Indiana Injury Lawyer Blog

At least 49 teenage drivers could be saved every year if the state of Indiana improved its graduated driver’s licensing programs. In fact, according to a study by the National Safety Council, at least 2,000 lives of teenage drivers could be saved every year if such programs were strengthened and included more restrictions.

According to transportation safety experts, the ideal graduated driver’s licensing program will include 7 components.
1. It will include a minimum age of 16 for a person to get a learner's permit,
2. It will require that a person have at least 6 months of supervised driving
3. It will require a minimum of 30 hours of supervised driving when the person is in the learner stage
4. It will set 16 ½ as the minimum age for an intermediate license
5. It will have nighttime driving restrictions that would begin at 10 PM
6. It will restrict the number of non-family passengers to just one for intermediate license holders
7. It will set a minimum age of 17 for a full license.

Continue reading "Stronger GDL Laws Could Save 49 Teen Motorist Lives in Indiana Annually" »

Even as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that traffic accident fatalities across the country were at their lowest levels since 1949, there was sobering news from the agency. The number of people texting while driving has actually increased nationwide.

Earlier this month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported a substantial drop in the number of people killed in traffic accidents in 2010. The number of people killed in all types of accidents including drunk driving accidents were down. However, another survey by the agency found a 50% increase in the practice of texting, e-mailing and using other handheld devices while driving nationwide. The results of the study came from the monitoring of stoplights, intersections and other places where researchers observed and surveyed drivers’ texting practices. According to the results, two out of 10 American motorists admit that they have sent text messages while driving. Those numbers get progressively worse as the age of the driver drops.

The results of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration survey don't only involve people who were sending or reading text messages while driving, but also include those motorists who were checking directions on their GPS devices, checking e-mails, surfing the Internet on their smart phones, playing games and performing other activities that require the use of a handheld device. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has concluded from the survey that in 2010, just under 1% of drivers were using a handheld device at any given moment in time. That is an increase from 0.6% of drivers in 2009.

Continue reading "Increase in Texting While Driving Challenges Accident Prevention Efforts" »

A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Highway Loss Data Institute reveals that occupants of hybrid vehicles may be much less likely to be injured in an accident than occupants of non-hybrid vehicles. However, hybrid cars are more likely to be involved in collisions with pedestrians.

According to the study, hybrid vehicles have up to 25% greater crash protection than non-conventional vehicles. That's mainly because these vehicles have approximately 10% more weight than conventional vehicles. Bigger, heavier cars have a greater likelihood of protecting occupants during an accident, than smaller vehicles.

It appears that automakers have finally found the magic combination of eco-friendliness and safety that they have been looking for. For several years, hybrid vehicles were considered less safe cars, because while they promised fuel efficiency and cleaner driving, they did not rank highly on crash protection.

Continue reading "Occupants of Hybrid Cars Safer in an Accident" »

Compulsive, materialistic people, who view their car as an extension of themselves, are much more likely to drive aggressively. That intriguing insight into the psyche of aggressive motorists comes from a study into the values and attitudes that define these motorists.

The study is titled Aggressive Driving: A Consumption Experience, and was conducted by a professor at the Temple University Fox School of Business. The study outlines many reasons for Indiana personal injury lawyers to be concerned about aggressive drivers. Every year, aggressive driving is blamed for approximately one third of all auto accidents that result in injuries. Such driving is also to blame for two thirds of all accidents that result in deaths.

Continue reading "The Psyche of an Aggressive Driver" »

Indiana's new law banning texting while driving for motorists is based on the high accident risks involving such practices. However, those accident risks may be much more dangerous than Indiana personal injury lawyers have known. A new study finds that a motorist's reaction times may be much higher when he's texting while driving, than early studies have shown.

According to the study by the Texas Transportation Institute, a person's reaction time is between 3 and 4 seconds if he is texting while driving. When the same person is not texting while driving, his reaction time is between 1 and 2 seconds. That is a serious disparity, and indicates an almost 100% increase in reaction times. In the real world on a busy roadway, those delayed reaction times could prove deadly. A car traveling at 55 mph could travel the length of a football field in that period of time.

