Sudden and Frequent Stops In Traffic Must Be Anticipated by Drivers

The Second Department, in finding no question of fact had been raised about the existence of a non-negligent explanation for a rear-end collision, explained the relevant law:

A rear-end collision with a stopped or stopping vehicle creates a prima facie case of negligence with respect to the operator of the rear vehicle and imposes a duty on that operator to rebut the inference of negligence by providing a nonnegligent explanation for the collision … .

“One of several nonnegligent explanations for a rear-end collision [may be] a sudden stop of the lead vehicle” … . However, “vehicle stops which are foreseeable under the prevailing traffic conditions, even if sudden and frequent, must be anticipated by the driver who follows, since he or she is under a duty to maintain a safe distance between his or her car and the car ahead” … . Le Grand v Silberstein, 2014 NY Slip OP 08608, 2nd Dept 12-10-14