head-on

26. Avoiding Side-Impact Collisions • Most vehicles are less equipped to withstand a side impact than they are a head-on collisions • If you are at risk of colliding with the side of another vehicle: • Honk and flash lights to warn the other driver • Swerve right rather than left if there is no time to look first • If you are about to be impacted: • Accelerate rather than brake • Gets you out of the way quicker • Braking may actually contribute to a side-impact collision • If the way ahead is not clear, turn in the direction that the other vehicle is moving • Causes the impact behind you to the rear of the vehicle • Turning toward the vehicle risks colliding head-on

27. Avoiding Rear-End Collisions • Most common type of multiple-vehicle collisions • Caused from following to closely, more often than not • Maintain a space cushion and following distance, and you will avoid rear-ending a vehicle in front of you in ALL situations • To prevent being rear-ended, tap your brakes rapidly and continuously to warn the approaching driver • Release parking brake if it is on • Position steering wheel straight • Having wheels turned will send you in the direction they are turned once impacted • If it is clear ahead of you, move forward quickly • Reduces the force of the impact and gives the approaching driver more time to stop • If you have to cross traffic, do so only if it is clear

28. When a Crash Is Unavoidable • If you are about to be in a crash, you can still control part of the situation, though it may only be seconds • Remember to hit something soft if you can • Bushes, shrubbery, crops, crash barriers • Choose where your vehicle will be hit • Familiarize yourself with the crash-resistant features of your vehicle and utilize them • Knowing your car’s strengths and weaknesses may save your life and others in a crash situation

29. 16-4 Vehicle Restraints Systems • Every vehicle comes equipped with devices to protect the driver and passengers in the event of a collision • They are designed to significantly reduce injuries and deaths • The ones we will look at specifically are: • Safety Belts • Air Bags • Child Safety Seats

30. Safety Belts • Purpose • Provide protection against most kinds of collisions, keep you behind the wheel so you can steer to avoid a crash, and prevention from being thrown from your vehicle • Most vehicles have a lap and shoulder belt • Most vehicles will alert you to put your safety belt on if you haven’t done so before taking off • Lap Belt • Designed to restrain your pelvic area and should fit snuggly • If not properly worn, it can slide up and cause injury to your abdomen • Shoulder Belt • Goes across the sternum • Should be loose enough to allow you to fit your fist between the belt and your chest, but not so much that the belt hangs over your arm • If it is too loose, your upper body will strike the interior • Never put it under your armpit

31. Safety Belts (cont.) • Passive Restraint • The safety belt operates without action by the occupant • As a driver, your are responsible for everyone in your vehicle • Make sure they are wearing seatbelts properly • Can be ticketed in some jurisdictions for passengers not wearing safety belts

32. Air Bags • A major cause of serious chest and facial injuries is driver contact with the steering wheel • Air bags are concealed in the steering wheel and dashboard, and are designed to instantly inflate on impact in front-end collisions and sometimes during side-impact collisions • Combined with safety belts, airbags offer greatest protection against contact between a vehicle and its occupant • Air bags are a supplemental restraint • You still need to wear your safety belt/Do not protect against every collision

33. Child Safety Seats • Children under the age of 8 years old need to be in a safety seat • Three different types of child safety seats • Rear-facing • Convertible seats • Booster seats

34. Child Safety Seats (cont.) • Rear-Facing Seats • Designed for infants from the time they are born until they are 20 pounds or are 1 year old • Have a detachable base so that the seat can double as a carrier • Convertible Seats • Designed for toddlers weighing between 20 and 40 pounds or who are 1 to 4 years old • Can be converted from a rear-facing to forward-facing as the child gets older • Booster Seats • Used for older children not quite ready for regular safety belts

35. Child Safety Seats (cont.) • Children in safety seats should always be placed in the back seat • Keep them as far away from the force of a head-on collision • Especially rear-facing seats • Newborns and infants in a rear-facing seat placed on the passenger seat are at risk of being injured by an airbag