Rear-End Car Accident Attorneys
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A rear-end crash can leave you hurt in ways that don’t surface for a day or two, and the insurance calls usually start well before you know what your recovery will cost. Your neck aches, your back is stiff, and the medical bills are already arriving while you are trying to get back to work.
Michigan no-fault benefits cover a lot after a crash. They don’t cover everything, and an early settlement offer can close your claim before anyone knows what your treatment will cost. Pain and suffering, medical bills above your coverage limit, and wage loss that continues after those benefits end all sit outside them.
Matz Injury Law handles rear-end collision claims across Michigan. A rear-end collision lawyer’s job here is to run two claims at once: the no-fault benefits your own insurer owes, and a separate claim against the driver who hit you. We keep both moving together, so the medical record supporting your treatment also builds the evidence your injury claim needs.
Why Michigan Rear-End Crash Victims Choose Matz Injury Law
A rear-end claim can be settled cheaply while treatment is ongoing, before the full cost of the injury is known. Our clients have recovered more than $300 million in Michigan personal injury cases, including rear-end collisions insurers first treated as minor.
We handle those claims from our Southfield office and travel to clients across most of Michigan, including the Upper Peninsula.
Meet the Attorneys Handling Rear-End Crash Cases
Rear-End Collision Results for Michigan Clients
Our published case results include several rear-end collisions:
- $1 million for a woman in Northern Michigan who fractured both ankles when a gravel truck rear-ended her. She kept an additional $107,635 under our 22% fee.
- $750,000 for the family of a 27-year-old passenger killed in a rear-end collision in Oakland County.
- $750,000 for the family of a young driver whose car was struck from behind by a semi in Lapeer County.
- $680,000 in a Wayne County arbitration for a cervical disc injury caused by a minor-impact collision.
That last result matters most if your car came out looking fine. Vehicle damage is not the measure of an injury, and a disc injury can cost far more than the bumper suggests.
Past results do not predict the outcome of any future case.
What a 22% Contingency Fee Means for Your Recovery
Many Michigan personal injury firms charge a one-third contingency fee. Ours is 22% at every stage, including trial.
On a $100,000 rear-end settlement, a one-third fee leaves the client about $66,667. At 22%, the client keeps $78,000, a difference of roughly $11,333.
The first consultation is free, and you pay no attorney fee unless your case results in a recovery. Steven Matz and Jared Matz handle the cases we accept rather than routing them through intake staff.
Client Testimonials
“My parents were involved in a fatal car accident, where we needed guidance dealing with the insurance company. A month after the accident the insurance agency had stopped addressing our calls and emails. Retaining Steve Matz and his team was the absolute best decision we made for my mom. He was professional from start to finish and we had a settlement quickly. Steve answered all of our calls and emails, and assured us that he would take care of our family during this time. If you are questioning whether seeking guidance is needed, don’t hesitate and reach out. Steve was very open about what he could do for our case, and how retaining his services could impact our timeline. We felt as though we were talking to a friend, not an attorney, whom checked on us often. Thank you for all you have done for our family, especially my mom during this time. Your service and compassion deserves more than 5 stars!” — Sarah M.
“I cannot recommend Steve and his team highly enough. From the very first consultation, the team was professional, compassionate, and incredibly knowledgeable. They took the time to explain every step of the process, answered all my questions, and made sure I felt confident and supported throughout my case. Their attention to detail and dedication truly made a difference. They fought hard on my behalf and achieved a result that exceeded my expectations. Communication was always clear and timely, and I never felt like ‘just another client.’ If you’re looking for a law firm that genuinely cares and delivers outstanding results, this is the one to call. Thank you for everything!” — Tifani R.
What Injuries Do Rear-End Crashes Cause?
Rear-end crashes cause injuries at speeds that leave almost no mark on the car, so a rear-end car accident claim can be worth pursuing even when the damage looks minor. Some symptoms appear at the scene, and others take a day or two to surface.
Common rear-end collision injuries include:
- Whiplash: The impact throws your head backward and then forward, straining the muscles, ligaments, and soft tissue in your neck. A Michigan whiplash claim rests on documented pain, stiffness, headaches, and lost range of motion.
- Back and spinal injuries: A herniated disc can press on a nerve and cause pain, numbness, or weakness that radiates into an arm or a leg.
- Traumatic brain injuries: A concussion can happen when the force of the crash moves the brain inside the skull, even without a direct blow to the head.
- Shoulder and soft-tissue injuries: Bracing against the wheel can strain or tear muscles, ligaments, and tendons through the upper body.
- Fractures: Higher-speed impacts can break bones in the wrists, ankles, ribs, and sternum.
If pain, numbness, or headaches appear after the crash, it can help to see a doctor and say clearly when the symptoms started. That timing connects the injury to the collision, and it matters most with back pain that develops after a rear-end crash, which insurers may attribute to something else.
Who Is at Fault in a Michigan Rear-End Accident?
If another driver hit you from behind, Michigan law starts from the presumption that the driver behind you was at fault. Under MCL 257.402, a driver who overtakes and strikes the rear of a vehicle traveling in the same direction or lawfully stopped is deemed prima facie guilty of negligence.
That presumption can be rebutted. The driver who hit you may argue a sudden stop, a mechanical failure, or another unexpected event.
