by Queener Law | Mar 28, 2016 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
Keeping your child safe in the car is easy – here are five simple ways.
Learn some simple things you can do to keep your child safe while riding in a car.
Many people visit a car accident lawyer in Nashville after their child suffers an injury. Car accidents cannot always be prevented; however, that doesn’t mean that children must always become victims. Here are five simple things you can do to protect your little one from danger.
#1. Buckle your child up using the appropriate car seat or booster seat
According to the Centers for Disease Control, buckling children in and/or placing them in age-appropriate car seats can greatly reduce the risk of death or serious injury. Placing infants under one year of age in a car seat reduces their risk of death by 71%. Among children ages one to four years of age, car seats reduce the risk of death by 54%.
Placing children ages four to eight years of age in a booster seat reduces the risk of death by 45% when compared to placing them only in seat belts. Children over the age of eight who are placed in seat belts will see their risk of death or serious injury be cut in half.
#2. Use safety seats correctly
A recent study was performed on nearly 3,500 users of car and booster seats. The results from that study showed that 72% of all participants did not use their car and/or booster seats correctly. Furthermore, their misuse of these seats occurred in such a way that it increased the risk of a child suffering from an injury during a crash.
The Community Preventative Services Task Force has recommended that governments enact new car seat laws, and that education programs be implemented to raise awareness. Such education programs are thought to be effective at encouraging people to use car seats appropriately. If you have questions about the proper use of a car seat, you may consult your owner’s manual, or contact a certified Child Passenger Safety Technician.
#3. Always place your children in the back seat when using a car or booster seat
Children under the age of 12 should always be placed in the back seat of your vehicle. That way, even if you are involved in an accident, you will not have to worry about them becoming injured by a deploying airbag. How children are placed in the back seat will largely depend upon their age, and here are some guidelines to consider:
- From birth to around age two, you should place your child in a rear-facing car seat in the middle of the back seat. Your son or daughter should remain in this car seat until he or she has reached the upper height and weight limits as stated in your manual.
- From approximately age two through five, your children should be placed in a forward-facing car seat that is placed in the back seat of your vehicle. The exact age at which your child outgrows this seat will vary, and will be based upon the limits imposed by the manufacturer.
- Ages five and older should be placed in a forward-facing booster seat that is properly secured in the back seat. Your children should continue to use a booster seat until they are big enough for seat belts to fit properly. This is generally considered to be whenever they are at least 57 inches tall.
Once children are old enough to wear seatbelts, you may allow them to ride in either the front or the back seat, provided they are buckled in during each trip.
#4. Do not drink and drive
After drinking and driving, you pose a threat not only to those around you, but also to the passengers in your own vehicle. Between the years 2001 and 2010, approximately one in every five children age 15 and under who died in an accident did so as a result of drunk driving. In 65% of those cases, it was the child’s own driver who was intoxicated. Intoxication is defined as having a Blood Alcohol Content of greater than .08 percent, which is the legal limit in most states.
#5. Set the example for your children to follow
Of all the children ages 12 and under who were killed in an automobile accident during 2013, approximately 38 percent of them were not properly restrained. When it comes to getting older children to wear a seat belt, your actions will speak louder than your words. The Centers for Disease Control reports that as many as 40% of all children riding with adults who do not wear their seat belts are also unbuckled. Black and Hispanic children were more likely to be unbuckled during a fatal crash than white children were.
These five things take very little time, but can go a long way toward keeping your children safe. Make sure to follow these five tips each time you get into your vehicle, and the odds of your children surviving an accident will be much greater.
by Queener Law | Mar 23, 2016 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
The beginning of the 2015-2016 school year brings the influx of the student population, increasing the traffic population on Tennessee’s roadways. The excitement and high spirits that often accompany the start of a new semester are oftentimes hampered, however, because with more drivers comes an unfortunate repercussion: an elevated number of vehicle accidents.
According to the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) Encyclopedia, approximately 32,719 people lost their lives in vehicle crashes in the United States in 2013, and an estimated 1,591,000 were injured. Of those, 995 fatalities were in Tennessee. So far this year, an estimated 90,200 vehicle crashes have occurred in the state, with 393 being fatality accidents and approximately 22,470 being injury accidents.
Motor Vehicle Accidents Involving Teens
Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for teenagers ages 15-19 in the United States. In fact, approximately 20 percent of teenage deaths are related to car crashes. In 2013 alone, there were an estimated 2,600 teenage drivers who were involved in fatality accidents and approximately 130,000 received accident related injuries. That same year, the Governors’ Highway Safety Administration reported that Tennessee was number one in the nation (tied with Indiana) for the most vehicle accident fatalities involving teens.
