Georgia Injury Law Blog

A new study indicates that lack of sleep and insomnia are huge health problems among American adults.  According to the study which has been published in the medical journal The Lancet, as many as a quarter of all adults are not happy with the amount of sleep they get each night.  In fact, approximately 10% of adults meet the criteria for full-fledged insomnia.  The Atlanta car accident lawyers at our firm unfortunately see far too many serious vehicle accidents due to drowsy or distracted driving.

Researchers based their study on an analysis of previous scientific databases, and findings from major studies conducted on sleep over the past 5 years.  They found several factors that indicated we need to increase awareness about the widespread nature of insomnia, and spotlight the consequences of insomnia. 

Insomnia is associated with a number of health disorders.  According to a report published in 2002, persons who suffer from insomnia are about twice as likely to suffer from congestive heart failure compared to persons who have healthy and normal sleep patterns.  Additionally, these persons will be approximately 5 times as likely to suffer from depression or anxiety-related disorders.  Persons who suffer from insomnia, according to the researchers, may also be at a high risk for substance abuse, and psychological disorders.

Those are not the only effects of insomnia.  Studies have found that persons who suffer from insomnia may suffer from effects very similar to those of sleep deprivation.  Sleep deprivation is different from insomnia.  Sleep deprivation refers to a reduced length of sleep due to lower opportunity to sleep.  However, insomniacs have an inability to sleep in spite of having the opportunity to sleep. 

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Distracted Driving , Truck Accidents | 0 Comments Permalink

Most injuries that occur when an automobile is on a collision path with an animal on the road happen not when the car hits the animal, but when the car crashes following the near-collision or impact with the animal.  Therefore, how a driver reacts when he is faced with a stray animal on the road is extremely important in determining the probably of a Georgia car accident.    

The Washington Post spoke to a number of highway safety troopers around the country and came up with the following conclusions.  When it comes to avoiding animal-related collisions, swerving may be much more dangerous than hitting an animal.  Many troopers urge motorists to avoid sudden evasive maneuvers if you're not able to check for traffic beforehand.  If you can make a safe lane change, do so.  However, avoid swerving if you are unable to check your mirror and check for traffic.

If the animal is shorter than the hood of your car, and you have no time to change your lanes, then it is probably advisable to hit the animal.  If the animal is taller than the hood of the car, then it is advisable to avoid the animal if possible.  Unfortunately, very often when drivers are faced with a situation like this, they panic and make the wrong decision, which can lead to a single or multiple car accident.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data, there were about 173 fatal accidents involving animals in 2009, which is the last year for which statistics are available.  There were also about 12,000 car accidents resulting in injuries involving animals that same year.  According to the insurance industry for Highway safety however, 1.5 million accidents involving deer occur around the country every year.  These result in $1 billion in damages.

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Distracted Driving , Motorcycles , Traffic Fatalities | 0 Comments Permalink

Atlanta car accident lawyers strongly believe that parents have a big role to play in setting a good traffic safety example for their teenage children. That's why the results of a new survey came as a disappointment. The survey claims that many parents are distracted while driving, even while they're teaching their children how to drive. Distracted driving results in an enormous number of auto accidents involving serious personal injury and wrongful death. Therefore, it is extremely important that new drivers are taught about he dangers of distracted driving by their parents. In order to convey this lesson, the parents must teach by example.

The survey was conducted by insurance company State Farm. According to the survey, 53% of parents admitted that they had been distracted by a cell phone or other device at least once while they were teaching their children how to drive. However, when the surveyors asked teen motorists, they found slightly higher numbers. According to the teen drivers, at least 61% of them had seen their parents being distracted while teaching them how to drive.

The survey also found that parents may not be so aware of the fact that they are displaying undesirable driving practices to their children. The survey found that parents used their electronic devices while driving with their children much more often than they think. About 52% of the teenagers in the survey said that they had seen their parent using a cell phone while driving. However, only 43% of the parents admitted that they used the cell phone when their teenage driver was in the vehicle with them. 

What also stood out in the survey was that some parents seemed to have different rules for themselves, and a different set of rules for their teenage children. Teenagers are likely to emulate parents’ driving behaviors, and when parents are distracted while driving, teenagers may assume that such practices are acceptable behaviors. 