Continue reading "Texting While Driving Much More Dangerous Than Feared " »

A new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that drowsy or fatigued driving is more prevalent than Indiana personal injury lawyers have known. The study, which focused on unhealthy sleep behaviors in the United States, was based on a random telephone survey of adults above 18 years of age. The researchers found that unhealthy sleeping habits abound in the American population. In fact, 35.3% of respondents reported that they got less than seven hours of sleep a night against the recommendations of the National Sleep Foundation.

When it comes to falling asleep at the wheel, approximately 4.7% of respondents reported that they had fallen asleep at the wheel at least once during the previous 30 days. Persons aged above 65 years of age were less likely to report drowsy driving, and persons in the 25-to-34 year age group were the most likely to report dozing off at the wheel. According to the survey, men were also more susceptible to drowsy driving than women. People with jobs were more likely to doze off compared to students and homemakers. These last figures likely comprise people with stressed jobs and those that work in shift-based jobs who are more likely to doze off while driving.

Continue reading "Indiana Drivers May Be at Greater Risk of Drowsy Driving Accidents Than Feared" »

There are few accidents that can result in catastrophic injuries of the kind seen in rollover accidents. Indiana personal injury lawyers find that these are some of the deadliest crashes in Indiana, and contribute to 30% of auto accident fatalities every year. One of the biggest risks to occupants of vehicles during a rollover, is the risk of ejection. Even passengers who are wearing seat belts can be at risk of ejection from a vehicle during a rollover accident.

A new rule by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration aims to reduce the number of occupants ejected during rollovers. The new rule announced last week will require automakers to enhance their vehicles to ensure that occupants remain inside the vehicle during a rollover. According to the NHTSA, the rule, which is likely to cover all vehicles by 2018, will ensure fewer ejections, and therefore, fewer fatalities in a rollover. Automakers will likely use rollover sensor-equipped side airbags or stronger glass to prevent ejections during a rollover accident.

Continue reading "NHTSA Rule to Help Prevent Injuries in Rollover Accidents" »

The city of Carmel, Indiana is receiving a lot of attention for a road design feature that seems to be in abundance there. The city has more roundabouts than any other city in the country. With the addition of roundabouts has come the elimination of many traffic lights.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety credits these high numbers of roundabouts in Carmel for a reduced injury and accident rate. In 2003, there were 252 traffic accidents on 220 miles of road in Carmel. By 2008, the road miles had increased to 395, but the traffic accident rates actually decreased to 223. Between 2003 and 2008, more than two dozen roundabouts were constructed in Carmel. By the end of this year, the number of roundabouts is expected to touch 55. The number of traffic lights there is just 41.

Continue reading "A Road Design Success Story in Indiana" »

There is good news for Indiana drivers! According to the Indiana University Public Policy Institute, Indiana’s fatal traffic accident rate dropped last year, reducing the number of people killed on Indiana highways by more than 12%.

The research center, based in Indiana-Purdue University of Indianapolis, produced the report that revealed the encouraging news. Unfortunately, this reduction still leaves an astounding 46,590 people who were injured or killed last year. In addition to the physical toll placed on Indiana residents, the high number of accidents results in more than $4.3 billion in property loss and medical care in 2009.

Continue reading "Indiana Car Crashes Decrease in 2009" »

The recently concluded Distracted Driving Summit in Washington DC has turned up a few key points of special interest to states like Indiana, that still don't have anti-distracted driving policies in place. The points to take home from the summit were:

• Laws do work, and states must implement laws to ban the use of handheld cell phones and text messaging devices for all drivers

• There must be strict enforcement of these laws, and strong penalties for violators.

• There must also be better use of technologies to force motorists to stop using their cell phones while driving

Continue reading "Legislation, Enforcement and Technology Prevent Distracted Indiana Accidents" »

In 2005, the economic cost of accidents, including medical expenses and lost income from days off from work, totaled a staggering $99 billion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which came upon that estimate, however believes that the $99 billion tag could actually be much lower than the actual amount. For instance, that estimate doesn't include increased expenses in the form of higher insurance premiums that a motorist may have to pay after an accident. When you factor in these costs, the actual economic cost of accidents in 2005 could cross $200 billion.

It's data from 2005, but in spite of the five year gap, there's no reason for Indiana personal injury lawyers to believe that accident costs for 2009 or 2010, would be significantly lower. If you take the analysis methods adopted by the CDC, you are likely to find billions of dollars of economic losses caused by traffic accidents every year.

