Personal Injury & Accident Lawyer Blog

More than 6 million automobile accidents occur in the United States every year, and of those accidents, more than one million are a result of distracted drivers.  These statistics come from the American Automobile Association (AAA), and in response the organization is attempting to bring awareness to this growing problem.  This week (from October 5th through October 11th), the AAA is sponsoring and promoting an effort known as Heads Up Drivers Week.  It is meant to prompt people to take a close look at their driving habits and to correct them so that car accident attorneys do not constantly have to take on new cases dealing with this issue.

Specifically, the AAA has provided 10 suggestions for drivers to follow this week and to find out if their driving experience and overall safety are improved as a result:

1. Plan your route ahead of time and check traffic conditions before leaving
2. Put your electronic devices such as cell phones away
3. Make sure any pets or children are properly and safely seated before leaving
4. Eat your meals or snacks before or after your trip
5. Stow your loose possessions properly
6. Make seat and climate control adjustments on your vehicle before departing
7. Finish dressing/applying makeup/shaving before getting into your vehicle
8. Focus your brain onto the driving task at hand
9. Take some time to evaluate your own driving habits
10. Use technology intended to help you travel to your advantage, such as GPS devices

While it’s not known how much of a difference these steps will make in regards to the overall accident statistics around the United States, the hope is that enough people will realize that they are making repeated mistakes behind the wheel and take the necessary steps to correct them.  If nothing else, you could become much more aware of the dangerous tactics used by other drivers and learn to avoid them earlier than you would have if you had been distracted yourself.

However, this will obviously not prevent all accidents from occurring.  If you or someone you love has been injured in a car accident, you need to contact the car accident lawyers at the Phillips National Injury Group today to schedule a free initial consultation.

When the drivers of 3.8 million vehicles are placed in a situation of immediate and extreme danger, the manufacturer of those vehicles has no choice but to initiate a recall.  That’s exactly what Toyota did today, as problems regarding the removable, rubber all-weather floor mats have led to the accelerator sticking in several different models.  Therefore, Toyota recalled all of the affected models in order to take the necessary corrective measures.  Additionally, Toyota recall lawyers have begun to field inquiries from drivers who may have been harmed by this issue.

That National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) has also been involved with this issue, and its preliminary investigations revealed that these floor mats, all of which are placed on the driver’s side, are too long for the space provided, which is what the agency believes is causing accelerators to stick to the floor and to unexpectedly bring these vehicles to dangerous speeds with little to no forewarning.

The models affected by this recall include:

• Toyota Camry – 2007-10 models
• Toyota Avalon – 2005-10 models
• Toyota Prius – 2004-09 models
• Toyota Tacoma – 2005-10 models
• Toyota Tundra – 2007-10 models
• Lexus ES 350 – 2007-10 models
• Lexus IS 250 - 2006-10 models
• Lexus IS 350 - 2006-10 models

Toyota and the government have advised all drivers of these models to immediately remove the floor mats from the driver’s side, and if the driver of any of these defective vehicles finds him or herself accelerating suddenly, he or she should push down on the brake pedal with both feet until the vehicle slows down to the point where it can be placed in neutral.  There are also models that have a start/stop engine button, and if that button is pressed for at least three seconds, it should cut the power to the engine and help to bring the vehicle to a stop.

The NHTSA has received more than 100 reports of problems regarding this issue, although it declined to report how many of these incidents involved accidents.  However, there has been one tragic report of a family of four that was killed near San Diego when their vehicle’s accelerator stuck to the floor, causing it to veer off the side of the road, roll over and burst into flames.  Four people were killed in the accident.

If you or someone you love has been harmed by a defective Toyota automobile, you need to contact the Toyota recall lawyers at the Phillips National Injury Group today to schedule a free initial consultation.

Bridge construction is obviously a necessary pursuit for many reasons, as unsafe structures like these only lead to terrible tragedies.  However, this is also a type of work that’s inherently dangerous on its own, and some bridge jobs ten to create more problems than others.  Tragically, a bridge in Tennessee that’s been under construction for some time has led to more than one incident, and the most serious occurred last week where one construction worker was killed and sent two others to the hospital.

