Indiana Injury Lawyer Blog

A pioneering new study that aims to use data logging equipment installed on motorcycles to record motorcyclists’ behavior, thereby offering new insights about the causes of accidents, has just begun.

The MSF 100 Motorcyclists Naturalistic Study is the first of its kind into motorcycle accidents. It is based on a similar study into car accident prevention. The study is sponsored by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, with help from the Virginia Tech transportation Institute.
The study will be conducted over a period of one year, and will involve more than 100 motorcycles, each of which will be fitted with recording equipment. The equipment will include cameras, trackers and other aids that will help researchers monitor motorcyclists’ behavior as they ride every day.

Continue reading "New Motorcycle Safety Study Observes Riding Behaviors" »

Hamilton County residents were reminded again of the need for caution and attention on the roads when motorcycles are present.

A tragic accident resulted in the death of a Fishers couple who were killed at the intersection of 146th street and Gray Road. The motorcycle was traveling behind an SUV but changed lanes to travel through the intersection as the light turned yellow. A box truck turning north onto Gray road was unable to stop and the motorcycle hit the passenger door. The driver of the box truck was uninjured.

Police reports indicate that neither the driver nor passenger of the motorcycle was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.

As we have reported in past blogs, motorcycle riders need to take special precautions to ensure their safety and the safety of their passengers. Motorcycle training is of utmost importance. Wearing a helmet is also critical to the safety of those on the roads.

New motorcycle accident fatalities statistics for Indiana revealed by the Governors Highway Safety Association reveal motorcycle fatalities in 2010 declined by 4 deaths. That decline is too insignificant for Indiana personal injury lawyers to feel optimistic about the state of motorcycle safety in the state.

The overall national decline in motorcycle accident fatalities is not just much lower than in 2009, but the GHSA also fears that motorcycle crash fatalities could actually increase over the next few years, unless states like Indiana take more firm action to prevent motorcycle deaths. The national motorcycle accident fatality numbers dropped by 2.4%, which is much lower than the 16% decline recorded in 2009. The GHSA only considered data for 48 states and the District of Columbia during the first nine months of 2010. However, the agency is predicting that motorcycle accident fatality numbers last year will be in the region of 4,376 fatalities.

Continue reading "Indiana Motorcycle Accident Fatalities Down, but Cause for Concern" »

If efforts to develop a test that will determine the presence of brain injury through biomarkers are successful, we could soon have a simple blood test that doctors at any kind of facility could use to determine the presence of a brain injury.

Currently, procedures for the diagnosis of brain injury are fairly restricted. Doctors can diagnose injury by taking a patient's blood pressure and other vitals, and administering memory and concentration tests. However, the chances of a missed diagnosis are always too high for Indiana personal injury lawyers to tolerate. A delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis, can radically impact a person's chances of completely recovering from the brain injury.

Continue reading "Progress in Efforts to Develop Brain Injury Biomarker Test" »

Failure to wear helmets, protective boots and other protective gear, failure to dress in protective clothing or reflective clothing that's visible to other motorists around you, and failure to take a safety training program - motorcyclists are failing on several counts, as a new Consumer Reports study shows us.

There was very little good news in the survey, but plenty of enthusiasm to go around. The study found that seven out of every ten riders believed that they were experienced motorcyclists, and had been licensed motorcyclists for the past five years at least. However, at least 10 of these admitted to having been involved in accidents over the last five years, and 50% said these were single vehicle crashes. One of the reasons contributing to these crashes could be that just half of the motorcyclists said they had taken a motorcycle safety course before they began riding.

Continue reading "Consumer Reports Study: Safety Still Not Priority for Many Motorcyclists" »

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" »

Just in time for Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month in May comes an announcement by the Governors’ Highway Safety Association that there has been a substantial drop in the number of motorcycle fatalities nationwide.

According to data from the first nine months of 2009, there is expected to be a decline of more than 10% in fatality rates, the first time a decline like this has been recorded in the past 11 years. Indiana also recorded a drop in motorcycle accident fatalities last year. There were 108 motorcycle crash deaths here in 2009, a drop of four deaths from 2008.

Continue reading "Fewer People Died in Motorcycle Accidents in Indiana in 2009" »

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" »

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 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" »