Houston Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Almost every day in Houston a drunk driver is involved in a serious car accident in which someone is hurt or killed and often the drunk driver walks away unharmed. Over the years the penalties for drunk are have gotten much more strict and enforcement stepped up yet the numbers keep increasing.

Recently, the city of Houston combined with other officials implemented a policy called no refusal weekend in which they were able to obtain testing from those who refused testing by funding the program. The no refusal weekend was successful and increasing the number of arrests and I'm sure will prove to be successful in a much higher conviction rate. Yet none of this has seemed to dent the problem.

In Australia, the average motorist does not dare drive after drinking for fear of coming into contact with a roadblock or checkpoint which are testing points for any car on that stretch of the highway at the time of the roadblock. In other words if you are drinking and are behind the wheel and come up to a checkpoint-you're in big trouble.

This issue was addressed recently in the Texas Legislature, however the limitations on the bill as presented would have radically reduced the number of areas in which a checkpoint could be established-and some of those areas intentionally omitted are in most need of help.

Drunk driving accidents are everyone's problem and the solution is not a simple matter but an ongoing battle of education, enforcement and change in attitude of the general public. Generally, the civil penalties of a drunk driving accident are likewise significant in a Houston drunk driving accident lawsuit. But the best solution is to avoid the situation and the accompanying liabilities.

Continue reading "Combating Houston DWI Accidents" »

An interesting story ran on the news recently about a young child who took the family minivan and went off to buy food because he was hungry. As one might expect - the child crashed the vehicle in an accident that involved another driver whom, herself, only sustained minor injuries while the child was basically unscratched.

This news item turned viral over the weekend and while some people may have found it 'cute' anyone with small children probably ran to hide the keys - and I shudder to think what parents with push-button start cars are thinking.

As a parent we are charged with keeping our children safe in the vehicle when we are driving - how many of us stop to think of any of the other scenarios that may occur between a child and a car.

And while certainly this story seems far-fetched - the child has demonstrated that it is not out of the realm of possibility for them to reason out the manner in which to attempt to drive all by themselves (they even get the opportunity to 'drive' on many video games which further emboldens and distorts their understanding of the process).

The real problem with this story is that it is not the first time that a child has taken the keys to the family car and attempted to drive. One thing is for sure - this action ends negatively for everyone involved.

Parents - take the time to talk to your children about who may and may not drive the car. Then keep the car locked and any device related to driving put safely out of little one's hands.

Continue reading "Children Driving Cars" »

If you are in the market for a new car and safety ranks as your most important consideration over price or even over gas mileage then the following blog is dedicated to your search.

Even as gas prices soar the temptation to purchase a smaller vehicle in order to stretch an already squealing budget should be given a second or third look. Though there have been advances in vehicle construction and safety, small cars in general are more likely to provide the driver and passengers less overall protection in a catastrophic collision.

No matter how safe your own driving record is - you simply cannot account for the driving behaviors of everyone else on the road and that is usually the cause of most accidents - the other driver.

The fact is that smaller cars weigh less and it is this factor that often leads to more severe injuries in an accident - even if the other vehicle is a car of similar size and weight.

However, when a larger car or truck collides with yours injury results rise markedly. In a survey done by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety the number of deaths that occur in small car collisions is 33% higher than in a mid-size car accident. Furthermore, the number of deaths in car and truck accidents drops significantly as the size and weight of the vehicle increases.

Finally, I myself am not an advocate of one car company or vehicle design over another. Rather I am an advocate of anything that keeps Americans safe on the roads.

Continue reading "Buying a Small Car for Mileage or Larger One for Safety?" »

The Texas House has apparently tentatively approved a new bill which would allow for an 85 mph speed limit on some of our Texas highways. The bill would give the TXDOT the authority to raise the speed limit on some highways to be the highest in the country. Reports indicate that similar legislation is pending approval by the Senate. If enacted into law, Texas would have the highest speed limit potential in the country.

Studies have shown that there is a direct correlation between speed and fatal car accidents. Simply the slower people drive the less chance that they will be seriously hurt or killed in a car accident. The higher the speed travelled, the higher the probability of an accident leading to serious injury or death.

Additionally, one of the factors that contribute to many car accidents is a disparity between speeds of vehicles going the same direction on the same highway. If one vehicle is traveling at a speed much greater or lesser than another on the roadway, the potential for accidents increases.

Perhaps there are some compelling reasons for this proposed legislation, however I have yet to think of any. One wonders what the costs of implementing the change will be to the state of Texas should this pass. Changing speed limit signs, the studies and engineering work required of the Texas Department of Transportation and other costs associated with the proposed law.

On the flip side, clearly should 85 mph speed limit be utilized on numerous highways across the state of Texas, our accident statistics are bound to increase. Given the high price of gasoline, our miles per gallon will decline at a significant cost with the increased speed.

Nevertheless, Texans will, should this law pass, be able to say that our state has the highest speed limit in the country. So I guess we may have that going for us.

Lets hope that the law does not pass and if it does that it is utilized only on very open stretches of highway without much traffic.

Continue reading "85 mph Speed Limit in Texas?" »