Accident Lawyers

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently released a report which revealed that traffic-related fatalities for the first half of 2011 have decreased overall by 1 percent. According to a news article published earlier today by DetriotNews.com , the slight decrease has been attributed to the notion that many Americans are driving considerably less than in previous years. However, although Americans are driving less, the rate of deaths per mile traveled has seen a slight increase. A Chicago truck accident attorney at our firm learned that the fatality rate for the first half of 2011 was 1.04 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, up from the 1.03 fatalities per 100 million miles traveled during the first six months of 2010. Within the last month, the Department of Transportation has published its final traffic numbers for 2010. The statistics reveal that the number of individuals killed on our nation’s roadways fell 2.9 percent to 32,885 in 2010. These numbers are the lowest number of traffic-related deaths since 1949. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration projects that traffic-related fatalities from January through June 2011 fell 0.9 percent to 15,060 – down from the 15,196 fatalities that were documented for the first half of 2010. The Secretary of the Department of Transportation believes that this decrease is due to safe driving practices that have been established for all drivers, including buckling up and refraining from operating while intoxicated. Every Chicago accident lawyer at Levin & Perconti is pleased to learn that the number of traffic-related fatalities has seen an overall decrease in the recent years. Despite reports from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which reveal that the number of individuals injured in traffic accidents increased by 26,000 to 2.25 million in 2010, in addition to, an 11,000 increase to the number of pedestrians injured in traffic accidents, the overall decrease in fatalities is encouraging news. Often times, the most effective way to avoid a motor vehicle accident, including an Illinois trucking accident , is to remain attentive and adhere to traffic laws. Injuries sustained in motor vehicle collisions can be minimized or even eliminated when drivers exercise extreme caution during vehicle operation, especially during these difficult winter months.

If you have been injured in a motor vehicle accident, it is important to act quickly. Please contact our experienced Chicago accident lawyers for a free consultation to determine what legal rights may be available to you.

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Traffic-Related Fatalities on the Decline

After a fatal trucking accident took the life of their daughter, the family of the accident victim has filed a lawsuit against numerous construction and trucking companies for their alleged role in the accident. According to a news report released earlier today on The Sacramento Bee Online , the fatal accident transpired in January of last year when the 35 year-old accident victim was crossing a pedestrian walkway only a block away from her home. The woman was walking across the cross walk when she was struck by a 21,000 pound dump truck. The devastat ingly tragic accident cont

inued as the woman was fatally severed in half upon collision and subsequently dragged by the dump truck. In addition to the recently filed lawsuit alleging negligence and recklessness, our Chicago accident attorneys learned that the dump truck driver was arrested at the scene of the fatal accident and charged with multiple counts, including: failure to yield the right of way to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, as well as, driving with a suspended license. At the root of this tragic accident, the case raises serious concerns about the construction that was being conducted at the scene of the collision. According to the news report, the contractors are believed to have been cutting corners and regularly comprising the safely of the public and the roadway. The complaint in this accident lawsuit alleges that the dump truck was being operated and controlled in an improper, reckless, and unskillful manner by an individual was a deficient driving record and in a manner that did not follow that driving route and other safety requirements that had been implemented by the contractors of the roadway. In order to save time and money, it is alleged that the dump truck driver and others working on the construction project had been permitting shorter, yet more dangerous routes for drivers to operate. An additional aspect of the lawsuit reveals that all of the defendants, both construction and trucking companies, were aware that dump trucks hauling excavated material from the construction zone were not adhering to the designated truck routes. When these types of devastating accidents occur, it is important to have the utmost legal experts on your side. If you have been injured in an Illinois trucking accident or have lost a loved one at the hands of negligent driver, please contact our accident lawyers in Chicago to see what legal rights, representation and relief may be available to you.

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Lawsuit Filed after Fatal Dump Truck Accident

Our Chicago truck accident attorneys recently read a news report posted on STLToday.com containing an interview with a veteran truck driver who discussed the various aspects of the trucking industry, including the most problematic – sharing the road with passenger vehicles. The 51 year-old large commercial vehicle driver, who frequently transports cargos of gasoline, reveals many of the problems he faces each day on the road and shares what motorists can do in order to participate in safe travel on our nation’s roadways. In a question and answer-type interview, the trucker discloses that the most dangerous thing a passenger vehicle driver can do while traveling around a large commercial vehicle is to cut off a semi truck. Given that commercial vehicles take considerably longer to brake, it is extremely hazardous to cut off a truck. The semi truck driver encourages motorists to learn the dangers associated with driving a large tractor-trailer and to avoid tailgating and cutting off the vehicle at all costs. Often times, these large trucks are traveling slower because they are transportation very large and very heavy cargos, in addition to, ensuring that safety is a top priority. However, the tractor-trailer driver admits that in addition to questionable driving behavior of passenger vehicle drivers, truck drivers are often guilty to dangerous driving behavior. The trucker reveals that there are a number of semi truck drivers on our roadways who are not very good drivers and should not even be operating on the roads.

