Houston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Seniors aged 65 and older currently constitute a significant portion of the driving public (nearly a third) - and their numbers are expected to increase exponentially over the next decade to 40% of drivers on the road.

In light of this information the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conducted nation-wide research to develop a thoughtful 5 year plan targeting the specific needs and challenges of this segment of the driving population. What follows are some of their findings and suggestions.

*Communication about the challenges of elder driving is vital. As people age they may need to adjust their driving habits. This is a conversation that must take place within family structures.

That does not mean that every individual, aged 65 and older, needs to stop driving immediately. However, those who are medically at risk may consider finding alternative means of transportation.

*In addition, partnerships among states and organizations who focus on creating products and services for seniors needs to be enhanced. This includes materials that will keep the senior driver safe is he or she chooses to continue driving or ensuring that seniors are aware of the transportation alternatives readily available.

*There will be increased pressure to develop and enforce older driver licensing policies. Most legislators would rather avoid this - not wanting to offend a significant portion of the voting population. But the time is coming when it will no longer be avoidable.

If you have an elder driver in your family - initiate an honest and open conversation about driving. It may be the best thing you do this week.

Continue reading "Driving Issues for Elderly" »

A Conroe man was killed after a big rig backed over him at a loading dock in Montgomery County, Texas. The truck loading accident occurred on Tuesday morning and apparently the man was trapped between the big rig and the loading dock as the truck backed up.

The decedent was apparently unloading the 18 wheeler and was in between the truck and the loading dock when the truck backed up crushing him. The driver was apparently unaware that he had backed up over the victim but another worker saw the accident and called for help.

The victim was taken to the hospital but did not survive the serious injuries he sustained in the truck loading accident.

This type of accident occurs frequently and just as often the 18 wheeler driver does not know that they ran over anyone. Last year in Houston a man was killed at a loading dock and the semi truck left the scene and authorities were looking for the truck. Most likely the truck driver in that case just like the truck driver in this case had no idea that their truck had crashed someone to death.

The inherent limitation of visibility with big rigs is apparent with this accident and specifically with this type of accident. Many new semi trucks are equipped with backup monitors as you see with some upscale new cars and SUVs. Aftermarket backup monitors are available for cars and semi trucks at a cost of around $100 for a good one and $200 for a very good one.

Most passenger cars and smaller SUVs do not have the same limitations of visibility in backing up that a big rig does. My heart goes out to this young man's family.

Let us hope that more motor carriers equipped their semi trucks with backup monitors.

Continue reading "Loading Accident Claims Conroe Man" »

Texting and driving has been determined to be as deadly a behavior as drinking and driving. In a study done at a Texas university - they found that texting and driving was the cause of 16,000 deaths in the last six years. In the year 2000 only one third of Americans had cell phones - today there is nearly universal ownership.

Too, even as recently as a decade ago - text-messaging was fairly new - and altogether there were only a million sent each month. Today there is an average of 125 million per month.

Consider the following news stories about accidents in which the driver was either sending or receiving a text.

*A teenager was texting a friend when he ran a stop sign and broadsided a car carrying an elderly couple. The woman was killed instantly but the teen was only given 30 days and jail and ordered to pay a $5000 restitution.

*A professional real estate agent using his car as an extended office glanced away from the road 'just long enough to scan a message from his secretary' missed seeing a semi-truck entering the road on his right. He rear-ended the truck and died.

*A police officer on his way to another car accident looked away from the road to text his wife that he'd be late for dinner. In the time it took for him to look away and then back he had run head-on into a compact car carrying 2 sisters. Although the officer survived the accident - both girls died at the scene.

More and more states are banning texting and driving. Unfortunately though - preventing individuals from making this deadly choice requires more than a law on the books.

Continue reading "The Dangers of Texting and Driving" »

An average of 2 bicycle riders a day are hit by a car or truck and killed in this country. In addition, 2 or 3 persons a day in each state are involved in vehicle collisions that result in varying degrees of injury.

Meanwhile, bicycle commuting has increased 40% in the last decade and will likely continue to increase if the cost of gasoline remains high. Bicycle riding is a response to economic challenges and an increased awareness of the environmental impact vehicle emissions are having.

So states have taken up the cause of bicycle safety. This has been done (in part) as a response to bicycle riders' collective demands for legislation that improves conditions for them.

For instance, some states are requiring that additional statistics be collected concerning the various causes of bicycle accidents. The data collected will be utilized to create new public policy related to biking on public roadways.

Another state has made causing a bicyclist fatality - reason to impose criminal negligence manslaughter charges. Still other states are calling for networks of sidewalks and bicycle paths to be developed that cross their states from end to end and keep riders far away from cars and trucks.

Unfortunately, one public policy organization in Washington D.C. ranks Texas very low among states that are 'bicycle friendly'. I would suggest that part of the reason we have such a poor standing is the geography of the state doesn't naturally lend itself to the creation of bike paths and the lack of long term planning in the past for the boom town gowth in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio have also been a factor in increased bike accidents.

There's no doubt that - when it comes to bicycle safety - there's room for substantial improvement in our great state.

Continue reading "Texas Ranks Low in Bike Safety" »

We usually associate ambulances with life-saving - however, they are often involved in vehicle collisions that actually claim more lives in the end. What follows are a few summaries of the more recent ambulance accident reports.

*An ambulance that was on its way to the hospital and transporting a young girl was hit head-on by a car coming in the opposite direction. It turns out that the child's father was rushing to the scene when he lost control of his car. The patient had to be transferred to another ambulance before continuing on to the hospital. Everyone involved in the accident only suffered minor injuries.

*The driver of a subcompact lost control of his car and crashed into a speeding ambulance transporting a patient to the hospital. The driver of the automobile was charged with driving under the influence of marijuana. In all, four people suffered minor or non-life threatening injuries and were treated and released. The driver was then charged and taken to jail.

*Nine people were injured in an accident involving an ambulance and three cars. The ambulance flipped on its side and the two medical assistants had to be helped out of the vehicle. There were only minor injuries - and police were still investigating the cause - but the ambulance was not carrying any patients at the time of the accident.

Moral of the story is that all vehicles can be dangerous and deadly and whenever speed is involved the odds of injury or wrongful death increase substantially.

Continue reading "Accidents With Ambulances" »

The absolute number one proactive safety measure that every individual should take is to buckle your seat belt when you get in your vehicle - and make sure everyone else is appropriately belted in as well. Consider the following statistics about seat belts and their use.

*Survivors of vehicle collision who were wearing seatbelts experience medical costs that are only half as great as their non-seatbelt wearing counterparts.

*Only 85% of vehicle occupants wear a seatbelt during the week and only 80% of vehicle occupants in rural areas wear seatbelts at any time.

*There is only 90% compliance with seat belt use by freeway drivers.

*In one state alone five hundred people died in automobile accidents because they were not wearing a seatbelt - last year alone. One source states that nearly fifteen thousand people across the country died from not wearing their seat belt.

*In states where law enforcement may pull over drivers and ticket them for not wearing a seat belt - there is nearly universal compliance. Other states may only ticket drivers for not using a seat belt if it is a secondary finding after the driver was pulled over for a separate offense.

*Children who were fatally injured in a vehicle accident were improperly restrained or simply not buckled in at all - in 80% of the reported deaths.

Frankly, with the amount of overwhelming evidence to support the proposition that seat belts save lives it is impossible to understand why anyone would get in a vehicle and fail to buckle up.

Continue reading "Buckling Up is Your First Line of Defense in a Car Accident" »