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving | 0 Comments Permalink

Even as automakers try to add their voice to the anti-distracted driving chorus, Atlanta car accident lawyers find that they continue to outfit their automobiles with increasingly distracting gadgets. These type of gadgets greatly increase the likelihood of auto accidents involving serious personal injuries and wrongful death.

A case in point is Ford Motor Company. The company has been conducting a lot of anti-distracted driving workshops at high schools across the country, including in Georgia. Ford has been sponsoring clinics at several high schools urging students to switch off cell phones and texting devices while driving, and focus on the road. These efforts come as part of the Driving Skills for Life Program which the company promotes. 

All these are wonderful initiatives, but it would help if Ford Motor Company actually walked the walk by removing such distractions from its automobiles. Just one look at Ford's Sync voice-activated system on several of the company's automobiles should make it clear that the automaker doesn’t necessarily have its money where its mouth is. 

In fact, Ford Motor Company admits that there is an increasing demand for gadgetry in modern cars. The average American driver, the company believes, does not want to spend twenty minutes in his vehicle on his way home or to the office, without reading his e-mails and messages, checking out what's happening in his Facebook friend circle, and engaging in a myriad other activities. That's the reason why voice-activated systems that allow users to make phone calls and read text messages without taking their hands off the steering wheel, have become so popular.

Posted By Robert Katz In Auto Accident Claims , Distracted Driving | 0 Comments Permalink

A third teenager has succumbed to his injuries after a deadly pedestrian accident in Clayton County. Two other teenage pedestrians were also killed in the car accident last Thursday. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has confirmed the death of the third teenager, a seventeen-year-old boy. The boy had suffered a serious brain injury in the accident. The boy and his two friends, aged sixteen and seventeen years old, were walking along GA 158, when they were struck by a car being driven by forty-eight-year-old Priscilla Diane Johnson. The impact left the boys with serious injuries. One of them died at the scene of the accident, while the other was rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital, and succumbed to his injuries there. The third victim died on Saturday morning.

According to police, Johnson had been talking on a cell phone at the time of the accident. She had also taken antidepressant medications just before the accident. She now faces a number of charges, including vehicular homicide, driving under the influence, and hit and run. Police also believe that she was driving under a suspended license. Additionally, she faces charges of reckless driving as well charges related to cell phone use while driving and lack of insurance. Personal injury attorneys have repeatedly warned about the dangers of distracted driving as well as driving under the influence of medications. Unfortunately, these tragedies will continue to occur until we toughen our laws in these areas.  

According to one of her friends, at the time of the accident, she was on the cell phone having a quarrel with her husband. The friend has confirmed that she had taken antidepressants before she started driving, and had been impaired at the time of the accident.

It'll take more than a single blog post to enumerate the risks that Atlanta's pedestrians face on a daily basis. However, one of the biggest challenges is the one posed by impaired drivers. Most people assume that impairment is the result of driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotic drugs. However, a motorist can be impaired when he is driving under the influence of prescription drugs. Such dangers are especially high in older drivers, who may be on more than one medication for a number of health ailments. Antidepressants, for instance, can leave a person suffering from insomnia, anxiety, restlessness, and dizziness. A person might suffer from severe hand tremors. All of these symptoms can severely impact a person's ability to drive safely.

Posted By Robert Katz In Accidental Deaths , Distracted Driving , Pedestrian accidents , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink

April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.  April 2010 kicked off a huge effort to enforce the texting and cellphone use laws in two cities.  The pilot program called “Phone in one Hand, Ticket in the Other” was launched through law enforcement and public-education media campaigns.   The results are in and, apparently, the program was extremely successful in Hartford, CT and Syracuse, NY.  Police in both cities issued over 900,000 tickets to drivers for using their cellphones while driving.  Driving with cellphones decreased 32% in Syracuse and 57% in Hartford.  Texting while driving in Hartford declined by 72%.  USA Today reports the National Highway Traffic Administration plans to continue the pilot program in undisclosed states.  As a Georgia auto accident attorney, I think Atlanta would be a good place to test.

