Accident Lawyers

National Garage Events and Special Programs Harley Davidson points out that women riders comprise 23% of all motorcycle riders, and are now the fastest growing group of riders. In order to encourage new riders, they are setting up a national program of garage events at dealers.  These events will introduce basic motorcycle controls, gear, customization, and information about buying a new motorcycle.  They will even demonstrate how to pick up a downed bike. Once riders have an interest, they can go to a new Harley web site that walks them through the process of financing, buying, and customizing a motorcycle, together with information about getting licensed, and learning and practicing riding. Whether or not you are a Harley follower, Harley’s contribution to motorcycle riding is dramatic, and continues to drive motorcycling into the future.  THey are to be congratulated for addressing this new group of riders. 

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Harley Davidson Welcomes New Women Riders

The Right Mix is an Individual Choice I just finished talking to another potential client who had a slide down the highway due to someone else’s negligence.  Happily, it seems that this crash resulted in relatively minor injuries.  I can’t tell you how enthusiastic the rider was about the way that his helmet and gloves performed. Safety gear is an individual thing.  There are no real US standards, only European ones.  There is plenty of dispute about what works, and in what situation.  Nothing is designed specifically for accidents that involve motorcycles and impact with cars or impact from cars.  Some situations can arise where excellent track gear can actually make an injury from a crash with a car worse. Safety gear doesn’t help, unless you wear it.  Some great gear can make you so warm that it can affect your ability to think clearly.  It is also a matter of personal preference.  After all, there are no standards or requirements in the US other than for helmets.  Anything you choose to wear is just that, a choice. On the other hand, there is a lot of conflicting information out there.  New technology complicates the picture.  Now there are several companies making air bag suits.  Real data is scarce.  The manufacturers, of course, all believe they have the answer to everything.  Time will tell.  Even there, the data collection is poor.  Real studies are few and far between.  Motorcyclists discuss these issues through a pipeline with other riders.  With motorcycle magazines, maybe a consensus arises. Until things become clearer, I will continue to periodically review and report bits and pieces on protective gear.  So will others. In the meantime, we will all make our individual choices, and report our individual experiences.  How different this is from the many available governmental and private studies that report on safety devices for the drivers of automobiles. 

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The Right Gear for the Right Result

A Chicago trucking accident occurred early on the morning of March 5th in which a semi-truck and a passenger car crashed. There is video footage of this accident which show the car being stuck between the semi-truck and the barrier of the Bishop Ford Expressway. One of the people involved in the accident had to be extricated from the car, however luckily according to Chicago Breaking News , the personal injuries were minor. To read more about this Illinois truck crash , please click on the link. If certain precautions are taken, often times trucking accidents that could be fatal or at least result in personal injuries, can be much less severe. Truckers should always make sure that they are following the speed limits, not driving when they are fatigued, always remaining alert and paying attention to other drivers on the road and always wearing their seat belt. Additionally, drivers of passenger cars need to follow these same precautions as well as remaining a safe distance from trucks. If you are in a passenger car and involved in a trucking accident please remain calm and stay focused on the road and wait for emergency personnel.

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Chicago Trucking Accident Results in Only Minor Injuries

The severe winter weather we’ve experienced here in Missouri has caused some dangerous road conditions. As a Missouri trucking accident attorney , this story about deaths on the road in our neighboring state of Kansas reminds me of the need for truck drivers to be especially careful during winter storms. Over one late February weekend, a couple lost their lives in a road accident involving semi trucks and icy roads. Kenneth and Diane Brown died after their car skidded on an icy bridge and was struck by a tractor-trailer in Marion County, Kansas, outside Kansas City. It’s not clear whether this accident could have been avoided if the trucker had been driving slowly and safely for the road conditions, and allowing a safe following distance. But even most trucking companies would agree that missing a deadline due to cautious driving or pulling over in dangerous conditions is better than loss of life on the roads, especially with the dangerous weather we’ve experienced in Missouri this winter. We don’t know whether the Browns were going too fast for the road conditions when their car skidded, but drivers of 18-wheelers have a greater responsibility to watch out for others on the road. Tractor-trailers cause much more damage to cars and their passengers than the other way around because semis weigh up to 22 times as much as cars. Trucking companies have an obligation to hire safe and experienced drivers, but they sometimes choose to overlook drivers’ prior traffic citations, or even license suspensions, in favor of moving cargo as cheaply as possible.

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Tractor Trailer Kills Kansas Couple Whose Car Skids on Icy Bridge

A national trucking company has recently announced that in 2009 they saw a large reduction in their trucking accident rates, with about a 13 percent decrease in accidents from the 2008 rates. The trucking company also reports that over the past five years their safety records have gotten better with each year, with 2009 showing the safest numbers yet. In addition to the decrease in accidents over the past several years, the trucking company has received more than 70 safety awards in the last year. These number are a great improvement to the trucking world and show the commitment to safety that some companies are choosing to make and what a remarkable difference that choice can make. To read more about these trucking crash statistics, click on the link. The trucking accident attorneys at Levin & Perconti are pleased to see this reduction in trucking accidents and the care that some companies are putting into their safety efforts. We hope that other companies will choose to follow this lead and make their safety standards higher, causing their trucking accident numbers to decrease as well. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration website offers several ways in which trucking accidents can be avoided, such as assuring that drivers drive no faster than the posted speed, that drivers never drive while they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol, that drivers are always well-rested when driving and that drivers always where their seat belts when driving to protect themselves in the case of a trucking accident. If other trucking companies can take these precautions into their training and find ways to ensure that drivers follow these simple precautions, the number of trucking crashes should continue to decrease.