According to Tri-Cities.com:

“About 10 a.m. Wednesday, three crew members working on a bridge pylon were knocked into the South Fork of the Holston River near State Route 75 and the Boone Lake Dam by a collapsing rebar frame.

Workers on the job site fished two of the workers, a man and a woman, out of the water and got them medical attention. They could not save a second man, who was pronounced dead two hours later, after county rescue divers recovered his body from the river.

Simpson Construction Co. Compliance Officer Ron Higgins told the Herald Courier’s news partner, News Channel 11 Connects, that his company’s initial investigation shows the rebar frame collapsed after its stabilizing cable snapped. The company will continue to investigate the accident today, Higgins said.”

The injured workers are expected to recover, but officials are sure to investigate the matter further to identify the cause and fault of the accident.  If you or someone you love has been injured in such an incident, you need to contact the construction accident lawyers at the Phillips National Injury Group today to schedule a free initial consultation.

We’ve relayed a few tragic cases of ATV accidents recently that resulted in serious injuries and fatalities, and it seems that the number of accidents on these vehicles is on the rise.  Now that more coverage is being dedicated to this growing issue, reports are beginning to surface that detail the statistics that surround the problems related to riding ATV’s for either recreational or agricultural uses.

The Journal-Star in Lincoln, Nebraska recently published an article that laid out a few relevant statistics, and in a word, they are troubling:

“In rural Nebraska, ATV accidents have become the leading cause of agricultural fatalities. From 2004 through 2007, one-third of ag fatalities involved ATVs, which are handy for many tasks on farms and ranches, as well as for recreation.

The Consumer Product Safety Safety Commission reported last year that serious injuries because of ATV crashes have increased for eight years in a row to a total of 150,900 in 2007. Since 2001, the number of injuries serious enough to require emergency room treatment has risen by 37 percent. Nationwide, at least 542 ATV fatalities were reported.

The Yamaha Rhino ATV, which has side-by-side seating for the driver and a passenger, has been targeted by lawsuits alleging that it is unstable and prone to rollovers. Yamaha has offered free repairs to improve safety.

Safety experts are particularly concerned about the number of ATV accidents involving children. About one-third of injuries and deaths happen to children age 16 or younger.”

At least some good could be coming from these senseless tragedies.  The University of Nebraska Extension began a program last year designed to provide training and general education for the proper operation of ATV’s.

If you own an ATV, you need to take proper precautions when driving it.  If you or someone you love has been injured or worse in an ATV accident, you need to contact the attorneys at the Phillips National Injury Group as soon as possible to schedule a free initial consultation.

When industrial workers are performing their duties at dangerous heights, usually occurring on the top of buildings or equipment, it’s common and advisable for them to attach themselves to a safety line so that if they should fall, they will not free-fall to the ground.  While it’s clear that these safety lines have saved many lives, they can also cause injuries if they are not properly handled during the job.  Unfortunately, a man in Florida severely injured his back because of his safety line, but the crane on which he was working was used to lower him to safety and to allow him to begin his recovery process.

According to News 4 in Jacksonville:

“A Jacksonville Port Authority employee injured while working on an 110-foot tall crane Monday night is recovering after he was lowered to the ground by Jacksonville Fire-Rescue’s Urban Search and Rescue unit using a rescue basket and ropes.

Port officials said the man suffered a severe back injury in an industrial accident during routine maintenance on the crane used to move containerized freight on and off ships at the Talleyrand marine terminal.Channel 4 learned that something bumped his safety line while a crew of six were working on the crane. While he was injured, the safety line prevented him from falling to the ground.It took nearly 90 minutes for rescuers to get him safely to the ground.”

While no one is yet sure how the safety line was bumped, what is clear is that the man is lucky to have survived.  He will likely also need to pursue worker’s compensation benefits at the least, and depending on the facts, he could have a valid civil legal claim.  If you have been injured while on the job, contact the work injury lawyers at the Phillips National Injury Group today to schedule a free initial consultation.