Houston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Oh, that trusty technology. For those who are unaware - there are a number of 'safe-driving' apps that are designed to keep drivers and passengers protected while on the road.

*One app is a 'text' intervention application that disrupts a driver's ability to receive or send text messages and/or receive or send emails. While many states are taking up the cause of making texting a legal no-no - there are still far too many cases of this being the source of distracted driving - and the source of injury and death. Moreover, police are disinclined to ticket drivers for this because it's a hassle to prove, etc.

*There are a number of apps similar to the previously mentioned one that performs similar functions - such as preventing phone calls from ringing in on the driver's cell phone - or preventing a person from speaking on the phone as well - cell phone disabling in other words. This is a particularly popular purchase for parents.

*Another particularly helpful app alerts parents when their new teen driver is exceeding the speed limit as well as informing them of other driving infractions. With two boys headed towards the legal driving age - this app has great appeal!

*Finally, there is an app that offers drivers sample 'distracted driving scenarios' that serve to inform and educate drivers about the possible harmful results of driving and not paying attention.

Continue reading "Technology to Prevent Car Accidents" »

Personal truck and auto engineers are hard at work regularly designing new technology that will help to prevent accidents and/or keep drivers and their passengers safe(r) in the event of a collision. Let's consider some of the most cutting-edge improvements in this blog. To be sure - there are some exciting design elements around the corner!

New vehicle technology falls into three main categories: warnings that alert drivers to impending danger; interventions that augment the actions of the driver; and controls in which the vehicle actually takes over for the driver in decision making for accident avoidance.

In addition, safety engineers are improving vehicle to vehicle communication - called vehicle to vehicle technology - that utilizes a combination of GPS and WI-FI to warn other cars about sudden braking and other unforeseen hazards and take control of the vehicle through intervention long before a human being can react.

Even these 'milliseconds' can make a difference in the severity of an accident. This technology proved to be helpful when a car was changing lanes and was not aware of a stalled car ahead and in warning a car of a vehicle that was bearing down on it when it ran a red light.

This type of new vehicle technology holds the greatest promise for preventing property and injury accidents. One thing is for sure - safety features combined with this new safety technology is advantageous for future drivers.

Continue reading "New Technology Can Prevent Auto Accidents" »

If you've been in a car accident here are a few apps that may be helpful to you.

Camera Phones
camera phones can be a very important help to you in documenting the location of the vehicles, the condition of the accident scene and also injuries, witnesses and property damage. Today, most cell phones come with a built in camera that is more than sufficient to aid an accident victim in documenting the accident.

Witness Statements and Notes
free apps such as Dragon Dictate can be very helpful to record with the statements, to take notes of names and phone numbers without the necessity of typing and doing a short memo of important information at the accident scene.

What To Do Apps
AAA has a handy app that outlines steps to do after you have been involved in a car accident. The app is free and is very helpful. Some Houston personal injury attorneys also have their own to do apps for accidents.

Note Apps
Can be handy for keep a log of doctor visits and recovery information. The are many good ones including Pensulate.

Continue reading "Handy Apps At A Car Wreck" »

Although we have written about advances in vehicle safety in previous electronic journal entries - it is a topic of such relevance that it requires that we occasionally revisit it.

Recently, there has been a lot of interest and activity in safety systems dubbed 'vehicle-driver assistance'. These are passive devices designed to 'think' independently for the driver - even, in some cases, anticipating potential obstacles. What follows are some examples of these types of safety devices.

*Lane-departure warning systems. If you haven't seen the latest commercials in which drivers proclaim their relief at having this safety device included in their new car purchase - then you're probably not watching television. This is one of the most touted new tools in the vehicle safety 'arsenal' with good reason.

If an individual drifts out of their lane (as we are all apt to do at some time or another - sometimes with catastrophic results) the vehicle buzzes a warning to the driver - hopefully drawing their attention back to the task at hand.

*Automatic braking systems. Although this is not an entirely new invention - ABS can be credited with saving thousands of lives. Gone are the days when people slammed on the brakes - locking them up and losing control of the vehicle. ABS pumps the brakes even if your first inclination is to slam them.

*Electronic Stability Control and Traction Control. These systems intervene to prevent a loss of control on behalf of the driver while restoring traction if wheels begin to spin uncontrollably.

