NHTSA Complaint #11480884 — 2021 TOYOTA COROLLA

Recently my car was in an accident involving 2 other vehicles. An SUV in front of me rear-ended someone and then I rear-ended the SUV. We were in heavy traffic at a major intersection and were stopped at a red light. The light turned green and we began to move. We were accelerating from a stop and were maybe approaching 10 -15 mph. Traffic started to back up at the next light and so the first car stopped suddenly so as not to block the intersection. Then the driver in front of me crashed into that car. He was on his phone, not looking, and didn't have time to brake. I was about 2-3 car lengths behind when he came to a complete stop. I was also still accelerating, as were most cars, since the light had just turned green. As soon as the vehicle in front of me hit the other car and stopped moving, I immediately applied my brakes. Based on the distance I believe I should have been able to stop. I remember thinking there was plenty of room. Except that the ABS came on and, instead of stopping my car before hitting the object in front of me (because the car is also capable of doing that), it just continued to let my car slide right into the back of the vehicle in front of me. I was then "at fault" according to my insurance company despite my explanation of the details. This led to a $500 deductible for repairs and an increase in my insurance rate. I honestly believe that the ABS should not have activated in that situation. If the car is able to recognize and even stop for objects in front of it, why would it let me slide into another car? I've had similar situations with my other cars in the past and they always stopped quickly, often avoiding this very situation. To summarize, I feel that the antilock brake system in my car failed to act in a safe and appropriate manner, thus causing an increased risk of damage or injury to the vehicle and passengers. In my case it resulted in damage to my car and a lot of extra money to cover those damages. Thank you