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How does speed affect a car accident?

On Behalf of | Jul 2, 2024 | Car Accidents

Police departments certainly crack down on speeding drivers. They will often send units out specifically to look for people who are breaking the speed limit, pulling those drivers over and giving them speeding tickets. There is a financial incentive for the department to do this – to get the driver to pay the ticket – but the main reason given is road safety. Police departments contend that speeding makes the roads more dangerous, so it is a public safety issue they need to address.

But is this actually true? Aren’t there more dangerous issues that the police could focus on, such as drunk driving or distracted driving? How does speed actually impact an accident?

It can cause car accidents

To begin with, speeding can sometimes cause accidents. A rear-end accident is more likely, for instance, because the speeding driver doesn’t have as much time or space to react. In other cases, drivers will lose control of their cars and cause accidents that way. 

It increases injury severity

But the big issue with speed is simply that it increases the severity of injuries suffered in those accidents. People are more likely to pass away in a crash when both cars are traveling at 70 miles an hour, as opposed to if they were both traveling at 25 miles an hour. All of the other factors of the crash could be exactly the same – both incidents are two pick-up trucks having a head-on collision, for example – but the crash that happens at higher speeds is vastly more likely to result in fatalities.

Have you lost a loved one due to the negligent actions of a speeding driver? If so, it’s important to look into all of the legal options at your disposal.