Accident Prevention

Published on: July 30, 2023

Auto Braking Accident Prevention Systems Could Soon be Required on All Cars

When a proposed new rule by the federal government becomes final, most cars in the United States will come with automatic emergency braking systems that will significantly reduce the risk of car accidents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed a rule that would require the installation of automatic emergency braking systems on nearly all cars and pickup trucks in the United States. The rule will require that all light passenger cars and trucks that weigh 10,000 pounds or less come with these systems after the publication of the final rule. The rule will also require that automatic emergency braking systems recognize pedestrians at night.

After a period of 3 years from the final publication of the rule, all vehicles in the country will be required to have these systems. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that a significant number of lives will be saved every year as a result of the widespread adoption of the technology. It is specifically believed that 360 lives will be saved in car accidents every year and more than 24,000 injuries will be prevented as a result of the use of the technology.

Published on: March 16, 2023

Car Accident Prevention Technology can be Challenging to Repair

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Auto Accident prevention systems like front crash avoidance technology and lane departure warning systems play a significant role in protecting motorists and passengers. However, when there is any malfunctioning or problems reported with these systems, repairs can be challenging to complete.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is reporting on a recent analysis of the repairs of auto crash prevention systems in automobiles. Many of these systems including rear view camera systems and blind spot detection systems can play a tremendous role in helping keep motorists safe and preventing car accidents. However, when motorists take these cars in for repairs after the technology malfunctions or because the system is giving an error message, or after an auto accident, they find that repairs are not always satisfactory. According to the study, many motorists continue to face problems with the technology even after repairs have apparently been completed.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study surveyed approximately 500 drivers. Most of the drivers in the study had taken in their car for repairs after experiencing problems with the safety technology in their automobile. In some cases, the problems appeared after an auto accident while in other cases, the repairs were the result of a recall or the result of a recommendation by the automobile repair shop. Repair issues were more likely to be seen when the car had been involved in a car accident. Incomplete repairs were also much more likely to be seen in those cases in which the windshield replacement was required as part of auto repairs.

Published on: February 17, 2023

Stronger Seat Belt Reminder Systems Could Prevent Minivan Car Accident Injuries

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

More lives could potentially be saved in auto accidents involving minivans every year if these vehicles came with stronger and more efficient seat belt warning systems.

A new study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety highlights the fact that far too many minivan models simply do not have effective and efficient seatbelt reminder systems in place. This is even more alarming when you consider that these vehicles are mainly purchased by families with young children.

The minivan is the ubiquitous symbol of the young American family. For decades, Americans with young families have been buying minivans for their very specific travel needs. However, failure to use proper restraint systems has disastrous consequences for America’s children. In 2020, more than one-third of children below the age of 12 killed in car accidents were not properly restrained at the time.

Published on: November 14, 2022

Newer Cars Better Protect Women Motorists Against Personal Injuries in Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

New automobiles that come with advanced safety technology have reduced the disparity between male and female motorists in the kind of injuries caused in car accidents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently released the results of a new report which finds that newer automobiles, particularly those of model years 2010 and later, do a much better job of protecting female motorists against personal injuries and reducing the disparity in injuries between female and male drivers.

These findings were published in a report titled Female Crash Fatality Risk Relative to Males With Similar Physical Impacts. Traditionally, there has been a discrepancy between male and female motorists in the outcomes of auto accidents. Women are almost 40 percent more likely to suffer injuries in car accidents.

Published on: October 19, 2022

Seat Belt Reminders Work, but only When Audible Signal is Long Lasting

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Laws requiring drivers and passengers to wear seat belts have been around for decades. This is beYour car’s seat belts are the front line defense in protecting you from injury if you are a victim of a car accident. Seat belt reminders that emit an audible alert when a driver is not buckled up are useful tools that can help increase seat belt usage rates and reduce the number of injuries and fatalities in auto accidents every year. A new study, however, shows that many seat belt reminders are not that effective. Auto manufacturers must be made aware of how beneficial this tool can be.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has developed a new rating program that aims to encourage car manufacturers to improve their seat belt reminder technologies. According to federal standards, a seat belt reminder system should emit an audible signal that lasts for a minimum of 4 to 6 seconds. In the case of a visual signal, the alert must continue for a period of at least 60 seconds. However, the Insurance Institute for Highway safety has conducted earlier research that indicates that alerts that continue for much longer can be more effective in encouraging motorists to buckle up before they begin driving. In fact, the research found that seat belt usage increases by as much as 34% when audible alerts last much longer than just 4 to 6 seconds. The research indicates that increased seatbelt usage can save as many as 1,500 lives in auto accidents every year.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, audible signals must not only be long-lasting, but must also be loud enough to allow the motorist to hear the signal. Some of the systems that the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety studied as part of its research, had alerts that were barely audible above the cabin noise and other vehicle noise. In others, there was a 25 -second gap between intermittent audible signals, and this could be too long a gap to prove effective in encouraging a motorist to buckle up.

