Distracted Driver Accidents
After An Auto Accident: What to Do to Protect You and Your Case
After you have been injured in an auto crash, you must take steps to protect you and your case right away. The insurance company for the other driver and its adjustors and private investigators launch into a defense mode to protect the insurance company and its money, not you. There are many things that you can do protect you and your case. You must:
1. Seek appropriate medical treatment
If you have been hurt, or don’t know if you have been hurt, then you should visit the local hospital Emergency Department right away. A trained medical professional should evaluate your head, neck, and back and obtain appropriate tests, such as x-rays and scans. If you don’t get evaluated right away, then the insurance company will later argue that you must not have been really hurt. When you are discharged from the Emergency Department, follow the recommendations. If you are supposed to follow-up with a physician, do so.
2. Make a Police Report for the Traffic Accident
If you are at the scene, call the police. If you left the scene, go to the local Police Department and make a report. If you don’t make a report, then an insurance company can deny insurance coverage or claim that the accident did not happen the way you say it did.
3. Take Photographs of Your Vehicle
A picture is worth a thousand words. A digital photograph taken with your smartphone will preserve evidence of the damage from the collision and prove how hard the impact was. Try to photograph the other driver’s vehicle at the scene, if you are able.
4. Keep All Your Medical Bills, Medical Appliances, Prescription Medication Bottles, and Medical Records
If your case goes to jury, all of these can be used as compelling evidence of your injury and rehabilitation.
5. Contact and Hire a Good Personal Injury Attorney
Consultations are usually free. DO NOT DELAY! Call us now at 773.838.8100.
Want to learn more? Click here to learn how to interview and hire a good personal injury attorney.
An experienced attorney can act quickly to preserve evidence to prove the other driver’s negligence:
He can obtain interviews of an eyewitness and record it. This interview may make or break your case.
He can inspect your motor vehicle or the defendant’s vehicle for physical damage patterns and points of impact between the vehicles. Digital images of the physical damage can prove the nature and extent of the impact. If there is minimal visible damage of an impact, then the attorney may have an auto mechanic inspect it for structural frame damage that occurred but was obscured by the high-impact bumpers.
A good attorney may even download the event data recorder (EDR), also known as the “black box,” from one of the involved vehicles to prove its speed before impact and its braking distance before the defendant actually applied the brakes before impact.
Often, a municipal controlled traffic camera was located at or near the scene of a traffic accident and it captured the collision or the color of traffic light controls. This could ultimately win your negligence case. These include the request on the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) or Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). But obtaining this data requires an Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request under Illinois law 5 ILCS 120/1 (1966 & Supp 2010), which a good attorney knows how to request and obtain.
A FOIA document response may show:
- Video recording of the collision or traffic light control colors, i.e. red, yellow or green;
- What traffic controls were installed and why;
- Pavement markings for traffic control and direction of traffic; and/or
- Recent roadway construction at the scene and lane configuration.
While there is a lot you yourself can do to protect your case after an accident, there is no substitute for competent and experienced attorney who has handled such accidents before. So, while you should do all you can to preserve the evidence in your case, you should also consult an attorney soon after the accident.
Why Kurt D. Lloyd Is the Personal Injury Attorney For You
Other attorneys have rated him A+ for trial skills, and he has won a national award for his jury trial skills. Kurt has even written a book On Jury Selection for Illinois lawyers. With vast experience in auto accidents, chances are Kurt Lloyd has handled a case like yours. Call attorney Kurt D. Lloyd at Grazian & Volpe today at 773.838.8100, or fill out our online form for a free consultation.
The above article was written by Kurt D. Lloyd of Grazian & Volpe. Kurt Lloyd has been practicing personal injury law in the Chicagoland area for over 30 years and has helped his clients win more than $355 million in jury verdicts and settlements from insurance companies and corporations. Kurt helps his injured clients regain their lives after injury. The information provided comes from his extensive legal and medical research and years of experience trying injury cases in courtrooms throughout Illinois.
State Farm & Auto Accidents: Not Your Good Neighbor During the COVID-19 Pandemic?
At Grazian & Volpe, we’re ready, willing and able to weather the storm. Our last three (3) auto accident settlements against negligent drivers who were insured by State Farm Auto Insurance Company were for State Farm’s $100,000.00 policy limits—and that’s exactly the amount we won for our clients. Nothing short. Our attorneys work hard to make sure that our clients obtain full and fair compensation and nothing less. Unlike auto accident law firms, we have the financial resources to weather the storm. We’re here to help!