Today's vehicles are safer than ever before - but this does not negate the need for the driver to remain alert and focused. As always, drive safely.

The auto industry giveth and the auto industry taketh away - in a constant effort to convince the consumer that they are working on their behalf. Certainly research demonstrates that vehicle safety became a number one concern for manufacturers such as Ford, GM and Chrysler when the government began revealing their blatant disregard for driver and passenger safety.

The heat remains on to find ways to constantly ensure against injury and death when catastrophic injury and fatality reports come out each year. We are regularly exposed to the car manufacturer's side of the story - when they offer that their engineers are fast at work creating products that will get you around and to your destination safely by car.

To be sure there have been some improvements such as anti-lock brakes, the airbag-seatbelt combination and safety glass (to name a few). We breathe a little easier as a lot believing that we are actually 'safe' in a car or SUV (but it is near impossible to guard against human error).

Meanwhile the price of gas is skyrocketing and we are all looking to trade in our gas guzzlers for the more progressive and futuristic looking 'electric cars'.
But not so fast, in a recent study performed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety it seems that these newer models come with old foibles.

To be exact - if an electric car was in a collision with a 'real' car the results would most likely be disastrous. Due to certain regulations electric cars are held to the same standard as other cars.

I'd say that makes them pretty much of my wish list- for now - and if this information becomes widely circulated people may just continue to drive the gas guzzler until manufacturers put forth a safe and viable product.

Continue reading "Electric Cars Viable?" »

As you may know, many new automobiles are coming equipped with heated and cooled seats. This luxury upgrade can be available on many newer model vehicles.

Unfortunately, for paraplegics and quadriplegics the heated seats in some models can be extremely dangerous. Third-degree burns are happening in heated car seats with paraplegics and others who have neurological deficits because the passenger cannot tell they are being burned. In some instances, up to 150° have been recorded from heated car seats.

Manufacturers of automobiles have certain responsibilities under product liability law and can be held responsible if an unreasonably dangerous product led to a serious injury or wrongful death. Not every case is appropriate for a product liability analysis and it takes an experienced Texas personal injury lawyer to investigate a potential product liability case in Texas.

If you are loved one have been badly burned by a car seat and would like to discuss your legal options call the Texas car seat burn lawyers at the Baumgartner law firm at 281-587-1111 for a no obligation consultation on a car seat burn.

I recently noticed that the price of gas has been slowly but surely rising - and I would say it's a sure bet that they aren't going down anytime soon. So to help you stretch your driving dollars - and as an added bonus - treat the environment a little more carefully - consider the following money saving driving tips.

*Make sure your car is clear of heavy items that you do not need to haul around. If you are driving on snow and ice then it's a good idea to weigh the trunk down with bags of sand or the like - otherwise you use more fuel when you have extra 'stuff'. Take out extra gym bags, groceries, backpacks and other miscellaneous materials. You're guaranteed to use less gas, save money and pollute the air less.

*Don't speed. Not only is it safer to stay within the suggested speed limits but you use less fuel as well. Less fuel equals money saved - and a happier environment overall.

*Consider trading your car in for a more fuel efficient model - or one that uses alternative fuel. The upfront cost of a car purchase may be offset by the reduced amount spent in fuel over time. Put a pencil to it!

Finally, being earth friendly and penny wise are both ways to model good citizenship for our children...so car pool when you can, combine trips - or - take public transportation.

Continue reading "Gas Saving Tips" »

Many times the federal government makes a decision that has a trickle-down effect - impacting each one of us in a variety of ways but most often our wallets. Such is the case with the recent October decision to impose greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for trucks and buses.

Although you will find a link to their website at the end of this blog - and I wholly encourage you to visit it and read the entire article - let us offer some of the highlights of this legislation.

* These are the first national standards to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve fuel efficiency of heavy-duty trucks and buses.

*The program is expected to reduce emissions by nearly 250 million metric tons and save 500 million barrels of oil.

*New fuel efficiency standards for trucks will reduce the cost of transporting freight.

* it is estimated an operator of a semi truck could pay for the technology upgrades in under a year, and save as much as $74,000 over the truck's useful life.

If all of the above information is factual and bears out in the years to come then one could expect that the cost associated with transporting goods around the country will, in fact, decrease and these savings will be passed on to the consumer, right?