As discussed in our Distracted Driving: Part 1 entry, the cellphone and texting laws differ widely across the states.  There is no doubt police enforcement of cellphone use is difficult.  Many states are still waiting for more data before adopting laws and reports questioning the effectiveness of the laws are not causing lawmakers to rush to the bill-writing.  However, if we look closely at the research, the findings may only question the limitations of the approach taken by pioneer states enacting the current laws.

A study by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety found the frequency of insurance claims increased in the studied states after texting bans were enacted.   In the report, Adrian Lund, President of IIHS and HLDI, states the findings may indicate, “that texting bans might even increase the risk associated with texting for drivers who continue to do so despite the laws.”

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving | 0 Comments Permalink

An estimated 20% of the over 1.5 million car accidents resulting in minor to severe injury were reported to have involved distracted driving in 2009.  If you think of all the things you do while driving down the road daily, it is no wonder that distracted driving is the leading cause of auto accidents each year, from fender- bender to fatal injury. 

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has made it his mission to reduce these needless accidents.  A USA Today article quotes LaHood as saying, "It is crystal clear that those who try to minimize this dangerous behavior are making a serious error in judgment, especially when half a million people are injured and thousands more are killed in distracted-driving accidents."  As an Atlanta auto accident attorney, I always try to find out whether a driver involved was using a cellphone at the time of the accident.

LaHood's focus is on drivers texting and cellphone use while behind the wheel.  And, it isn’t just the kids anymore.  Statistics from Distraction.org show the number of distracted drivers involved in fatal crashes increased from 7% in 2005 to 11% in 2009.  Of those drivers, 30-to-39-year-old group had the highest proportion distracted by cellphone use.  Those are not the numbers I expected to see!

Since 1992, states have been enacting laws to curb our multi-tasking tendencies.  The laws vary from state to state and the penalties are just as varied.  For example, Georgia has a zero tolerance for texting while driving and the penalty is a fine of $150.  However, just across the border in Florida, there are no laws against texting or cellphone use while driving.  Keep reading to see the laws in your state.

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving | 0 Comments Permalink

According to a poll by The US Department of Transportation and Consumer Reports, 63 percent of people under 30 acknowledged driving while using a handheld phone and 30 percent said they have sent text messages while behind the wheel. A total of nearly 5,500 people in the United States were killed in distracted driving accidents in 2009.

Although I am a personal injury attorney, and accustomed to the horrors stemming from car accidents, these are staggering numbers. However, I’m convinced that distracted driving has become an even greater problem with the rampant use of smartphones and an increased number of young drivers wielding them – especially with the plethora of apps available. The main problem is that “science hasn't caught up to looking at the effects that mobile app usage can have behind the wheel of a car," says researcher Lauren McCartney.

Apple alone has more than 425,000 apps. So it comes as no surprise that the University of Alabama Youth Safety Lab found use of popular cell phone apps pose an even greater risk to young drivers. Additionally, the speed of these 3G devices undoubtedly makes internet and app use while on the move an ever-growing temptation for America’s young people. And incidents of distracted driving are sure to continue on an upward trend as the phones and apps alike become more affordable. Douglas Mcintyre, reporting for Aol’s Daily Finance, found a recent report by Comscore which stated that "74.6 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones during the three months ending in April 2011, up 13 percent from the three-month period ending in January 2011."

Another major problem is the fact that apps primarily cater to the more tech-savvy generation of young drivers. This is a particular danger because in many cases they are fairly inexperienced drivers, which in itself makes them more accident prone. Factor in the distraction of friends and other passengers and cell phone use and one has a recipe for disaster. Young drivers, it seems, may just not be psychologically ready to follow the rules of the road.

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving | 0 Comments Permalink

An off-duty police sergeant in Centreville, Houston County, Georgia was killed in a motorcycle accident last week. According to news reports, the 45-year-old Police Sgt. was riding his motorcycle when he collided with a car at an intersection. He was seriously injured, and died of his injuries. As an Atlanta motorcycle accident lawyer, I see the dangers motorcycle riders face every day. Unfortunately, too many drivers just fail to keep a close eye out for motorcycles.

Motorcyclists in Georgia are at a greater risk of collisions with motorists this summer, when more numbers of drivers and motorcyclists can be expected to share the road. Not only are motorcyclists dealing with a large population of adult drivers on their way to holidays distracted by their families and their holiday plans, but they are also sharing the highways with larger numbers of teen drivers. 

