Posted on May 28, 2021 in Uncategorized

When the light turns green, you remove your foot from the brake and drive into the intersection. Suddenly, a vehicle from your right races through the intersection because the driver is trying to beat the light that has already turned red. It may have been a near miss, but perhaps you weren’t so lucky.

Intersections are among the most common places for accidents to occur. In fact, the Federal Highway Administration reports that about half of all motor vehicle accidents happen at intersections, and almost all of them are the result of a driver making a terrible mistake. If you are recovering from injuries resulting from an intersection crash or you lost a loved one in such a tragedy, you likely want answers to your questions, particularly when it comes to knowing who is responsible.

What goes wrong?

Even in a quiet Dallas County neighborhood, chances are that there is a lot going on at any intersection. Not only might there be traffic coming from any direction, but a driver may also have to deal with children playing, pedestrians, people on bikes, directional signs, animals and other factors. Additionally, many drivers have their own distractions inside the vehicle, which increases the chances of an accident. The most common reasons why crashes occur at intersections include the following:

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 Posted on April 02, 2021 in Uncategorized

Getting enough sleep is an important factor in living a happy, healthy life. It is also an important factor in staying safe on the road. Unfortunately, there are a lot of Texas drivers who get behind the wheel even though they are far too tired to do so. This lax approach to drowsy driving is seriously injuring and even killing innocent people.

The average person needs anywhere from 7 to 9 hours of sleep just to function properly. Lack of sleep is only one contributing factor to drowsy driving though. Certain medications can also make people feel very tired, while sleep disorders might also interfere with some people’s ability to drive.

Drowsy driving is not uncommon

Maybe you have heard more about the dangers of distracted or drunk driving, so drowsy driving might not seem like that big of a threat. The reality is that drowsy driving is shockingly common. According to the American Automobile Association at least 40% of drivers admit to having fallen asleep while driving.

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 Posted on February 01, 2021 in Uncategorized

Vehicle safety has improved greatly over the years. Things like airbags, seatbelts and improved structural design keep you and everyone else on the road safer than ever before. Unfortunately, there is something that is counteracting these new safety features — higher speed limits. New speed limits are making car accidents even more dangerous.

Even cars that boast the best safety features and ratings simply cannot stand up to higher and higher speed limits. In fact, even as cars have gotten safer, rising speed limits have directly contributed to 37,000 deaths over the last 25 years. So, why are speed limits still going up?

All in the name of traffic flow

Improving traffic flow is one of the reasons that Texas state officials choose to raise maximum speed limits. One aspect of traffic flow that officials seek to improve is the variance in speeds between vehicles. Since some drivers tend to always go faster than the posted limit, the thought process is that raising those limits will get everyone traveling at the same speed.

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 Posted on January 05, 2021 in Truck Accidents

Large trucks are an essential part of Texas’ economy. Truck drivers traverse across the entire country, bringing goods from all over. While these vehicles and drivers might serve an important function, they also pose a serious threat. Large truck accidents are life altering and, in some cases, even life ending.

In accidents involving large trucks and smaller passenger vehicles, victims in the smaller vehicles are much more likely to suffer fatal injuries. Part of the problem is that tractor trailers simply weigh more than cars — a lot more. The average large truck weighs as much as 30 times more than passenger vehicles. Sadly, several issues could result in these massive vehicles causing a serious accident.

Poorly maintained equipment

Trucking companies are supposed to ensure that their vehicles are properly maintained and free of defects. Unfortunately, defective equipment is a common factor in large truck accidents. Brake defects factor into an astounding 42% of all investigated trucking accidents. A single defect can increase the risk of a crash by 200%.

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 Posted on December 01, 2020 in Uncategorized

Work does not just stay at the office anymore. With the advent of technology like smartphones and video chatting, bosses are expecting more from their workers than perhaps ever before. Like a lot of people in Texas, your boss might expect you to answer work calls or reply to emails regardless of what else you may be doing. Unfortunately, this extra work pressure is making the distracted driving problem worse.

Distracted driving certainly is a huge problem. Around 80% of drivers talk on the phone when they are behind the wheel. At least 30% of drivers admit they have nearly caused accidents while driving too. Since these figures were self-reported in a Travelers Companies survey, it is possible that the real numbers could be much higher.

What if your boss is calling?

