Recent Case Results
(Photo credit: 7mary3)
Reducing auto accidents may be as simple as using your turn signal, according to a new study. Although distracted driving is blamed for many car accidents, the real culprit may actually be the failure of drivers’ to use their turn signal. According to a study conducted by the Society of Automotive Engineers, nearly 2 million accidents a year are caused by drivers’ failure to use a turn signal.
This MSNBC article states that research shows that more than twice as many accidents are caused by drivers who fail to use their turn signal than distracted driving. In fact, drivers fail to use their turn signals nearly half of the time they change lanes, and a quarter of the time that they make a turn.
“This is a first of its kind report on a subject that amazingly, has never been studied,” said Richard Ponziani, P.E., President of RLP Engineering and author of the report said in the MSNBC article.
Despite the relative ease of using turn signals, drivers often fail to comply with traffic rules regarding their appropriate use. Ponziani argues that drivers must share on ongoing responsibility for using turn signals, “just as they have a duty to stop at a stop sign or at a red light.”
Some also suggest that the lack of turn signals epidemic is exacerbated by the fact that the police put much less effort into enforcing turn signal laws than other traffic laws, like speeding and red light violations.
Ponzini promotes the “Smart Turn Signal” system – a mechanism that would automatically shut off a turn signal by timing out after a set delay or detecting when a vehicle has finished changing lanes – as “the perfect complement to the Stability Control System since Stability Control predominately prevents single-vehicle crashes, whereas the Smart Turn Signal prevents multi-vehicle crashes.”
At Steinberg Goodman & Kalish, our skilled Illinois auto accident attorneys are dedicated to promoting safe driving habits and protecting the victims of motor vehicle accidents. We represent the victims of head on collisions, rear end collisions, motorcycle accidents, drunk driving accidents, and distracted driving accidents.
Contact the experienced Chicago auto accident attorneys at Steinberg Goodman & Kalish today to schedule your free consultation to learn more about your rights following an auto accident.
Steinberg Goodman & Kalish (www.sgklawyers.com) is dedicated to protecting victims and their families. We handle medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, auto accidents, professional negligence, birth trauma, and railroad law matters. Contact us at (800) 784-0150 or (312) 782-1386.
A new Illinois law that took effect January 1st effectively requires every backseat passenger to use a safety belt, with a few limited exceptions. Previously, only backseat passengers 19 years of age and under were required to wear seat belts.
The new law is aimed at preventing auto accident deaths and serious injuries. In 2009, Illinois saw 38 passengers who were not wearing seatbelts while riding in the backseat lose their lives when they were in an auto accident. Nationwide, 1,095 backseat passengers not wearing seat belts died in 2009, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, seat belts reduce serious crash-related injuries and deaths by approximately 50 percent.
A recent Chicago Sun-Times article highlights the risks of riding unrestrained as a passenger in a motor vehicle – whether in the backseat or front seat. Like front seat passengers, unrestrained backseat passengers can suffer head, chest and abdominal injuries in the event of an auto accident.
Backseat passengers can be “thrown from the vehicle,” according to James Doherty, medical director of trauma and critical care programs at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. Backseat passengers are also at risk of becoming “human projectiles” during a car crash, which could injure or kill others in the vehicle, according to Doherty.
The law exempts passengers in ambulances, taxis, school buses, delivery trucks that make frequent stops and do not exceed 15 mph, and anyone with a physical impairment that makes it difficult to wear a seat belt (such as a broken collarbone or shoulder injury).
The law allows police offers to stop a vehicle if they see an unbuckled passenger. Offenders face fines starting at $25, which could amount to more, depending on court costs.
Drivers are reminded that children younger than 8 are required to be properly restrained in a child safety seat and children 12 and younger should ride in the back seat.
Steinberg Goodman & Kalish (www.sgklawyers.com) is dedicated to protecting victims and their families. We handle medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, auto accidents, professional negligence, birth trauma, and railroad law matters. Contact us at (800) 784-0150 or (312) 782-1386.
Jupiterimages/Thinkstock
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling for a nationwide ban on texting and making phone calls while driving. The NTSB's recommendation specifically asks all 50 states and Washington D.C. to ban all nonemergency use of cell phones and other portable electronic devices for all drivers. The NTSB is also recommending that states use the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) method of high-visibility enforcement to support such bans, and that states implement targeted communication campaigns to inform motorists of the new laws.
“According to NHTSA, more than 3,000 people lost their lives last year in distraction-related accidents,” NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said in a statement. “It is time for all of us to stand up for safety by turning off electronic devices when driving. No call, no text, no update, is worth a human life.”
In the last several years, the use of cell phones and personal electronic devices has exploded, according to the NTSB. Globally, there are 5.3 billion mobile phone subscribers, which accounts for 77 percent of the world population. Nationwide, the percentage of cell phone users is even higher, exceeding 100 percent.