Published on: September 15, 2022

Broader, Strongly Worded Anti-distracted Driving Laws Can Help Prevent Auto Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

While many states like Georgia have enacted laws targeting the prevention of car accidents caused by distracted driving, some states have found more success in the use of these laws than others. A new study finds that the secret to the success of these laws lies in their nature as well as the words used to define them.

Georgia’s laws that ban the use of cell phones while driving specifically prohibit a motorist from using his or her hand to hold a cell phone or other device while driving a vehicle. A new study conducted by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety finds that laws that are specifically worded to prevent motorists from using their hands to hold a cell phone or other device might be more successful in preventing these behaviors and reducing the risk of car accidents caused by distracted driving, compared to laws that do not have such specifically designed language. The most successful laws, the study finds, are those that limit the use of hands to hold a cell phone for just the barest minimum possible interaction.

Many states have found it challenging to draft laws to reduce distracted driving. Part of the challenge has been the fact that over the past decade, cell phones have gone from being devices that people used to call people and have phone conversations with them and to send text messages, to mini personal computers. Cell phones now act as cameras and GPS systems, and most Americans use them as payment portals. Most of us check emails on cell phones rather than on computers. In an environment like this, it becomes challenging to define the kind of activities that are prohibited while using a cell phone.

Published on: September 13, 2022

These Three Road Design Changes Could help Prevent Senior Pedestrian Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Senior pedestrians are at a higher risk of being involved in auto accidents when they are out walking. However, a new study finds that simple improvements to road design can help significantly reduce the risk for older pedestrians.

Seniors between the age of 65 and 74 have some of the highest pedestrian accident rates. In 2021, more than 700 pedestrian accidents involved persons in this age group.

In the study, researchers specifically focused on walking safety for seniors above the age of 65. They thoroughly reviewed four years worth of crash data involving elderly pedestrians involved in car accidents, and found in their analysis that specific changes made to road design could help lower the risk for senior pedestrians.

Published on: September 5, 2022

Georgia Cracks Down on Speeding Drivers to Prevent Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

High speeds are a major factor in car accidents in the metro Atlanta region and across Georgia every year. Concerned at the growing number of car wrecks involving speeding drivers, Georgia and a number of Southern states are enforcing speed limits and cracking down on errant drivers.

Operation Southern Slow Down is a multi-state initiative that involves a total of five Southern States including Georgia. The week-long campaign this year will see law enforcement officers in all of these states cracking down on speeding drivers. In the five years that Operation Southern Slow Down has been conducted, Georgia Highway Patrol officers have written down more than 55,000 speeding tickets. Police have also pulled over 3,200 drivers for driving under the influence of alcohol during the week-long enforcement campaign over the past 5 years.

Officers intend to spend a lot of time and attention on speeding drivers in construction work zones. For instance, Interstate 95 and Interstate 16 are currently home to construction zones, and officers will be looking at cracking down on speeding drivers in these areas. Workers in construction zones are always at a high risk of personal injuries in car accidents, and those risks are amplified when there are speeding drivers in these zones. Speed limits are always posted well before the start of a construction work zone and even through the zone. Drivers must lower speeds as soon as they see these signs and stick to the posted speed limits as they drive through the construction zone.

Published on: August 29, 2022

Feds Announce New Child Car Seat Rule to Prevent Personal Injuries in Car Accidents

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The federal administration has finalized a new rule that will strengthen standards for car safety seat design and manufacture, and help to protect children from serious personal injuries in side impact car accidents.

The rule has been more than two decades in the making. For years now, child safety advocates have been calling on the federal administration to ensure that the child car safety seats that millions of American parents trust to keep their children safe are manufactured with the ability to withstand personal injuries in side- impact auto accidents or T-bone car accidents. These are deadly auto accidents and can cause serious personal injuries to passengers in the car.

Congress asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to enact a rule like this two decades ago, and the time has finally come. The agency has finally announced its intention to finalize the rule. The rule will require that manufacturers test child car safety seats for protection in side- impact auto accidents and not just frontal impact car accidents. Earlier, car seat manufacturers were only required to test for frontal impact auto accidents at 30 miles per hour . The new rule requires that manufacturers also test their car seats for side impact at 30 mph.

Published on: July 20, 2022

Enforcement Campaigns May Help Reduce Auto Accident Fatalities

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Even as federal transportation authorities grapple with a spike in deaths in all types of car accidents, a new study finds that high visibility traffic enforcement campaigns may possibly hold the key to reducing those numbers and keeping motorists safe.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently revealed that auto accident death numbers are on the rise. Those numbers were extremely high in 2020, a year in which American motorists drove fewer vehicle miles than in previous years. In 2021, according to projected estimates, those numbers were at their highest in more than a decade. This increase has been high enough to spur federal transportation authorities into action. The new National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chief has announced his Roadway Safety Strategy, a plan that aims to combine efforts towards safer roads, vehicles and motorists to reduce car accident death numbers.

A new analysis by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finds that high visibility traffic law enforcement campaigns like those that are frequently conducted to encourage motorists to buckle up or drive safely or at posted speeds may be effective in helping reduce car accident fatality numbers