Connected culture — the idea that people should be constantly connected to their devices and available — could literally be killing workers. In a survey of company executives, nearly 75% said they do not think distracted driving is a big concern. Instead, these executives seem to prioritize being “on” all the time. That same survey found that 87% of executives think they should be able to either always or frequently contact employees outside the office.

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 Posted on October 30, 2020 in Uncategorized

Drunk drivers do not just endanger their own lives. They also put everyone else in Texas at risk for serious injury or even death. Unfortunately, many men and women still act as if drinking and driving is safe. This dangerous attitude toward drunk driving makes it difficult to get the problem under control.

Part of the problem could be that drunk driving is not necessarily as visible as distracted driving. While it is easy to spot a driver staring at his or her phone, it might be harder to identify someone who is under the influence of alcohol. So while you might find it easy to believe that distracted driving is the most common cause of car accidents, you may not realize that drunk driving is the second.

Does age matter?

A 2020 study from the Zebra found that age plays a huge factor in determining who is most likely to drink and drive. When asked which generation has the most drunk drivers, nearly 36% of respondents pointed to drivers between the ages of 25 and 39 — millennials — followed by 31% of drivers aged 16 to 24 — Gen Z.

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 Posted on September 28, 2020 in Uncategorized

Life without a smart phone probably feels a little unrealistic in today’s society. But is it unrealistic to expect people to use their smart phones safely? Unfortunately, there are many drivers in Texas who still prioritize their phones over paying attention to the road, making texting and driving a huge problem.

Every year in America, drivers on their phones cause 1.6 million crashes. In 2018 alone, cell phone use had a connection to 4,637 car accident deaths. These high numbers of injuries and deaths do not seem to deter some drivers from reaching for their phones.

Does age matter?

Age is a factor in who is most likely to text, and for different reasons. For example, people who text and drive are probably more confident in their abilities to multitask. A survey from The Zebra found that nearly 40% of drivers age 55 and up believe they multitask well, compared to only around 30% of drivers between the ages of 25 and 34.

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 Posted on August 31, 2020 in Truck Accidents

It is always a good feeling to walk into a store and find the exact product you were looking for, but you might not think much about how it got there. However, you have probably had the experience of driving near a large truck. Large trucks travel back and forth across the country each and every day, delivering goods and consumer products. Unfortunately, getting products to stores is not always safe. Large truck accidents are responsible for thousands of deaths every year.

In 2018 alone, large truck accidents caused 4,136 fatalities. In two vehicle accidents that only involved large trucks and passenger vehicles, drivers and occupants in passenger vehicles accounted for 96% of deaths. Large trucks also caused 22% of all passenger vehicle deaths in multi-vehicle accidents.

What is a large truck?

Large trucks are also referred to as 18-wheelers or tractor trailers. An example is a tractor truck that is pulling one or more trailers. Large trucks can also be single unit vehicles. These trucks often weigh upwards of 10,000 pounds.

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 Posted on July 31, 2020 in Uncategorized

While you might assume that other drivers take the responsibility of being behind the wheel as seriously as you do, the reality is that many men and women in Texas simply do not. Deterring people from driving while under the influence of alcohol is not easy either, and police arrest around one million Americans for this act each and every year. However, some experts believe that technology could be the answer to this problem.

According to a research paper from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety — IIHS — reducing drunk driving deaths could be as easy as installing a breath testing unit in new vehicles. Some form of this technology already exists, too. Ignition interlock devices are frequently used for drivers convicted on DUI charges.

Stopping drunk drivers

When it comes to drunk driving, IIHS reports that the U.S. has made very little progress since around the mid-1990s. Looking back over just the past decade, drunk driving has contributed to 30% of roadway deaths. Some car manufacturers are committed to lowering those numbers.

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 Posted on June 19, 2020 in Uncategorized

Why should you or one of your loved ones have to suffer injury because another Texas driver chose to disregard traffic laws and safety regulations? It is never okay to fail to stop at a stop sign or to make unsafe lane changes or blow through red lights. Chances are, there are distracted drivers on the road every time you get behind the wheel or ride as a passenger in someone's car.

There are three main types of driving distraction. Some drivers deal with simultaneous distractions in more ways than one. Even a momentary distraction greatly increases the risk of collision. One minute, you might simply be commuting to work or driving to the grocery store. The next, a driver looking down at a cell phone might not see that you've stopped at a stop sign, and you could wind up in the back of an ambulance because of his or her negligence.

Understanding these types of distraction can help you stay safe

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