Traffic Fatalities Increase Following Daylight Savings Time
Researchers have concluded that sleep deprivation on the Monday following the shift to daylight savings time in the spring results in an increase in fatal car crashes. Here’s a link to the researchers’ abstract. McMath Woods encourages all motorists to remember the three D’s of deadly driving: drunk, distracted, and drowsy.
Traffic Fatalities on the Rise in U.S., Arkansas, in part, because of Distracted Driving
Yesterday, the National Safety Council estimated that as many as 40,000 people died in car crashes in 2016. This estimate represents a 6% increase over 2015 and a 14% increase over 2014. What’s causing the significant increase in fatalities? People are driving more miles and more people are driving distracted. Arkansas State Police report a Read More
Arkansas’s Roadway Fatalities Rise 11% Through June 2016
Noel Oman, in an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette article this morning, addresses the increasing number of Arkansas fatalities on our state’s roads. Here’s a link to the article: https://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODN/ArDemocrat/PrintArticle.aspx?doc=ArDemocrat%2F2016%2F08%2F24&entity=ar00900 From 2004 to 2013, driving fatalities declined nationally. However, driving fatalities rose nationally in 2014 and 2015 and that trend continues through June 2016. Arkansas’s road deaths have followed Read More
18 Wheeler Wrecks and Regulations
We have blogged before about the challenges of handling a wreck involving an 18 wheeler. If you are involved in a serious wreck with an 18 Wheeler, be aware that it is very likely they will have experts, including accident reconstructionists, on the scene within hours. You should not delay in seeking help. You need Read More
Can I Make A Claim For Future Medical Expenses?
Under Arkansas law, an injured person can recover “[t]he reasonable expense of any necessary medical care, treatment and services received . . . and the present value of such expense reasonably certain to be required in the future.” AMI 2204. This means if an injured person has received $100 in medical treatment, then they can Read More
Check Your Insurance Policy To See If You Have Medpay Coverage.
When I’m speaking with someone about a car wreck they’ve been injured in, one of my first questions is “do you have medpay coverage.” The usual response is something like “you don’t understand, I wasn’t at fault for the wreck so shouldn’t we be going after the at-fault driver’s insurance?” When handling an auto crash case, Read More
What Is Gap Insurance?
I often receive phone calls about liability insurance carriers not wanting to pay for all of the debt associated with a motor vehicle that has been totaled. According to Arkansas’s jury instructions, the liability insurance carrier must only pay the difference in fair market value immediately before and immediately after the wreck. See AMI 2210. Fair Read More
Wet Weather In Arkansas Affects Driving Conditions
On average, there are 5,760,000 motor vehicle crashes yearly in the United States. About 22% of those crashes, approximately 1,259,000, are weather related. Of those approximately 1,259,000 weather related crashes, 73% occur on wet pavement and 46% occur during rainfall. Crashes involving wet pavement and rain account for approximately 21% of all car wreck fatalities. Read More
Is Hands Free Safer Than Hand Held Cell Phone Use?
In 2011, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) called for a nationwide ban on driver use of portable electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle. The requested ban included prohibiting drivers from using hands free cell phones while driving. Why? Because statistical data shows that even when drivers have hands free cell phones, they still Read More
Are Distracted Drivers As Dangerous As Drunk Drivers?
According to a 2006 comparison study entitled A Comparison of the Cell Phone Driver and the Drunk Driver, the answer is “yes.” The conclusion of the research was “when driving conditions and time on task were controlled for, the impairments associated with using a cell phone while driving can be as profound as those associated Read More