An intoxicated or DUI driver that caused an accident related death has declined over the last ten years. http://goo.gl/LivQS These statistics suggest that the reduced DUI death rate must be the result of increased law enforcement. For example, The Nighthawk DUI Task Force seeks out drunk or DUI drivers in Dekalb County, Fulton County, Clayton County, Gwinnett County, Cobb County and other areas in metro Atlanta. In 2004, the …
Motorcycle Hit and run driver- Dekalb Police Investigation
Hit and run drivers causing collisions and accidents in Dekalb County and other metro Atlanta counties continues to be a significant problem for all drivers- including a motorcyle driver. The Dekalb County Police Department under Major G. Horner has implemented a Special Operations Division (or “SOD”) designed to support the uniform patrol division and provide specialized investigation. http://tiny.cc/016ekw Under Dekalb County …
Rental car benefits- totalled
If you have a rental car after an accident, the insurance company will typically cut off your benefits in a very short period of time after a total loss is declared. Typically, from the time the insurance company determines your car is totalled, you will be given another five days rental. This catches many people off guard because the assume they will …
Texting and driving- Georgia and the US
See this link from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showing the states which have banned texting and driving in Georgia and across the United States. http://tiny.cc/ly95jw
Tractor trailer- FMCSA statistics
There were 8,481,999 registered “large trucks” or tractor trailers traveling the interstate highway system as of 2005. http://tiny.cc/2of2jw A large truck is defined as a truck with a gross vehicle weight of rating of greater than 10,000 pounds. This information was compiled by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (or “FMCSA”). The typical tractor trailer combination weighs approximately …
Driver who was texting- 23x higher accident
A texting driver is 23 more times likely to get into a car accident than a non texting driver. For those people killed by a driver who was distracted, 995 reported that they used their cell phone or mobile phone. The reason for this statistic should be clear to all of us who drive. A driver who is texting takes his or …
Driver going the wrong way
Wrong way collisions kill and are a problem on busy highways in Georgia. Statistics are hard to identify. In Washington, for example, on average, 350 people each year are killed when a driver is going the wrong way (based on data collected in 2002). http://tiny.cc/e7otjw According to an archived publication of the U.S. Department of Transportation, driving the wrong way on an interstate or highway has …
Distracted driver- an increasing problem
More than 25% of adult cell phone owners felt their cell phone had at some point compromised their ability to drive. This information was obtained from a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center. According to Pew, by 2009, cell phone users who used text messaging doubled to 65%. These results are similar for teenage drivers. According to Pew, one in four American teens …
Car Accident Trials and Authentic Self
My first jury trial close to twenty years ago focused on a car accident here in Georgia. My client was hit and injured in the collision. The at fault driver (referred to as “Defendant”) had a clever defense. The insurance defense attorney refused to settle for a fair sum. I tried the case to a jury. It should have been resounding failure. I …
Distracted driver- risk of being killed
The higher risk of being killed in a car accident or a truck accident might be worth looking at changing the way we drive. According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted drivers (“dangerous drivers”) caused 3092 deaths in 2010. The NHTSA reports that sending or receiving a text takes a driver’s eyes from the road for …