In New York City, there are plenty of drivers who aggressively tailgate other vehicles, even when there is a ton of traffic that can cause a rear-end accident. Imagine you slow down your car while in traffic and another car that was tailgating you rear-ends you. Then the driver who just rear-ended you starts accusing you of suddenly stopping short and causing the accident. What should you do? You should contact a car accident attorney to obtain legal advice and representation right away.
If you have been involved in a rear-end accident, you should contact a car accident attorney right away.
An instructive case on this subject is the First Department’s decision in Obando v Espeut, 184 NYS3d 56 (1st Dept 2023), where the Court heard a case where the front car driver was slowing his car down and the rear car driver struck the rear of his vehicle. Initially, the offending driver claimed that the car in front of him had stopped short suddenly, immediately after merging into his lane.
However, during subsequent discovery, the offending driver conceded that the front car actually did not merge into his lane suddenly, but that there was “less than a minute” between the lane merge and the accident. The defendant further conceded that he could not see in front of the plaintiff’s vehicle, and so could not affirmatively state how close the front car was to an unidentified third vehicle in front, or that the plaintiff had tail-gated the vehicle. Finally, despite the defendant’s initial claim that he heard a statement that an object had rolled over the plaintiff’s dashboard immediately before the accident, he conceded that such conversation was in Spanish and that he did not understand Spanish.
Based on the inconsistencies in the defendant’s versions of the accident, and the uncontroverted statements by the plaintiff that he did not drive negligently and that he was rear-ended, the First Department unanimously granted the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, holding that the defendant was fully liable for the accident.
Obando is especially instructive because it shows just how important an attorney’s capabilities and skillsets are in establishing your case. In Obando, the defendant was clearly fabricating his story in order to win the case, but, ultimately, when questioned by the plaintiff’s attorney, the defendant’s story did not hold up. When an accident occurs, and you feel that there might be a battle between your version and the other driver’s version, it is imperative that you contact an attorney as soon as possible, so they can take the necessary investigative steps to establish the case and to gather compelling evidence to use in the case. It is also important to note that even if the offending vehicle accepts fault at the scene of the accident, their story often changes once a claim is made against them.
Grandelli & Eskenasi’s attorneys have been representing car accident victims for over thirty years
Grandelli & Eskenasi’s attorneys have been representing car accident victims for over thirty years and have obtained some of the highest recoveries in New York State for their clients. If you or someone you love has been injured in a motor vehicle accident, please do not hesitate to contact Grandelli & Eskenasi for a free legal consultation.
