Distracted driving and driver negligence is the main culprit behind auto accidents. If drivers were to execute more caution, thousands of lives would be saved every year. Considering the amount of motor vehicles on the road, it’s no surprise that your chances of being involved in a car accident at least once within your lifetime are extremely high.
Nearly everyone knows someone whose life has been affected by a serious car accident, and many people are injured in multiple auto accidents throughout their life.
The National Highway Safety Administration reports that in 2010, 32,885 people died in auto accidents in the United States and in the same year, an estimated 2.24 million people were injured in motor vehicle crashes. Unfortunately, the vast majority of auto accidents involve driver negligence and/or distraction. Negligence refers to when someone fails to use the appropriate level of caution for a given situation. For example, running a red light or speeding would be considered irresponsible and negligent driving behaviors,
both of which increase the likelihood of an auto collision.
Driver distraction is also a major cause for concern and it plays a large role in the number of annual auto accidents. Absent of violating a traffic law, driver distraction would involve any activity that would take the driver’s eyes off the road, their hands off the wheel or their mind off the task of driving. Sadly, cellular phone use is one of the greatest contributors to auto accidents and even hands-free devices are now proving to be equally dangerous.
Common forms of driver distraction include: texting while driving, using a hands-free device (e.g. dialing), talking on a cellular phone, eating while driving, applying cosmetics, reading while driving, changing stations on the radio, using a navigational system, reading a map, and handling children in the rear of the vehicle. All of these distractions can distract the driver long enough to cause a serious, if not fatal car accident. Tragically, it only takes a few seconds to change the course of your life forever.
The problem with cellular phone use is threefold, it involves punching the keypad when sending texts or dialing numbers, it involved taking one’s eyes off the road, and it involves taking one’s mind off the task of driving when they are engaged in a conversation. Texting while driving has been found to be equally if not more dangerous than drunk driving with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or greater.
Another common form of driver negligence is drunk driving. In reality, the efforts of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and other national campaigns have actually decreased the numbers of drunk drivers on American’s roadways; however, these nationwide campaigns have not eliminated drunk drivers altogether. In North Carolina and all across the nation, it is unlawful to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08% if you are over 21 years of age. That number goes down to just .04% for commercial drivers and for drivers under the age of 21, North Carolina has zero tolerance. This means that an underage driver can be convicted of DUI even after having just one alcoholic drink.
Drivers all across the globe have a new and all the more present threat on the roadways, and they are drivers intoxicated by lawful and unlawful drugs. Due to the fact that our population has seen a massive surge in people on prescription medications, law enforcement has expanded their assessments of intoxicated drivers to include those driving under the influence of prescription medications including heavy painkillers, sleeping pills, anti-anxiety medications and even over-the-counter cold or allergy medications. There are many lawfully prescribed medications on the market that drastically affect one’s ability to operate heavy machinery, and this includes a car, truck or motorcycle. When certain prescription medications are mixed with alcohol, the ramifications can be deadly when the intoxicated driver gets behind the wheel of an automobile.
Auto accidents remain one of the leading causes of death in the United States, and they are the leading cause of death in small children. Aside from a defective auto part, or some other defective equipment in the vehicle, the majority of auto accidents are the direct result of driver negligence. If you were injured in an auto accident and it wasn’t your fault, you have the legal right to pursue compensation for all of your economic and non-economic losses. A skilled and competent attorney will be able to help you determine if you have grounds for a personal injury lawsuit. If an attorney believes you are in the right, they can help negotiate a fair and just settlement with the insurance company. This way you won’t be forced to accept a low-ball insurance settlement that doesn’t reflect your true financial losses.
Please visit the firm's website at http://www.raleighpersonalinjurylawfirm.com for more information.