Continue reading "Annual Cost of Auto Accidents Equals $500 for Every US Motorist" »

The American Automobile Association conducted a survey, which found that four out of every five dog owners drove frequently with their dogs, and one out of three admitted that their pet was a serious distraction. Half of the respondents in the survey said they liked to pet their dogs while driving, and 20% allowed their dogs to sit on the lap while driving.

Continue reading "Driving with Fido Could Increase Your Accident Risk" »

At the beginning of the decade, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducted a review that indicated an explosion of the senior motorist population in the country in the coming years. This, the IIHS believed, would increase the risk of accidents involving these drivers and other motorists. Nine years later, the IIHS has revisited the issue, and conducted a study into senior motorist safety. The results have been a pleasant surprise.

There are definitely more senior citizens driving today than in the past, but they are not contributing to more accidents, nor are they being fatally injured in accidents at a greater rate. If anything, accident and fatality rates for senior citizens are actually showing a downward trend. Fatal accident rates involving elderly drivers have dropped by as much as 37% over the past decade. In the case of drivers above the age of 80 - those you would think would have the most diminished driving abilities - fatal accident rates have dropped by as much as 47%.

Continue reading "Concerns about Senior Motorists May Be Unfounded" »

Utility crews, emergency responders, police, fire personnel, and construction workers risk their lives every day in an effort to assist the residents of Indiana. With each road construction site, traffic stop and roadside response, these men and women place their own personal safety on the line.

In recent years, Indiana and Federal legislators have added safeguards designed to reduce that risk. These safety measures include a requirement for drivers to reduce their speed, change lanes whenever possible, and always yield the right-of-way to personnel responding to an emergency and requiring personnel at the roadside to wear reflective gear.

Continue reading "New Law Reduces Speed of Indiana Drivers" »

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is looking at the problem of driver fatigue very seriously. In the latest move designed to reduce the number of tired, drowsy and simply fatigued truckers plying our highways, the agency has passed a rule that requires electronic on-board recorders (EOBR's) to be installed on trucks of carriers that frequently violate the Hours of Service rule.

The new rule will take effect from June 1, 2012. It will require a carrier found to be in violation of the work hour rules more than 10% of the time in a single compliance review, to have the EOBRs installed in all its trucks. The recorders must be synchronized with the truck’s engine to record precise and accurate data. The device must record the truck driver name, location, duty status, date and time. After an accident, the data can be accessed through the device, helping rule out or confirm the role of driver fatigue as a role in the accident.

Continue reading "New Federal Rule Will Require Electronic On-Board Recorders for Certain Carriers" »

Transportation Sec. Ray LaHood deserved to be proud this week, when he announced that according to preliminary data, highway fatalities across the country had dropped to their lowest levels in 54 years. Fatality numbers for 2009 were 9% lower than they were in 2008. The DOT estimates that there were 33,960 accident fatalities in 2009. Compare that to just four years ago in 2005, when there were 37,261 fatalities.

Obviously that's good news, although 33,000+ deaths in 365 days are still far too many to stomach for Indiana injury lawyers.

Continue reading "Highway Accident Fatalities Lowest in More Than Five Decades" »

In all the attention that the Toyota acceleration crisis has received, one fact has become clear – the role of trial lawyers in protecting consumers when companies fail to respond to safety concerns, and federal agencies entrusted with protecting the consumer, dither in their duty to keep defective products off the market.

In Toyota’s case, reports of unintended acceleration in its vehicles began surfacing as far back as 2002, when the company first introduced its bestselling electronic throttle control systems. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration however, failed to find the issue serious enough to warrant a recall. It took the deaths of four people in a San Diego accident involving a Lexus for the NHTSA and Toyota to admit that there was a problem.

Continue reading "Toyota Crisis Just One Example of Why Indiana Needs Trial Lawyers " »

You can have laws against using cell phones while driving to prevent auto accidents. In fact, if all goes well, Indiana will soon have a ban on text messaging while driving. However, what do you do about the nonstop distractions parents face every day as they drive their children to school, and elsewhere?

