A four-vehicle crash in Knoxville on Sept. 26 killed a 43-year-old man, according to authorities. The man was reportedly driving a Chevrolet Camaro west on Interstate 40 when he decelerated on account of traffic and was struck by a vehicle trailing him. Consequently, the Camaro rear-ended the vehicle in front of it, a Volvo, which in turn spun into the median and was struck by a fourth vehicle, according to police.
The 43-year-old man suffered fatal injuries as a result of the wreck, authorities reported. The three other drivers involved in the accident suffered nonfatal injuries. One of them, a 21-year-old man, received emergency transport to UT Medical Center for treatment of injuries that officials described as serious.
Typically, car accidents resulting in injuries and fatalities warrant long and exhaustive investigations. If, hypothetically, an investigation were to conclude that distracted driving was the main contributory factor in a chain-reaction crash like this one, then the people who suffered losses on account of the accident may bring a lawsuit against the at-fault driver, citing negligence.
For example, certain family members of deceased accident victims may seek to recover the pecuniary damages they suffered in relation to the fatal accident by retaining a lawyer and filing a wrongful death claim. If successful, these bereaved family members might be awarded financial compensation for end-of-life expenses, such as funeral bills, and lost earnings associated with the sudden and wrongful death of their loved one.
Injured victims may file a personal injury claim against the driver whose negligence caused the accident resulting in their injuries. In this way, victims may seek restitution for hospital bills, expenses associated with long-term medical care and rehabilitation as well as lost wages.
Source: WVLT, “One killed in four car crash near Cedar Bluff on I-40“, Eric Arnold and Christine Jessel Grider , September 29, 2014