Articles Posted in Wrongful Death

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While in – car safety technologies can play a significant role in helping reduce car accident wrongful deaths, state and local officials also need to be looking at infrastructure improvements that can have a more immediate effect on motorist safety.

In-car safety technologies including forward collision warning systems, lane departure warning systems and other types of technologies can play a significant role in reducing the number of people being killed in car accidents every year.  In 2025, the number of cars that come with advanced safety features are much higher than they were even a decade back.

However, progress in bringing these technologies to every single American has been slow.  The average American automobile is approximately 12 years old, and lacks most of these newer safety features. Safety groups have been pushing for the expansion of these systems in all cars, but it could be years, or even decades, before these safety features are expanded to all cars. In the meantime, Americans continue to die in car accidents caused by distracted driving, speeding and other dangerous behaviors.  The delay in expanding these technologies has had deadly consequences. In 2022, the number of people killed in car accidents was at least 30 percent higher than in 2014.

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In 2023, according to statistics by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than 3,000 people were killed in car accidents caused by   distracted drivers.  The month of April is dedicated to commemorating the importance of preventing these car accidents, and is the right time to learn how best to protect yourself against these auto accidents.

According to statistics by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2023, 3,275 people were killed in distracted driving-related car accidents.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration includes a number of activities under the term “distracted driving”. These activities include texting and talking on the cell phone while driving, adjusting the radio, taking selfies,  applying makeup, smoking and drinking while driving.

The large number of wrongful deaths that are caused each year by distracted drivers in auto accidents is the reason why the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration dedicates a special month as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.  This April, you are likely to see more content on social media and around you dedicated to making people understand the dangers of being distracted while driving, and encouraging motorists to avoid using their cell phones and avoid distractions while behind the wheel. You are also likely to see more law enforcement officers enforcing Georgia’s laws against using cell phones while driving.

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An analysis of data by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association finds that while pedestrian accident death numbers have dropped since last year, the final tally is still a close to 50% increase over a decade ago.

According to the analysis by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, a total of 334 people were killed in pedestrian accidents during the first 6 months of 2024. That was a drop of 2.6% from the same period of time the previous year.  There were 88 fewer deaths during the first 6 months of 2024 compared to the first 6 months of 2023.

That is the good news.  The bad news is that this was an increase of 48% from the same period a decade earlier.   Between January and June 2024, there were a staggering 1,072 more pedestrian accident fatalities compared to the period between January and June 2014.

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With hopes for a complete elimination of traffic accident wrongful deaths over the next decade fading swiftly away,  the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is calling for the adoption of a more practical and achievable short term strategy towards the attainment of the goal. Given the number of wrongful deaths which occur in car accidents, any reduction will be welcomed.

“Vision Zero” is a policy that originated first in Sweden where it was adopted by that country’s parliament with the goal of eliminating all auto accident wrongful deaths and bringing the total number of people being killed in car accidents down to zero over the next decade.  That idea caught on quickly around the world as many governments announced their own plans for reducing car accident wrongful death numbers in their countries.  The US too was quick to adopt the idea.  The US Department of Transportation  laid out the policy in detail in its National Roadways Safety Strategy in 2022. That policy outlined the framework of a plan to help eliminate the number of car accident wrongful deaths on our roads through a number of strategies, including better roads,  safer vehicles and better drivers.

However, progress towards achieving zero fatalities has been very slow or minimal at best.  In fact, the goal seems to be getting further and further out of reach.  In 2022, for instance, the year in which the administration announced the National Roadways Safety Strategy, more than 42,500 people died in auto accidents across the country. That was an increase of nearly 30% from 2014,  a mere 8 years earlier.

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Enforcement of traffic laws, including those against drunk driving and speeding, need to be a major part of any auto accident prevention program by state and federal governments. These are the types of traffic law violations which lead to very serious car accidents resulting in catastrophic personal injuries and wrongful deaths.

The role that traffic enforcement can play in accident prevention tends to be a controversial topic.  However, a recent piece in The Atlantic calls for increasing traffic enforcement in order to help reduce the number of people involved in serious auto accidents.  The article refers to experiments in other states that have chosen to decrease traffic enforcement,  consequently leading to an increase in the number of car accidents and accident – related catastrophic personal injuries and wrongful deaths in these states.

Many car accident prevention programs these days focus heavily on the role of  road design in preventing car accidents.  However, there are many types of accidents that are not impacted or hindered by optimum road design.  For example, a large part of the spike in auto accident wrongful deaths in recent years is linked to the increase in the number of car accidents occurring at night.  Many of these auto accidents are speeding- related car accidents or drunk driving auto accidents that have very little to do with road design. These accidents are often connected to low levels of traffic enforcement.  Simply put,  if these speeding drivers and drunk motorists are fined for violations and taken off the streets, we are more likely to see a decline in car accident numbers.