For too long, the topic of distracted driving has focused on the distractions to teenagers and adults from the use of cell phones. Every day however, thousands of Indiana moms and dads drive their children to play groups, tennis lessons recitals, ballet classes, playgrounds, and more. These trips are filled with noise, tantrums and seemingly nonstop whining. They also cause the parent who is driving to experience severe stress, possibly affecting his or her driving abilities.

Continue reading "Safe Driving Tips for Indiana Parents " »

Indiana residents were again reminded of the devastation caused by semi tractor-trailer accidents when they awoke last Sunday to the news of a crash involving a tractor-trailer and a passenger van.

According to early reports, a passenger van traveling north on Interstate 65 near Edinburgh was struck from behind by a semitrailer. The accident occurred around 3:30 a.m. on the darkened interstate.

The full-sized passenger van, filled with family members, was returning from a kite flying competition in Atlanta, Georgia. The van carried 18 people. All the passengers in the van were from one Chicago area family.

Continue reading "Indiana Tractor-Trailer Accident Takes Two Lives" »

Last week, a safety group handed out its annual report card for highway safety. Indiana received a mediocre rating for the strength and effectiveness of its highway safety laws. Coming as it does during the first month of a brand new year, Indiana personal injury lawyers hope that the government takes seriously the issues brought up by the report card and its recommendations.

The report by Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety called Road Map to State Highway Safety Laws, rated all states based on the kind of highway safety laws they have in place to minimize accidents, prevent fatalities and reduce injuries. Fifteen basic and essential highway safety laws relating to teen driving, drunk driving, adult occupant protection and other aspects of highway safety were taken as bench marks.

Continue reading "More Highway Highway Safety Laws Needed to Minimize Indiana Accidents " »

Indiana State Police responded to a call concerning a near fatal accident on the Indianapolis east side this past Tuesday morning. The accident occurred around 9:00 am when the driver of a van hit a tow-truck driver on westbound I-70.

Indianapolis Police report that the tow truck driver, Mark Daily was outside his vehicle, helping a broken-down car on the side of the highway. While he was working, a van ran over him. Police say that the driver of the car, 40-year old Ronald Stevens, failed to obey the law that requires a driver to move to another lane when service vehicles and emergency personnel are present. He was cited for unsafe lane movement and following too close.

Continue reading "Indianapolis Tow Truck Driver Injured" »

The New Year promises to usher in new state and federal laws of the kind that Indiana personal injury lawyers would really like to see. Our state continues to lag behind many in its approach to the safety issues arising from motorists texting and using cell phones while driving. We currently have a ban on all cell phone use by motorists below the age of 18. However, there is no law yet that bans texting while driving for all.

A new bill introduced by Senator Travis Holman (R-Markle) will ban texting and sending emails behind the wheel for all drivers. The bill was filed in the legislature last year, and a non budget session of the legislature which begins on January 5th, has the bill on its agenda. The momentum against cell phone use while driving is gaining momentum in Indiana, and the bill has received support from legislators, Indiana personal injury attorneys and the public.

Continue reading "Indiana Personal Injury Lawyers Look Forward to Texting While Driving Ban in 2010 " »

Indiana is in the midst of a massive 10-year highway construction development blitz, but given a poor nationwide record of enforcing work zone safety standards, personal injury lawyers here will be concerned about the increased risk of accidents and injuries from these development efforts.

In 2006, the Indiana Department of Transportation introduced Major Moves, a highway development plan that includes at least 200 new highway construction projects and 200 preservation projects across Indiana. The plan was initiated as part of efforts to boost development, facilitate easier transportation and generate jobs. All that has been great, but the plan has also meant dozens of highway projects active across the state, at any given time.

Continue reading "Increased Indiana Highway Construction Could Mean More Accidents in the New Year" »

As Indiana personal injury lawyers, we are constantly monitoring efforts by our state to prevent automobile accidents, especially those that result in fatalities and catastrophic injuries. With winter here, the chances of accidents increase because of the challenges of driving in adverse weather conditions. That is why we are encouraged to see the Indiana Department of Transportation (DOT) using technology and the Internet to keep motorists in informed about road and traffic conditions that affects their safety.

The DOT has set up a new website at www.trafficwise.in.gov to keep motorists informed of road conditions. The website launched just before the Thanksgiving holiday, which kicks off a high-risk season for accidents in Indiana.

Continue reading "Indiana DOT Launches New Website to Prevent Accidents" »