The rate of fatality accidents per 100 miles traveled on Tennessee roadways is highest in the months surrounding a new school year. While many passenger vehicle accidents are clearly a result of inexperienced drivers, students and parents who are not familiar with the community are partly to blame as well. With National Teen Driver Safety Week quickly approaching, it is vital that drivers of all ages become educated about the causes of teen driver related accidents and take measures to prevent such alarming statistics. But what can be done?
Motor Vehicle Accidents Involving Teens: Reducing the Risk
Although the majority of teens in Tennessee wear their seat belts and try to practice safe driving, inexperience, distractions and overconfidence cause many teen drivers to make critical errors that sometimes result in tragic consequences. Some of the leading causes of motor vehicle accidents involving teens include:
- Cell Phone Use and Use of Other Electronics: An estimated 56 percent of all teenage drivers in the United States use their cell phones while driving. Not only do they call and text, but they often play video games and look at social media sites as well.
- Distractions from Other Passengers: The number of fatal motor vehicle crashes involving teen drivers increases with additional passengers. Becoming distracted by loud or overly energetic teens, talking to friends, and becoming influenced by peers to drive riskily are some of the reasons that driving with more passengers results in a higher risk.
- Inexperience: During the first 500 miles of a teenage driver’s drive time he or she is 10 times more likely to become involved in a car accident than an experienced adult. Lack of experience impairs a teen driver’s ability to react in unexpected situations or handle new types of driving experiences like observing the right of way, merging into oncoming traffic, or avoiding accidents caused by other drivers.
- Speeding: Almost 1/3 of accidents involving teenage drivers are due to driving too fast. Teen Driver Source reports that more than half of teens interviewed admitted to driving more than 10 mph over the posted speed limit on some occasions.
- Alcohol Use: Approximately 1/4 of motor vehicle accidents involving teenagers are related to alcohol use, and nearly 60 percent of fatality accidents involving teenagers are related to drunk driving. Consumption of alcohol impedes a driver’s reaction time and impairs judgement.
When a Teen Driving Accident Involves Injuries
No matter how prepared a teen driver may be, accidents sometimes occur, and unfortunately, many times those accidents involve serious injuries and sometimes fatality. In some cases, individuals in Tennessee who are involved in motor vehicle accidents are able to obtain adequate compensation for injuries, lost wages, medical bills and vehicle damage/ loss without the use of a personal injury lawyer in Nashville. Unfortunately, however, this is typically not the case.
Thankfully, experienced personal injury lawyers in Nashville are familiar with the laws regarding motor vehicle accidents in Tennesseeand how they could affect the outcome of a personal injury case. Some factors that can impact a claim include:
- Statute of Limitations: In Tennessee, an individual has the right to file a lawsuit for personal injuries suffered in a vehicle accident up to one year after the accident occurred, and when suing for property damages the individual has up to three years.
- Modified Comparative Fault: When an individual is deemed to be partly at fault for an accident, the modified comparative fault rule can have a significant impact on the amount of compensation that is able to be obtained. With this rule, the driver’s at fault percentage is deducted from the amount of compensation that would have been awarded.
by Queener Law | Mar 18, 2016 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
Advances in technology coupled with people living extremely busy lives has led to an increase in distracted driving. Perhaps one of the most dangerous distractions out there involves texting. In an effort to keep people safe, many areas have enacted texting-while-driving bans that carry significant penalties for anyone caught using a cell phone in such a manner. Have these bans been effective at saving lives? According to several researchers, the answer is “yes.”
How Common is Texting While Driving?
According to a 2011 survey from the Centers for Disease Control, 31 percent of all drivers ages 18 to 64 reported that they had either sent or read a text or email message at least one time in the previous 30 days. During 2011, 3,331 people in the United States were killed in a distracted driving automobile crash, and 387,000 were injured in one. The results of this survey show that texting while driving is a common practice that could have devastating consequences.
American Journal of Public Health Study
A study performed by the American Journal of Public Health was conducted over a period of seven years from 2003 to 2010. Researchers collected data from 19 states to determine if texting bans had an impact on “crash-related hospitalizations.” They then analyzed this data to determine if hospitalization rates increased or decreased after a texting-while-driving ban was implemented. Data from states with a ban was also compared to information from states without a ban to determine if there was a significant difference.