Summer is when the total number of teenage drivers on the road is higher, and the months of June, July and August see 40% more driving by those teen motorists. These are inexperienced drivers, who may fail to practice basic motorcycle safety behaviors, like looking out for motorcyclists at intersections. This accident illustrates how necessary it is for motorists to be extra cautious when approaching an intersection, and look out for motorcycles. Many young and teen drivers tend to think of summer as a long, extended weekend, and fail to prioritize traffic safety rules. 

Additionally, motorcyclists are also likely to be at great risk from drivers who are distracted. A motorcycle has a narrow frame, which makes it easy to miss. The risks of missing a motorcyclist are even greater if you're talking on a cell phone or texting while driving. Unfortunately, Atlanta motorcycle accident attorneys expect to see more such reckless and distracted driving during the summer.

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving , Motorcycles , Teen Drivers , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink

Several school students were injured in a bus accident involving two school buses in Gwinnett County earlier this week. The accident occurred at an intersection where two school buses were stopped. A third bus approached the scene, and rear-ended the second bus. The driver of the third school bus sustained minor injuries, and was taken to the Gwinnett Medical Center. Unfortunately, as an Atlanta injury attorney, I have seen too many bus accidents result in far more serious injures and wrongful death.

There were a total of 38 children on the third bus, and 10 of them suffered back injuries. The students on the other two buses did not suffer any injuries. The driver of the bus has been cited for following too close. The drivers of the other two buses have been suspended temporarily while an investigation into the accident continues.

Atlanta bus accident lawyers will have to wait until investigations are completed to learn why the third bus driver was not able to stop in time to avoid crashing into the other bus. However, it'll probably be worthwhile to probe the role of distractions and inattention as a factor in this crash. School bus drivers have an additional responsibility to be cautious and completely attentive while driving. These buses carry some of our most precious cargo, which makes it all the more important for drivers to be attentive at all times.

Unfortunately, distracted driving has become widespread among the commercial motor vehicle driver population too. More and more cases involving accidents caused by distracted bus and truck drivers are coming to light. It isn't only electronic communication devices like cell phones that are responsible for distractions. A motor vehicle driver could also be distracted by highway signs and billboards, dashboard computers or because he is engaged in other activities, like snacking while driving.

Posted By Robert Katz In Bus accidents , Children , Distracted Driving , Wrongful Death | 0 Comments Permalink

As Atlanta injury attorney I often notice people using cell phones while driving almost every day as we drive to work. Such behaviors significantly increase their risk of an auto accident, including those that result in serious personal injury. Unfortunately, this isn't just a fad that affects the young and teen drivers, but a dangerous phenomenon that also touches most motorists. This April, the focus will be on minimizing the number of accidents every year in Georgia caused due to distracted driving, as national and local transportation safety agencies mark National Distracted Driving Month. Reducing distracted driving is probably one of the best ways to decrease the overall number of car accidents in Atlanta and throughout Georgia.

April was set as National Distracted Driving Month through a special move by Congress, and across the country including Georgia, state and local transportation agencies will mark the month with special efforts to crack down on distracted drivers, and raise awareness about these practices. While much of the focus on distracted drivers this month is likely to be on those using cell phones while driving, there are all kinds of other distractions that increase the risk of an accident. In fact, some studies estimate that approximately 80% of all accidents are caused by some kind of distractions. These include motorists using cell phones, texting, changing radio stations, snacking, reading newspapers, applying makeup, and performing any other activities that take their eyes away from the road and their hands off the steering wheel.

However, the risk from the use of cell phones and other electronic communication devices while driving is especially greater, because cell phones can be found in almost every car. Besides, in a tough economy, American workers have felt under greater pressure than ever to constantly stay in touch with the office 24/7, even while they're driving.   There is also an entire section of Atlanta’s population that has been raised on Facebook and MySpace. For these drivers, not being in touch with their friends 24/7 via smart phone is, quite simply, unthinkable.

It is these challenges that we need to make a special effort towards this April.

Posted By Robert Katz In Distracted Driving , Teen Drivers , Texting and Cellphone Use while Driving | 0 Comments Permalink