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National Trucking Company Had Remarkable Reduction in Trucking Accidents

Attorneys More Important Than Ever Many of the insurance carriers facing claims from motorcycle riders injured by unsafe automobile drivers have increased the extent to which they stall on paying claims.  Always slow pay, the recession seems to have caused an epidemic of delay. Part of the problem can be traced to a continued downsizing in the claims departments of many automotive insurance carriers.  Some claims departments have been moved to less expensive out of state locations, some even have claims people working from home.  Combined with the economy, the claims people remaining with the carriers are ever more reluctant to step up to the plate and evaluate cases. The result has been ever more reliance on attorneys to perform the claims function by recommending settlements. There are a number of problems with this approach.  The first problem, of course, is that most attorneys are reluctant to evaluate a case until they have done everything they can to look for an out.  This means getting duplicate copies of medical records, taking unnecessary depositions, and having biased defense oriented medical doctors prepare defenses to the medical claims being made.  All of this is expensive for everyone, and seriously delays bringing the case to an end. The situation is that much worse, however, because the carriers are now squeezing the attorneys even harder.  That makes the attorneys fear losing the business, and results in the attorneys being afraid to recommend a reasonable settlement. Even cases where the defense admits fault (a rarity, for sure), and the injuries are serious enough to require surgery, are going without any settlement offer until shortly before trial.  I don’t yet see a solution, although I am seeing the insurance companies being hit with verdicts that exceed their policy limits.  Hopefully, at some point, the insurance commissioner will step up to the plate.  Of course, this isn’t likely while he is running for governor and looking for campaign money. In the meantime, the best course of action is to press the carriers with a good lawyer, filing suit early, and pushing the cases through the courts.

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Insurers Stalling Accident Claim Settlements

I was recently asked to be a judge for a local high school video reenacting a drunk driving accident.  The video will be shown to the high school body showing the consequences of drunk driving.  A car accident will be staged with emergency personal working the scene.  Even a helicopter will arrive to take away students who had deceased.  Students will be taken from the classrooms throughout the day on a random basis, representing those that die in drunk driving accidents.  The video will show the drunk driver shackled in court receiving a harsh prison sentence from the judge (that was my Oscar winning moment).  It was a lot of fun and for a great cause.

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Judge for High School DUI Reenactment

A recent study has revealed that the percentage of commercial truck drivers with sleep apnea is very high. The study shows that about a quarter of commercial truck drivers suffer from some type of sleep apnea, however many people do not know that they have this sleep disorder. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which a person’s airway is constricted while sleeping, which causes constant waking up during the night and interrupted sleep. The symptoms sound like snoring or gasping in one’s sleep. Sleep apnea is most common in people with a body mass index of over 30 and a neck circumference of higher than 17 inches and have other health issues related to weight, and is seen mostly in obese individuals. To read more about sleep apnea and trucking accidents , click on the hyperlink. The reason that this high percentage of sleep apnea in truck drivers can be so dangerous is that a common effect of sleep apnea is daytime drowsiness, due to interrupted sleep during the night. Studies have shown that drivers suffering from sleep apnea are 2.5 times more likely to be involved in a car accident than drivers that are not suffering from this condition. Given the high number of truck drivers that are believed to have sleep apnea, this is clearly a problem with truck drivers, in that they need to be alert and aware when driving so as to avoid trucking accidents. Many trucking companies are not aware of the prevalence of sleep apnea among their drivers and therefore are not taking any actions to try to reduce sleep apnea among drivers. According to USA Today , one way in which the trucking companies may try to curb this problem is by suggesting that truck drivers undergo a sleep study once they hit a certain weight. The goal here is to try to detect sleep apnea in drivers and get them treatment for the condition before allowing them back on the road. Treatment options range from surgery to certain types of devices that can clear the breathing passage while the person is sleeping. This is a problem that needs to be addressed in order to hopefully try to limit the number of truck crashes .

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Many Truck Drivers Suffer From Sleep Apnea

A Motor Carrier Transportation Truck Safety study that was conducted recently found that there are certain precautions that drivers can take when on the road with large commercial trucks to help avoid dangerous trucking accidents . The reason that it is so crucial for drivers of passenger cars to be aware and careful around trucks is because it is 15 times for likely for someone is a passenger car to be killed that it is for the truck driver to be killed. In order to stay safe while on the road with trucks always make sure to leave more space than you would behind a passenger car. Additionally, make sure to never cut off trucks, don’t tailgate trucks and always allow plenty of space between the truck and your car. Also make sure to follow the speed limit because speeding is another leading cause of trucking accidents, as well as other types of traffic accidents. To read more about safety measures drivers can take to avoid truck crashes , please click on the link. Making an active choice to be cautious and extra safe around trucks can result in lesser trucking accidents and safer roads for passenger cars.

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Truck Safety Tips for Passenger Car Drivers

A trucking accident lawsuit has been settled in connection with a 2007 accident that resulted in the death of a couple. The trucking accident occurred when a truck driver fell asleep at the wheel and struck an Illinois woman’s vehicle, causing a chain reaction in which the couple was killed in addition to the Illinois driver. The case only required the jury to decide what damages the sons of the couple should receive, because the trucking company conceded liability early on in the wrongful death lawsuit. The jury awarded the sons $4 million dollars. To read more about this trucking accident settlement , please click on the hyperlink. According to Trans Scan , almost half of long-distance truck drivers interviewed admitted to nodding off at the wheel at some point in their career and about twenty percent of all truck-drivers interviewed reported either an accident or near accident due to nodding off at the wheel. Given these high statistics and the extreme danger caused by fatigued truck drivers, it is important for trucking companies to enforce maximum driving hours and have safeguards in place to help keep tired drivers off the road. In addition to the horrible accidents that can result from tired drivers, trucking companies have added incentive to keep their drivers alert because the companies can be held liable for accidents that are caused by their drivers.

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Trucking Accident Lawsuit Settles for Four Million