Texting and talking on a cell phone while driving can be incredibly dangerous, causing auto accidents and trucking accidents. In 2009, nearly 5,500 fatalities and 500,000 injuries resulted from crashes involving a distracted driver, according to the NHTSA. The NTSB’s recommendation is based on the investigation of several accidents caused by the use of electronic devices in recent years, including:
- A 2002 motor vehicle accident in 2002 that occurred after a driver “distracted by a conversation on her cellphone” crashed and killed five people in Largo;
- A 2004 bus accident on the George Washington Parkway that injured 11 high school students;
- A 2008 commuter train collision with a freight train in Chatsworth, California, in which 25 people were killed and dozens were injured; and
- A 2010 boating accident in Philadelphia that killed two tourists.
Currently, Illinois and Chicago laws and ordinances prohibit the following use of electronic devices while driving:
- Drivers under the age of 19 are prohibited from using wireless phones (with or without hands-free devices) while driving.
- All drivers are prohibited from text messaging, emailing, and using the Internet while driving.
- Drivers are prohibited from using cellular phones in school speed zones and construction/road maintenance zones.
- In Chicago, all drivers talking on mobile phones must use hands-free devices.
Source: Washington Post
Steinberg Goodman & Kalish (www.sgklawyers.com) is dedicated to protecting victims and their families. We handle medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, auto accidents, professional negligence, birth trauma, and railroad law matters. Contact us at (800) 784-0150 or (312) 782-1386.
Highway fatalities have dropped to an all-time low, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) latest projections. The NHTSA estimates that the number of auto accident deaths for 2010 dropped to 32,788 in 2010, down 3% from 2009. The reduction in auto accident fatalities is particularly notable given that the NHTSA also estimates that the total number of miles driven increased by 20.5 billion, or 0.7%.
According to Transportation Secretary Ray La Hood, “Last year’s drop in traffic fatalities is welcome news, and it proves that we can make a difference.” He goes on to note that, nonetheless, “too many of our friends and neighbors are killed in preventable roadway tragedies every day [and w]e will continue doing everything possible to make cars safer, increase seat belt use, put a stop to drunk driving and distracted driving and encourage drivers to put safety first.”
The fatality rate – or the number of auto accident deaths per 100 billion miles driven – fell from 1.13 to 1.09, which is the lowest fatality rate since the government first began tracking traffic fatalities in 1949. Since 2005, the number of auto accident deaths has steadily declined by about 25%.
Although the numbers have not been fully analyzed yet to determine the specific categories of fatalities, nor the reasons for the decrease in deaths, some believe that it may be attributed to stricter seat belt laws. Other possible explanations include the fact that older cars are being replaced by newer models with more safety features, such as air bags and antilock brakes, and that highways are being built or updated with an increased focus on safety and include features such as rumble strips and cable median barriers to separate cars from oncoming traffic.
There are indications, however, that the reductions in the number of auto accident fatalities may be nearing an end. According to NHTSA data, the number of fatalities in 2010 decreased by 11.4% in the first quarter and 5% in the second quarter of 2010, as compared with 2009, but that the number of fatalities rose 1.6% in the third quarter and 1.8% in the fourth, which is on par with the increase in miles traveled.
The experienced Illinois auto accident attorneys at Steinberg, Goodman & Kalish are committed to protecting the rights of victims of auto accidents. If your or a loved one has been injured or killed in an auto accident, contact one of our Chicago area personal injury attorneys to discuss a possible personal injury or wrongful death claim.
Steinberg Goodman & Kalish (www.sgklawyers.com) is dedicated to protecting victims and their families. We handle medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, auto accidents, professional negligence, birth trauma, and railroad law matters. Contact us at (800) 784-0150 or (312) 782-1386.
A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Aberdeen School of Medicine and Dentistry in Scotland has revealed that chronic pain may be worse after car accidents than after other kinds of traumatic accidents, including workplace injury, surgery, fracture, hospitalization and childbirth.
The researchers studied 2,000 individuals who provided information about musculoskeletal pain and associated stress over a period of four years. The participants were asked to indicate whether they experienced one of the following six traumatic accidents: traffic crash, workplace injury, surgery, fracture, hospitalization and childbirth. Of the 241 participants who reported chronic widespread pain, one-third of them indicated that they had experienced one of these six traumatic events during the four year study period.
After adjusting for age, sex, general practice and baseline pain status, the researchers found that those participants who had been involved in a car crash had an 84% increased risk of suffering from widespread chronic pain, but there was no link between chronic pain and hospitalization, surgery or childbirth.
The study’s coordinator, Gareth Jones, explained that he and his colleagues believe that “there are persons – defined by prior physical and psychological health – who in the event of a physically traumatic trigger are vulnerable to developing chronic widespread pain” and that “further research should focus on the unique aspects of an auto accident and the individual’s reaction to this particular trauma that causes the increased risk of chronic widespread pain onset.”
The study appeared in the March 21, 2011 edition of the peer-reviewed journal Arthritis Care & Research.
According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, in 2009, there were 89,090 auto accidents in which injuries were sustained. If you have been injured in an auto accident, you may be entitled to compensation for the injuries that you have suffered, and may still be suffering, as a result of the accident. Contact the experienced Illinois auto accident attorneys at Steinberg, Goodman & Kalish to learn about a possible personal injury claim.
Steinberg Goodman & Kalish (www.sgklawyers.com) is dedicated to protecting victims and their families. We handle medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death, auto accidents, professional negligence, birth trauma, and railroad law matters. Contact us at (800) 784-0150 or (312) 782-1386.