This has serious implications for victims of vehicle motor accidents. If you’ve just been in a traumatic car accident and were injured, you should not have to worry about whether your attorney is going to settle short for cash. You should have the confidence that your attorney is on your side and isn’t going to settle for anything less than what you are due.
Call us at 773.838.8100 or fill out our online form to schedule your free initial consultation.
Can Technology Prevent Distracted Teen Driving?
Every human being is is not living under a rock is now aware of the dangers of distracted driving. IN 2011, 3,331 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver-many more than those killed by drunk drivers. In 2014 we are setting the course for close to the half million mark for injuries caused by distracted driving and an increase in wrongful deaths.
Despite the overwhelming data, most people surveyed admit it is difficult to avoid using a smartphone while driving and judging from our own road survey, it is difficult to find any driver in rush hour traffic whose face is not lit by the light of a smartphone.
So what technology hath wrought be solved by technology itself? A myriad of companies have developed products that prohibit or limit a driver’s ability to use a phone while driving, marketing their products to parent’s desperate to keep their teens safe on the road. But is the answer? Many feel that this is akin to keeping your child in a bubble at the expense of teaching them survival skills in the outside world. In other words, is technology ignoring the underlying problem?
Bryan Reimer, Ph.D.,research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s AgeLab and the associate director of the New England University Transportation Center at MIT has found that people prone to texting while driving fall into a larger category: high risk drivers. He has found that if you take away their phones they will find a substitute, whether it be changing radio stations, rummaging in their bags or checking their appearance in the mirror.
To address these drivers lies with feedback-oriented tools that examine overall driving performance, which includes cell phone use but other behaviors as well. He finds that products such as the DriveCam, an in car camera and related technology that alert drivers when they engage in hazardous behavior can provide parents with weekly data, including a driving score and visual clip of any risky behavior.
Grazian and Volpe applauds any efforts to increase road safety and prevent motor vehicle injuries and fatalities. This is a rich subject with a number of viewpoints as to solution. We will be exploring these in posts to come. Please stay tuned!
Distracted Teen Driving May Be Parent’s Fault
It is now common knowledge that driving while texting or driving is the number one cause of motor vehicle accidents. There is not a parent of driving age teens who has not warned their teen to avoid texting or talking on cell phones while driving. Unfortunately, there seems to be many parents not following their own advice and that may be a good reason why the use of cellphone devices during driving remains on the rise.
Here’s another reason parent’s have to be guilty- a recent survey indicates that distracted teen driving may be partly Mom or Dad’s fault! Researchers at Parallel Consulting and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have found that over half of the teens gabbing on cellphones while driving are on the line with a parent. The surveyed teens said that parents get mad if they don’t pick up their calls and that their parents also drive while using the phone.
The attorneys at Grazian and Volpe have found our motor vehicle collision and accident caseload growing each year. We have also found that most car and truck accidents involve a party who was operating a cell phone and distracted from effectively observing traffic. Most of these cases involve adults traveling alone or sadly, with children. It was no surprise to read the results of this survey.
We suggest that parents refrain, as an example from using a cellphone when driving, period, but most importantly in the presence of children. Secondly, parents should also set rules for answering the phone while driving. Tell teens that it is appropriate and acceptable to respond to a call from their parents after they have reached their destination. If a long car trip is in progress, teens should be told to wait until a rest stop. Optimally, a teen should text a parent before setting upon a car trip to tell the parent they will be unreachable for a period of time. I tell my girls to let me know when they are starting on their way and the expected ETA. I try not to panic is they don’t call exactly on time and to give a bit of space. Of course, every parent knows that will not be always effective. However, setting an example and setting some rules will go a long way to keeping your child safe on the road.
April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month
Even though April is National Distracted Driving Awareness and this is the last day of the month, it is never to late to remind the public of the safety issues involved with distracted driving.
In honor of this month, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA) has released new survey results that show that Americans continue to use electronic devices while driving despite warnings that it causes their own driving to deteriorate and can lead to motor vehicle crashes, injuries and traffic fatalities.
The National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS) shows that at any given daylight moment across America, 660,000 drivers are using cell phones or manipulating electronic devices while driving. According to NHTSA date, more than 3,300 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes and 387,000 were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver.
So far 39 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands ban text messaging for all drivers. Also 10 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands prohibit all drivers from using handheld cell phones while driving.
