Just so you know, the reason I’m writing about skidding accidents is because I’m rather confused – it’s a summer evening here in our midlands based office and for reasons that just don’t seem to make sense, its hailing! In the middle of summer! Our weather seems to have gone crazy in recent years, and hail in the middle of summer just doesn’t make sense.
Its heavy, and the roads are pretty waterlogged, so driving conditions are dangerous in places. As such, we all need to adapt as drivers to the conditions we are driving in – so in periods of wet weather when the road is slippery, we need to take extra care. This means slowing down and increasing the distances between vehicles.
So what happens if a car skids and causes an accident? What if traffic suddenly slowed and a driver brakes but loses their grip due to the road conditions and crashes in to another vehicle? Is it just one of those things? Can you blame someone for the weather? Well a driver cannot normally use the excuse that the road was wet as a defence to the claim – the Highway Code states that you have to keep a greater distance in slippery conditions.
So if you are the victim of an accident where the other driver has skidded and perhaps gone in to the back of you, or skidded at a junction and pulled out on you, or veered on to your side of the road, you should be able to make a claim for personal injury against them if you are injured. Normally injuries from skidding accidents can be rather bad if the vehicle fails to stop at all and ploughs straight in to you with the force. If you are violently shaken in your seat, it’s likely you will end up with a whiplash injury.
A whiplash injury is commonly an injury affecting the head, neck, shoulders, and back – but the pain can cause headaches and sickness, and radiate in to your legs and arms with pins and needles like sensations. Stiffness and pain are common first signs, and they normally make themselves known within around 12 – 48 hours of the accident. It’s common to feel fine, albeit shaken up, straight after an accident. The pain normally gets progressively worse for weeks or even months thereafter.
So remember – the weather isn’t an excuse that can stop you from claiming! If someone has skidded in to you and caused an accident, call our free claims helpline on 0800 63475 75 today and we will see how we can help you out.