What the researchers discovered was that crash-related hospitalizations decreased by around 7% in states that had enacted a ban. They also claim a significant decrease in hospitalizations occurred in those ages 22 and older, but only a moderate decrease was noted by those 21 and under. As a result of this study, The American Journal of Public Health recommended that all states enact a texting-while-driving ban.
Primary vs. Secondary Bans
Researcher Alva Ferdinand with the Department of Health Care Organization and Policy of the University of Alabama, Birmingham, performed a more in-depth analysis of “in-state” laws, using data gathered from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System from 2000 through 2010. The information obtained from this study was also included in the results that were published in the American Journal of Public Health.
According to Ferdinand, there is considerable variation in texting-while-driving laws, so it is important to know exactly which laws have been most effective. For example, some states ban all drivers from texting, while others restrict only youth.
Laws also vary as to whether they have primary or secondary enforcement. In areas that allow for primary enforcement, officers may stop drivers if they observe them texting. In other locations, officers can pull motorists over only if they observe them breaking another traffic law such as speeding, which amounts to secondary enforcement.
As a result of Ferdinand’s research, primary texting bans were the most effective at reducing traffic fatalities. Primary texting bans accounted for a three percent reduction in deaths, or 19 lives saved per year in each state that had enacted such a ban. When primary texting bans were targeted only at young people, an even higher reduction in fatalities was noticed. Laws targeted toward those age 21 and under resulted in an 11 percent reduction in traffic fatalities among people in that demographic.
Secondary Bans not Effective
Surprisingly, this study showed that there was little to no decrease in fatalities in states where texting-while-driving bans require secondary enforcement. The reason for this was unclear; however, Consumer Affairs surmised that it could be because these laws are rarely enforced.
Nashville, Tennessee news station WSVM reported that the state’s secondary enforcement bans were difficult for officers to implement. A Tennessee Highway Patrol officer agreed, stating that it was difficult to prove whether or not a driver was actually texting. As such, those who visit a Nashville injury lawyer after being hurt by a texting driver may find that proving their case to be challenging.
Surprising Results
Ferdinand was surprised to discover that texting bans with primary enforcement did not result in a significant reduction in traffic deaths among people ages 21 to 64. She did however note that accident-related fatalities among this age group did decline significantly in states that had enacted bans against the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
Recommendations
Ferdinand hopes that policymakers will take note of the results, and enact laws accordingly. Her mentor, Dr. Nir Menachemi agreed, stating that “distracted driving is a growing problem affecting everyone on the roadways. It is my hope that policymakers act upon our findings so that motor vehicle deaths can be prevented.”
This study clearly shows that texting-while-driving bans can help save lives, although the degree to which this happens does vary. As awareness increases, chances are more states will want to enact new laws that will help keep people safe.
by Queener Law | Jul 27, 2015 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
Poor road conditions create unsafe circumstances that contribute to serious and fatal collisions. Roads riddled with potholes and cracks severely damage cars, decreasing their operational efficiency and raising the risk for accidents.
According to an analysis from TRIP, a national transportation research group, United States’ roadways are in such poor condition that they cost the average American driver $515 a year in extra repairs, gas, insurance, and accidents. The primary funding source for streets and highways comes from the states. However, they are also heavily reliant on the federally-funded Highway Trust Fund which is quickly becoming insolvent. Moreover, Congress is thus far unable to agree on a long-term fix to keep the Fund solvent. Congress passed a temporary fix on July 31, 2014, which temporarily prevented insolvency, however, no long-term plan has been implemented.
Overview of the Problem and Cost to the Average Driver
Poor road conditions are present in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. According to TRIP, 28 percent of all U.S. roads are in “poor” condition. A “poor” condition designation means that the road is pitted with so many potholes, ruts, and cracks that it must be completely rebuilt (i.e., repaving is an insufficient fix).
The state of decay varies wildly from state to state. For example, 92 percent of roads in Washington, D.C. are rated “poor.” The next highest is California in which 51 percent of the roads are “poor,” followed by Rhode Island, New Jersey, New York, Washington, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and Michigan. Luckily, Tennessee has some of the best roads in the county. A mere 11 percent are rated “poor.”
The cost of driving on these roads is similarly, widely varied. California, the District of Columbia, Oklahoma, and four other states can all expect to pay over $600 a year in additional costs. Conversely, Tennesseans pay less than $300 a year due to bad roads.
How did it come to this?