More than 6000 respondents age 16 and older were interviewed by phone for the National Survey on Distracted Driving Attitudes and Behaviors. Almost half of drivers said they answer an incoming call and one in four drivers are willing to place a call on all, most or some trips. Slightly fewer are willing to make a call while driving compared to 2010 (28% to 24%), but there is little if any change in those who answer a call while driving (52% to 49%). Considering that in 2011 there were almost 212 million licensed drivers in America, about 102 million drivers were answering calls and 50 million drivers were placing calls while driving.
Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers at Grazian and Volpe want you to stay off the phone while driving and stay safe. Read about Distracted Driving in NHTSA’s premier of Safety 1N Num3ers, a new online month newsletter.
Wrongful Death of Pedestrian Caused by Texting Driver
The family of a 15-year-od boy has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a man who, while texting and driving, struck and killed the boy while the victim and a friend were walking on the shoulder of a street. The man’s vehicle left the road and struck the victim who died the next day in the hospital.
The man has a long history of traffic violation and has been charged in criminal offense, automobile homicide involving the use of a hand-held wireless communication device while driving which is a felony.
Utah, where the accident occurred had just passed an amendment to its’ texting-while-driving law making it illegal to be doing anything on a hand-held wireless communication device except making or receiving a call, or using GPS navigation. Before the amendment, the driver had to be sending a text at the instant the accident occurred. Merely looking at a text or screen of a cell phone was not illegal.
Grazian and Volpe applauds the broadening of Utah’s texting-while-driving laws. As we have pointed out in numerous article texting-while-driving causes more accidents that driving and drinking. We cannot be too tough on this practice.
It is always better to stay safe and avoid accidents – but if you can’t stay safe – stay with Grazian and Volpe – Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers for over 30 years.
Drowsy Drivers Responsible for Fatal Car Accidents
A new study of driving behavior finds drowsy drivers responsible for 730 deadly motor vehicle accidents and an additional 30,000 crashes that were nonfatal.
Even being tired and sleep deprived without actually nodding off can be a serious problem on the road. Fatigue slows reaction times and can lead to poor judgment. Studies show that going without sleep for 20 to 21 hours and then getting behind the wheel is comparable to having a blood alcohol level of about .08%, which the legal limit in most states. In fact, going without sleep for 24 hours is equal to a blood alcohol level of 0.1 percent which is higher than the legal limit in all states!
Studies show that people who fall asleep at the wheel may do it so quickly-and briefly-without registering the lapse. Warning signs included having trouble remembering the last few miles that you’ve driven, or missing an exit.
Many people who find themselves groggy while driving resort to blasting the radio or rolling down the window but those measures are largely shown to be ineffective. Drinking a caffeinated beverage may help, but effectiveness depends largely on an individual’s physiology or tolerance to caffeine.
Experts advise finding a safe place to pull over and drift off for a few minutes. Alertness can be restored by a short nap and a cup of coffee keeping you and other drivers safe from your drowsy driving. Remember is is always better to stay safe but if you can’t stay safe stay with Grazian and Volpe, Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers for over 30 years!
AT&T Chief Speaks Out on Texting at the Wheel
Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers at Grazian and Volpe have been adamant in informing the public against the dangers of serious injury due to car accidents that occur when a driver is texting. We are pleased to see that a prominent carrier is raising awareness on this issue and the message is personal and starting at the top.
Randall L. Stephenson, the chairman and chief executive of AT&T, spoke at a conference in New York to hundreds of major investors, including Fortune 500 executives. The topic was the state of the telecom businesses, but he began with a request on a different topic: Please don’t text and drive.
Mr. Stephenson said that a few years ago someone close to him caused an accident while texting. As he has become more vocal about texting and driving, he said people were coming up to him and writing him with their own stories of tragedy, including admissions that they caused accidents.
The smartphone “is a product we sell and it’s being used inappropriately.” For him, that means the company he runs has to get involved in a public awareness campaign. “we have got to drive behavior.”
While safety say that history shows that public service campaigns have had limited success on issues like drunken driving or seat belt use unless they are paired with strong laws and that is something Mr. Stephenson opposes.
David D. Teater, senior director of the National Safety Council, had a son killed by a driver talking on her phone. He states that he is pleased to see telecommunications companies no longer lobbying against laws aimed at curbing driver distraction caused by electronic devices.
“We’d love their support on the legislative side,” he said of AT&T’s position. “But the fact they’re are not opposing us is good.”