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Earlier research indicated that it might be the taller height of large vehicles like SUVs that make them a bigger personal injury threat to pedestrians than mere vehicle weight.   Now, newer studies confirm that speeding only exacerbates  those risks to auto accidents involving pedestrians which often result in severe and catastrophic personal injuries.

According to a new study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety,  speeding increases the risk that a sports utility vehicle or a pickup truck poses to a pedestrian.  Exactly how much of a risk depends on the height of the vehicle.  Taller vehicles that are speeding are much more likely to cause grave or fatal injury to a pedestrian when they are in a collision with them.

The size of an automobile can be a significant factor in the severity of the injuries that a pedestrian suffers in a car accident.  However,  the weight of the vehicle may not be as relevant since all vehicles, including smaller passenger cars, are heavier than pedestrians.  What seems to significantly increase the severity of the personal injury risk to pedestrians is the height of the vehicle.  Taller vehicles with a taller hood, for example,  like large – sized SUVs, are much more likely to cause serious personal injuries to pedestrians because the pedestrian is more likely to suffer personal injuries to his upper body or head in such auto accidents.  These are some of the most devastating injuries, and are very likely to result in catastrophic damage or wrongful death.

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The  month of December sees some of the highest numbers of drunk driving car accidents in the year, thanks to the Christmas and New Year holidays.  No  wonder then that December is marked as National Impaired Driving Prevention Month.

Data suggests that the number of drunk driving car accidents on our roads is actually  increasing  every year.  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, based on data from 2021, alcohol -related car accident numbers   in December were the highest that they have been in 15 years.

All 50 states have laws in place that prohibit driving under the influence of alcohol.  In most states, the legally acceptable blood alcohol concentration limit is 0.08.  In fact, many  agencies including the National Transportation Safety Board have gone on record calling for a  further reduction in  the blood alcohol concentration limit to .05.  In  spite of these laws against drunk driving, however, far too many motorists feel comfortable driving after having consumed  alcohol, and those numbers increase in the month of December.

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While most motorists arrange to take alternate means of transportation when they are too intoxicated to drive, they may not be as cautious when they are sleepy and not in any condition to operate a vehicle. Unfortunately, this lack of caution results in a significant number of car accidents.

The results of a new study by the National Sleep Foundation reveals the cavalier attitude that most Americans continue to have towards drowsy driving.  This is in spite of the fact that driving while sleeping or fatigued   contributes to thousands of car accidents every year.  Many of these car accidents are fatal while others may result in severe or catastrophic personal injuries.

The National Sleep Foundation survey found that as many as 7 out of 10 American motorists  were likely to seek out  alternate needs of transportation when  they found themselves to be too intoxicated to drive.  However,  the approach to drowsy driving was markedly dissimilar. Only four out of every 10 American motorists,  who had not had enough sleep and were too sleepy to drive, admitted to finding alternate modes of  transportation.

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Thousands of motorcyclist lives could have been saved in motorcycle accidents over several decades if universal helmet laws had been in place in all U.S. states. Unfortunately, without these laws, many people were killed or suffered brain damage unnecessarily in motorcycle accidents.

A new study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety finds that as many as 11% of all motorcyclist and rider deaths over a period of close to 5  decades could possibly have been prevented if universal motorcycle helmet laws had been place in all states. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study, more than 22,000 motorcyclist lives could have been saved between 1976 and 2022 if all states had universal helmet laws.  That means that about 11% of all motorcyclist wrongful deaths during this period of time could have been prevented.

Wearing  a helmet can significantly help reduce a person’s chances of being killed in a motorcycle accident,  just like seat belts can help save motorist lives in car  accidents. In spite of that fact, all states have laws that require motorists and passengers to wear seat belts while driving, but only 17 states and the District of Columbia have laws requiring all motorcyclists and riders to wear helmets while riding.

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Preliminary statistics by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration  show a drop in the number of people killed nationwide in auto accidents during the first 6 months of 2024.  This is the 9th consecutive quarterly drop in car accident fatality numbers. It is important to better understand why this drop in auto accident wrongful deaths occurred and to continue to work to improve the numbers.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently released encouraging news in the form of car accident data for the first half of 2024. The statistics show that there was a 3% drop in the number of  auto accident fatalities during the first 6 months of 2024, compared to the same period of time in 2023.  The data reveals that there were 18,720 deaths in car accidents between January and July of 2024.  This was a drop from the 19,330 deaths that were recorded during the first 6 months of 2023.

This drop came even as there was a slight increase in the number of vehicle miles traveled by Americans in the first half of 2024, compared to the same period of time last year.  This year, Americans traveled approximately 0. 8% higher number of vehicle miles or 13.1 billion extra miles, compared to the same period of time in 2023.  Overall, 32 states recorded a drop in auto accident deaths during the first half of 2024.  This included the state of Georgia which recorded 696 deaths in car accidents during the first six months of 2024, in comparison with 762 deaths during the same period of time last year.

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