The primary funding source for the Fund is the gasoline tax. However, Congress did not peg it to inflation and has not raised it since 1993. The result is steadily declining tax revenue for the Trust Fund. Raising taxes is difficult because voters immediately internalize the cost of the tax but do not appreciate the long-term effects like car accidents and repairs to their vehicles that are due to poorly maintained roads.
by Queener Law | Apr 27, 2015 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
Since their installation in October 2006, red-light cameras in Gallatin, Tennessee, are reported by local law enforcement to have reduced car crashes at four busy intersections by approximately 35 percent. The Tennessean states that despite their success, certain lawmakers would like to do away with the cameras. Opposition efforts involve a revised version of the Tennessee Freedom from Traffic Cameras Act, which would ban the cameras and extend the yellow light to six seconds. A car accident lawyer in Tennessee may understand Gallatin law enforcement’s belief that banning the cameras could lead to more accidents.
Fewer accidents
According to a study from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, 683 people were killed and 133,000 injured in the U.S. in 2012 because someone ran a red light at an intersection. The study shows that this type of deadly crash was reduced 24 percent in larger cities that implemented the cameras. All other types of collisions at intersections saw a reduction of 17 percent.
Cameras save lives and livelihoods
While the costliest consequence of an auto accident may be loss of life, other damages can create significant hardship as well. Injury accidents may result in the following:
- Pain and suffering
- Lost time from work
- Loss of quality of life
- Property damage
The Police Chief, a law enforcement publication, states that the presence of red light cameras has been shown to deter red-light running, which leads to fewer fatal or injury accidents.
What they do
Typically, digital cameras are placed at intersections so that they point inward toward traffic. According to the Federal Highway Administration, induction loop triggers are placed under the road at the stop line. A computer is wired to the camera, to the traffic signal and to the trigger. When a car runs a red light, the computer responds to the trigger and tells the camera to take two pictures of the vehicle, one at the intersection and one halfway through the red light. Police Chief Magazine states that cameras do what is not generally possible for most law enforcement departments: they provide 24/7 surveillance. A car accident lawyer in Tennesseeunderstands that this may prevent fatalities and injuries from intersection collisions.
Bill would ban cameras
Lawmakers who oppose the cameras argue that the practice may be more about profit than safety. However, law enforcement believe the red-light cameras save lives. If you have sustained injuries from a crash at an intersection or have lost a loved one to a collision, a car accident lawyer in Tennessee may be able to help you recover damages.
by Queener Law | Apr 23, 2015 | Auto Accident, Tennessee
As the winter snow and ice melts away, motorists become less concerned about driving through snowstorms and blizzards. Although spring brings warmer weather, it also creates new driving hazards that motorists should take into consideration. A car accident attorney in Tennessee understands that there are many things to keep in mind while navigating the thawed Tennessee roadways this spring. Here are three of the most common concerns:
- Wet roads
April showers can make for wet roads. The Federal Highway Administration reported that wet pavement was responsible for 74 percent of all weather-related car accidents in the nation from 2002 to 2012. Not only does wet weather make it hard to see, accumulated water is slick and can cause cars to hydroplane. When water builds up on the road, it can cause a loss of traction between the street’s surface and the vehicle’s tires. This can trigger the car to slide and skid when the driver attempts to stop, according to esurance.
Speeding and worn tires can increase the risk of a hydroplaning incident, a fact known by a car accident attorney in Tennessee. Motorists should make sure that their tires have good tread, avoid speeding and never use their cruise control when traveling in the rain.
Motorists should also make sure that their windshield wiper blades are in good working condition. Windshield wipers are often used excessively during the winter, and may need to be replaced in the springtime.
- Beware of potholes
During winter months, snow seeps into small cracks on the road. As the water freezes, it causes the pavement to expand. The end results are treacherous potholes that have made their appearance throughout the state of Tennessee. According to WKRN News 2, these potholes can cause tire damage, misalignment, undercarriage problems and even car accidents. While avoiding potholes may be easy during daylight hours, they can be difficult to see at night or during spring rainstorms. The Tennessee Department of Transportation reported that motorists who have fallen victim to giant potholes may be able to file a claim through the Department of Treasury’s claims division.
- Small animals everywhere
In many parts of the country, little creatures become more abundant in the springtime. It isn’t uncommon for motorists to encounter little bunnies, squirrels, raccoons, deer and porcupines while out on a drive. Braking for small animals can cause a catastrophic auto collision if motorists aren’t driving defensively.
Spring auto accidents may result in serious injuries, emotional trauma and property damage. Injured drivers may be left with excessive medical bills and unable to return to work. A car accident attorney in Tennessee may provide accident victims with the legal counsel they need to resolve their problems and obtain compensation for their injuries.