Currently 39 states ban testing while driving. Research shows that the activity sharply increases the risk of crash, even beyond the risk posed by someone with a .08 blood alcohol level, the legal limit in many states. Yet researchers say that there is no indication drivers are less incline to text and drive, and there is some indication that the behavior is increasing.
Drivers need be aware of the dangers of mobile devices while driving and not ignore the dangers because this activity is not prohibited by legislation.
Remember, it is always better to stay safe but if you can’t stay safe, stay with Grazian and Volpe, Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers for over 30 years.
Texting While Parenting Equals the Dangers of Distracted Driving!
Chicagoland’s Injury Lawyers at Grazian and Volpe strive constantly to educate their clients as to the dangers of distracted driving. Child safety experts now cite the rising number of non-fatal injuries to children under age five between 2007 and 2010, after falling for much of the prior decade.
The question is whether high-tech gadgetry is effecting the ability of adults to provide proper supervision to young children. Emergency doctors see the growing use of hand-held electronic devices as a plausible explanation for the surprising reversal of a long slide in injury rates for young children.
Child safety experts attribute the previous slide in injury rates starting in the 1970s to the implementation of safer playgrounds to baby gates to fences around swimming pools. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that “The injuries were going down and down and down” noting that the recent uptick is “pretty striking.”
Statistics from the government’s Consumer Product Safety Commission, which tracks injuries by product type, show children are getting hurt more, including serious falls, during activities and at ages that would warrant close supervision.
While casualty has not been well documented, emergency room doctors cite the well-proven connection between driving while distracted and the rise in smartphone use. They state it is logical and born out by statistics to apply the same dynamic to parenting and smartphone use. Complicating the picture is that people tend to under-report the amount of time they spend on mobile devices. Barbara Morrongiello, a psychology professor at the the University of Guelph in Canada studies the relationship between child-supervision and injury and states that most people do not realize how much they are distracted by devices.
In fact a recent incident wherein a woman was watching a friend’s two-year-old son when another friend texted her illustrates the point perfectly. The child slipped into the pool, flailed for about a minute, drifted toward the deep end, then sank. The woman was looking at a photo on a smartphone. About three minutes after fiddling with the cellphone, she dropped it and then noticed the young boy underwater. She plunged in and pulled him out. The whole event was documented on a security camera. The woman told an emergency technician that she had taken her eyes off the boy for only 20 seconds. The security-camera footage shows she did not look at the boy for more than 3 minutes!
Ms. Morrongiello says that information she has collected from 62 families with two-year-old children revealed that 67% of injuries occurred when a parent wasn’t supervising and only 10% occurred when a parent was watching.
Grazian and Volpe blog about this subject in the hope that all parents and caregivers will pay heed to this recent spate of evidence and try to avoid mobile device use whenever caring for young children or any person entrusted to their care. It is always better to stay safe, but if you can’t stay safe-Stay with Grazian and Volpe, Chicagolands Injury Lawyers for over 30 years.
New Tool in the War on Texting and Driving
Your Chicago Injury Attorneys at Grazian and Volpe make a good living from the negligence of those who text and drive and cause car accidents and truck accidents. However, we would certainly prefer our clients and the general public stay safe and avoid personal injury. We may be lawyers but we still are humans!
I just spent 20 hours driving cross country to get my youngest daughter off to her first year of college. My wife and I witnessed many car drivers of cars and trucks who were texting while driving at speeds well over 60 miles per hour. The majority of these drivers were truck drivers. It was so prolific that we started a car game competition to see who could spot the most truck drivers texting. Unfortunately, we found most truck drivers were texting and the competition was to find the drivers that were not texting! Studies show that this is more dangerous than drinking while driving and more likely to cause serious personal injury and wrongful death. Yet texting while driving appears to be on the increase.
I was very pleased to see a recent article in Investor’s Business Daily which reported the invention of a new deivice designed to prevent this dangerous practice. Anna University researchers in India have found a way to detect when someone is texting, and then jam the phone. The device uses a radio-frequency identification chip to find out if the vehicle is moving and whether the driver is texting. Unlike similiar devices, this technology can tell the driver from a passenger and jam only the driver’s phone.
On the highways and in South Chicago we have a huge amount of truck traffic. Your Chicagoland Accident Lawyers at Grazian and Volpe beg that you drive defensively and be aware of drivers who are texting while driving. Remember, it is always better to stay safe, but if you can’t stay safe, stay with Grazian and Volpe, your Chicago and South Chicago accident lawyers for over 30 years!