Oh well, barring that at least we can celebrate the fact that gains are being made on the environmental front. Certainly we are all glad to know that these regulations will improve air quality and reduce green house gas emissions.

Continue reading "New Fuel Efficiency Standards for Trucks" »

Houston implemented red light cameras sometime ago. Recently the city of Conroe has also implemented a red light camera strategy to reduce accidents.

The controversy centers on privacy issues and claims that red like cameras do not, in fact, reduce accidents. In a recent news article, League City police chief Mike Jez felt like their red light camera program was reducing accidents.

On the other side of the coin sits a bail bondsman who has formed a group called Citizens Against Red Light Cameras, which seeks to discontinue Houston's red light camera program.

Apparently, the group obtained enough signatures to present the issue for voting on by Houston voters. In the recent election Houston rejected the red light cameras.

According to sources, the city has collected approximately $44 million in fines since 2006 from the red light program.

Studies on the safety of red light cameras do not show any clear-cut answer to the controversy. There is no doubt, that red light cameras, over time, reduce intersection accidents. The real question is are the intersection accidents replaced by increased rear end accidents resulting from those who ply their brake suddenly in an effort to not be caught by the camera.

I take the position, that red light cameras are good for Houston. I base my opinion on personal observations and my own actions when approaching an intersection that I know has a red light camera. Friends and colleagues have been ticketed and commented to me that they will be careful the next time they go through that intersection. For those reasons, I supported red light cameras and was sorry to see it recently rejected by voters.

If it saves lives- I for one am for it.

Continue reading "The Red Light Camera Controversy In Houston" »

Automobiles have changed for the better - for most part. Sometimes, the improvements have come with their own pitfalls, though. For instance, originally cars had no device that would keep a driver or passenger from flying forward (or elsewhere) if they collided with another vehicle or otherwise lost control.

It only took tens of thousands of gruesome deaths before the automobile manufacturers found a way to keep people from flying out of cars and trucks - they installed lap belts.

Helpful, yes, but this only solved half the problem as they soon found out because when people wore their lap belts in an accident then part of their body remained motionless while the other half still had a tendency to jolt forward. THIS - while an improvement - created other problems for accident victims.

Finally, somebody got the bright idea to create a shoulder harness that would work in tandem with the lap belt to help minimize a person's jostling in a collision. Now THAT helped. In fact this new seat belt was credited with saving thousands and thousands of lives.

However, there were still too many scenarios in which a victim was gravely injured in an accident so auto manufacturers went back to the drawing board and designed the 'air bag' which inflates on impact and further minimizes human injury.

Still, anywhere from 20 to 50 thousand people die each year in automobile accidents and tens of thousands more are irreversibly injured. The word carnage comes to mind here.

WE have had the technology to go to the moon for over 30 years now and video conference from cell phones- it not it time to invest more in saving lives?

Continue reading "Is it Time to Invest in Safety?" »

GPS devices for the automobile are undoubtedly one of the greatest inventions to come along over the last twenty five years.

Certainly they have come in handy for the stereotypical driver who refuses to stop for directions - instead driving around lost for hours - or the not uncommon driver who simply can't read a map! In fact - for many they're nothing short of a godsend!

A GPS device receives global positioning system signals to determine the device's location nearly anywhere on the planet. They provide longitude and latitude information as well as a variety of other services.

Some contain maps, offer traffic information and other local data such as shopping and restaurants, and even audible turn by turn directions to a specified location.

Today GPS technology has virtually flooded the market. Where it once was only available in certain vehicles - now people can choose from a variety of companies that manufacture and market them to the general public including the more popular TomTom and Garmin. But GPS technology is also available as an app on many cell phones and GPS software can be purchased for laptop and desktop computers.

With all the different GPS devices available for purchase today if you are in the market you would be well advised to consider some of the consumer report and product reviews available.

All of the more popular GPS devices also have gotten some of the best reviews. A couple versions of the TomTom and Garmin vie for the top spots. The Magellan rounds out the number 5 spot.

Frankly, for the peace of mind and safety they offer drivers - You may want to consider a GPS devise and one that "talks" to you so you can keep both eyes on the road.

Continue reading "GPS a Safety Device?" »