The statute carries one written exception. A driver whose vehicle was struck between an hour after sunset and an hour before sunrise cannot invoke the presumption if that vehicle had no lighted lamp visible from the rear.
Michigan’s basic speed law adds a second layer. MCL 257.627(1) requires every driver to hold a speed that permits a stop within the assured, clear distance ahead, the rule a following driver breaks by tailgating.
The crash report, witness statements, photographs, video, and the pattern of vehicle damage all bear on how fault gets assigned in a rear-end collision, along with the other driver’s speed and following distance.
Fault does not change your no-fault benefits, which are paid regardless of who caused the crash. It decides whether you also have a claim against the other driver, which requires proof of that driver’s negligence.
What Does Michigan No-Fault Insurance Cover After a Rear-End Crash?
Michigan personal injury protection pays your crash-related medical care regardless of who caused the collision, up to the PIP medical limit on the policy covering you. Drivers choose from six coverage levels:
- Unlimited
- $500,000
- $250,000
- $250,000 with an exclusion
- $50,000, available only to a named insured enrolled in Medicaid
- A full opt-out, available only with Medicare Parts A and B
With no level selected, a policy defaults to unlimited coverage.
What Else Does PIP Cover?
PIP benefits also cover:
- Up to $20 per day in replacement services such as housekeeping, meal preparation, and yard work, for three years
- Attendant care when a doctor determines it is necessary
- Mileage and transportation costs for crash-related treatment
- 85% of lost wages for up to three years, subject to a monthly maximum set under state law
- Survivor’s loss benefits and reasonable funeral expenses when a crash is fatal
Deadlines and Limits on Your PIP Claim
Michigan’s order of priority decides which insurer pays. It starts with your own auto policy, then a resident relative’s policy when you don’t carry one.
Two no-fault deadlines apply. You generally have one year from the crash to give your insurer written notice of the injury unless it has already paid a PIP benefit.
The one-year-back rule in MCL 500.3145 sets the second. It bars recovery for any part of the loss incurred more than one year before you file suit, so unpaid bills can age out of a claim that is otherwise still open.
PIP does not cover everything. Pain and suffering sits outside no-fault benefits, and so do medical costs above your PIP limit and wage loss after the three-year mark.
Can You Sue for Pain and Suffering After a Rear-End Accident in Michigan?
Yes, if your injury meets Michigan’s threshold for a claim against the at-fault driver. Under MCL 500.3135, that means death, permanent serious disfigurement, or serious impairment of body function.
The statute breaks serious impairment into three requirements:
- Objectively manifested: The impairment is observable or perceivable from actual symptoms or conditions by someone other than you
- An important body function: The function affected is one of real value or consequence to you
- An effect on your normal life: The impairment has influenced your capacity to live as you did before the crash
There is no minimum length of time an impairment has to last. The comparison is between your life before the crash and after it, judged on your own facts.
Your share of fault also matters. If you are more than 50% at fault, MCL 500.3135(2)(b) bars pain-and-suffering damages, and at 50% or less your award is reduced by your percentage of fault.
Excess economic losses follow a different rule. Medical bills above your PIP limit and wage loss past three years don’t require meeting the impairment threshold, and under MCL 600.2959, they are reduced by your share of fault rather than cut off at 51%.
You generally have three years from the crash date to file a lawsuit against the at-fault driver, under MCL 600.5805(2).
Vehicle damage carries its own small claim. When the other driver is more than 50% at fault, Michigan’s mini-tort rules allow up to $3,000 for repair costs your own insurance did not cover, including your deductible.
What Should You Do After a Rear-End Crash in Michigan?
What you do in the first days after a rear-end crash shapes both your recovery and your claim, and it sets up every later step in the Michigan car accident claim process. Because some injuries take a day or two to appear, it helps to watch for new pain and get seen when it shows up.
Compensation for delayed injury symptoms depends heavily on when the medical record shows they began.
From there, it can help to:
- Report the crash to your own insurer promptly
- Photograph both vehicles, the road, and any visible injuries
- Keep every medical bill, treatment record, receipt, and mileage log
- Hold off on a recorded statement until you understand how it could affect your claim
- Write down missed work and tasks you can no longer do at home
A lawyer can request the crash report, take the adjuster’s calls, order the medical records, and track both deadlines while you focus on treatment. An early start leaves more time to collect evidence before video is overwritten and memories fade.
Get Your Rear-End Claim Reviewed Before Michigan’s One-Year Notice Deadline
The notice deadline and the deadline to sue the other driver both run from your crash date, whether or not your treatment has finished. Our Michigan personal injury lawyers review rear-end claims on both tracks, from the benefits your insurer owes to the case against the driver who hit you. Before an early offer closes the claim or a deadline passes, a review can show what your benefits cover and whether your injury meets the pain-and-suffering threshold.
A consultation is FREE, our fee stays at 22%, and you pay no attorney fee unless your case results in a recovery.
Call 866-226-6833 or use our contact form to ask about your case.
Written By Steven Matz
Steven J. Matz is the founder of Matz Injury Law, specializing in personal injury litigation with a focus on car accident victims. With over 40 years of legal experience, Mr. Matz has achieved numerous million-dollar settlements. He holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and has been recognized among Michigan’s Top Attorneys. Steven J. Matz is a frequent lecturer on legal ethics and personal injury law, and serves on the Michigan Attorney Discipline Board.
