Georgia Injury Law Blog
When most people envision a motor vehicle accident, they imagine it occurring on a roadway. However, the National Safety Council found that 1 in every 5 crashes occurs in a parking lot or parking garage. In fact, at least 60,000 people are injured and about 500 people die annually in parking lot crashes. Many of these accidents involve distracted motorists. The National Safety Council says that a focus on avoiding distractions in these areas as well as technology that can prevent such crashes could help reduce those accident numbers.
Parking lot accidents often two or more motor vehicles, but they can also involve a motor vehicle and a pedestrian. The latter are very common, and get a lot of attention because the pedestrians in these cases may suffer serious injuries as a result of these accidents. According to a public opinion poll, 66 percent of motorists admit that they use their phone calls for various activities while driving in a parking lot. In addition, respondents said they would use the following programs while driving in a parking lot: GPS (63 percent), texting (56 percent), social media (52 percent), email (50 percent), or even take photos or watch videos (49 percent). The poll found teenagers slightly more likely to do personal grooming while driving, while adults were slightly more likely to talk on the phone.
Why do motorists use distracting devices in parking lots? Unfortunately, many motorists have a false sense of security while driving through a parking lot. Several things contribute, including lower speeds and less moving traffic. However, pedestrians are even more present in parking lots than they are on roadways, including child pedestrians. The risk of a crash increases during busy shopping times and during the holidays. The risks are compounded by the fact that holiday shoppers are usually in a hurry to back out or get home.