Generally you would be correct, even here in California. However, 10 years ago I rear Ended 5 cars and totalled everyone of them in my 3/4 chevy service truck on the freeway.
It turned out that an asian woman was going freeway speed when she slammed on the brakes to keep from running over a piece of tire laying flat in the lane. Everyone was crashing into her, I just cleaned it all up. The CHP found me only 10% Liable and the Judge Dismissed EVERY LAWSUIT on Day one, finding me factually innocent.
If I brake hard for debris on the road, and you rear end me, you’ll be sued and lose big.
By the way, many of those tires on the road have steel belts, those belts can rip your tires up/blow them out quickly. I know of at least two fatalities which a vehicle hit tire debris, blew a tire, lost control and caused multiple collisions/including fatalities.
Another a vehicle hit a large truck retread, kicked it up, the following vehicle hit it while in their air, with the 20 pound piece of retread thrown into oncoming lanes, going though a windshield, killing the driver instantly.
Several decades ago I was driving down a very busy expressway. With no warning or apparent reason, the lady in front of me slams on her brakes really hard - locks up all four wheels. I can’t move over because of traffic and lock up all four of mine. I come to a stop but barely hit her. Meanwhile she jumps out of her car and runs to the side of the road.
A cop is in the middle lane, sees all this, and pulls over. He asks the lady if she is injured. Se doesn’t even know my car lightly hit hers. No, she’s terrified because there is a wild animal loose in her car.
Seems like her kids sometimes take their hamster with them and let it loose in the car. They have apparently forgot it because it just went past the back of her leg and freaked her out so bad she slammed on the brakes.
The cop says he needs to get the cars out of the road. I start mine up and move it to the shoulder. She won’t go near hers, so the cop takes her keys to move it. He opens the car door, stands there for a second and then reaches in and picks something up. He gets in and virtually swerves the car to the shoulder, and starts walking towards us looking really pissed,
He comes over to where we are standing with a pair of gym socks in his hand. They are folded up so as to be a slightly oval shaped ball. He says to the lady, “were these by any chance under your front seat and is this what brushed the back of your leg.” She takes the socks and says, “yes they were under the front seat and I guess that is what I felt.” The cop chewed her out good, and said he could give her a ticket for reckless endangerment. But he didn’t, and in fact he gave no one a ticket.
I told my insurance agent about it and he had a good laugh. The damages to my car were essentially none, and her’s were about $250. Her insurance company tried to get mine to pay, and mine told them to go pound sand. This was back before ‘no fault’ insurance and her insurance demanded this go to trial to determine guilt.
At the trial the cop told the same story and said he felt he could have written her a ticket. The judge pretty much said, “I wish you had but you didn’t.” The judge then said he had no choice but to follow the law which says if you hit somebody from behind, you are following too close.
So for the next three years my insurance rates were elevated because of an “at fault accident.” All this over a hamster, a pair of socks, and a numbskull driver!