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Comment by bsder | Hacker News Reader

> Some people think that the following vehicle is always at fault, but this isn't strictly true (IAAL).

I'm having a really hard time coming up with a scenario in which a following vehicle rear-ending another vehicle isn't going to be considered to be at fault.

All of the driver's ed materials I have ever seen always emphasize that you need to be in control of your car and able to stop in time irrespective of what the car in front of you does. This includes things like a sudden stop or a sudden lane change exposing a stopped car.

Back in reality, nobody ever puts enough distance between cars, so we wind up with dozen+ car pileups.

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The only scenario I can think of is the "swoop and stoop", which is what insurance fraudsters do to induce a rear-end collision. A car from a neighboring lane suddenly changes lanes in front of you while also slamming on the brakes.

> This includes things like a ... sudden lane change exposing a stopped car.

Oooh, this one has almost gotten me a couple of times. I'm much more defensive now, and when I see a car ahead changing lanes, I assume they're dodging a block wall with orphans sitting on top.

Basically, leave enough distance in front of you so even if the car you're following magically freezes in place, you have enough time to react, and still enough time after reaction to actually stop. In the real world this can be difficult to maintain. The amount of space will invite interlopers. In those situations, follow a car that you can see past, and look at more than just the car you're following.

IANAL, but you are never allowed to intentionally cause a collision; if you slam on your breaks when someone is tailgating you, with the intent of causing them to hit you, my understanding is that it's your fault.

I'm not sure why you are getting downvoted since you are essentially correct under the laws of most jurisdictions.

I only see two things in your comment that might be nit-pickable, and neither of them should be sufficient to justify a downvote.

(1) Saying "it's your fault" might be seen be some as implying that the person who slams on their brakes is the only one at fault. Most likely both drivers would be at fault.

The tailgater for following too close, and the brake checker for brake checking.

(2) You spelled "brake" "break".

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