Our Chicago truck accident lawyers learned that the semi truck driver recommends the following safety precautions for smaller passenger vehicles when traveling near or around large commercial vehicles: - Stay out of a semi truck’s blind spot - Refrain from staying around a truck – if you’re going to pass a truck, pass and go - Never tailgate - Always watch a truck’s signals to make sure of their intentions Our Illinois truck accident attorneys continue to urge our readers to drive carefully around large commercial vehicles. Collisions involving large commercial vehicles, whether through the fault of the passenger vehicle driver or a semi truck driver, can cause substantial property damage, personal injury, or even death. If you or a loved one has been involved in any type of motor vehicle accident, including an Illinois trucking accident , please contact our experienced accident attorneys for a free consultation to determine what legal rights and relief may be available to you.

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Illinois Trucker Encourages Motorists to Share the Road

The federal agency lacks the technical expertise to monitor electronic auto safety technologies The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration lacks the capacity to respond effectively to any problems related to the growing use of electronic auto safety technology and automobiles.  Those concerns came through in a report by the National Research Council’s Transportation Research Board.

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NHTSA Unable to Control Auto Safety Technology

  Inconsistent packaging could cause a potential mixup of pills San Diego defective products attorneys are drawing attention to the Food and Drug Administration’s warning about a potential mixup of over-the-counter medic ations with high-strength prescription pain killers , as a result of errors made

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FDA Warns of Potential Drug Mixup with Prescription Pain Killers that Could Cause Medical Injuries

When a person suffers a spinal cord injury, a number of changes begin to take place near the injured site If all goes well, an experimental new drug that is currently being tested on dogs could be used for the treatment of spinal cord injury in human beings.  Last week, researchers from the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and the University California San Francisco announced that they will begin testing the drug on dogs with spinal cord injury.

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Researchers Experiment with New Treatment for Spinal Cord Injury

Late Friday evening, a fatal Illinois trucking accident occurred on Interstate 64 in southern Illinois, resulting in one death and five injuries. According to the news report, the interstate highway was particularly icy yesterday evening, causing a substantial threat to the roadways. The three-car accident transpired when a semi tractor-trailer struck a passenger vehicle – subsequently killing a backseat passenger of the motor vehicle and sending the car’s driver and three other passengers to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries. An additional passenger vehicle was also involved and injured in the trucking collision. The semi truck driver remained uninjured in the accident. Local authorities are attributing the crash to the severe weather and no citations have been issued as of press time. Illinois winter weather often causes an increasing number of motor vehicle accidents, particularly Illinois trucking accidents . Under current trucking rules and regulations, semi truck drivers are required to change their driving habits in order to adapt with weather and roadway conditions. However, a number of drivers continue to operate in a careless manner, even on snowy and icy interstate highways. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration , truck accidents have continued on the rise in the past few years. In 2010, there were over 500,000 trucking accidents that resulted in serious injury, while 5,000 resulted in fatality. Each and every year, our experienced accident lawyers in Chicago provide legal representation to the victims of any and all types of motor vehicle accidents, including Illinois trucking accidents. Our attorneys recently obtained a $6.5 million settlement on behalf of a Huntley, Illinois family who sustained a particularly devastating loss and substantial injuries as the direct result of a negligent semi truck driver. During the crash investigation, it was revealed that in addition to the semi truck driver’s excessive speed, the driver was also under the influence of marijuana and operating an overloaded trailer at the time of the fatal accident.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a collision involving a large commercial vehicle, it is extremely important to have knowledgeable legal professionals working on your case. Our Chicago trucking accident lawyers will help evaluate your case and determine the best course of civil legal action. Personal injuries or wrongful death claims often cause substantial hardship and our Illinois truck accident attorneys ensure that our clients obtain the maximum compensation for damages incurred as the result of a semi truck collision, as well as, hold the wrongdoer accountable for their negligent conduct.

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1 Dead – 4 Injured in Illinois Trucking Accident

Earlier today, HuffingtonPost.com released a news report which detailed the enactment of several new rules pertaining to commercial vehicle drivers. After completing numerous public listening sessions, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has decided to reduce the hours of service a large commercial vehicle driver is legally permitted to operate in a seven day work period from 82 hours to 70 hours. Our Chicago truck accident attorneys learned that the implementation of these new rules comes in light of numerous government agencies overall goal to ensure that truck drivers get enough rest in order to safely operate. A Chicago truck accident lawyer at our firm read that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Administrator released a statement which reveals that this final rule is the culmination of the most extensive and transparent public outreach effort in the agency’s history. It was additionally revealed that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration encompassed many resources, including input from the trucking community, as well as, the latest scientific research to create a rule which recognizes that when commercial vehicle drivers are adequately rested and alert, the safety of our roadways substantially increases. Additional aspects of the rule require that semi truck drivers must take a break of at least 30 minutes after working eight hours straight. Drivers are also permitted to take 30 minute breaks anytime they need to during the first eight hours of driving. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rule states that drivers can drive up to 11 hours per day, such as the previous rule permitted, although the agency will continue to thoroughly research the dangers of the 11 hour per day rule before a change will be implemented in that aspect. Drivers and trucking carriers found in violation of these new rules will be subjected to financial repercussions. Each Chicago accident attorney at our firm commends the efforts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to help make our roadways substantially safer against devastating semi truck accidents. With fatigued semi truck driving plaguing our roadways and causing an estimated 755 fatalities, as well as, 19,700 injuries each year – according to the FMCSA – new rules and regulations must be enacted to help save lives on our nation’s roadways. If you or someone you know has been involved in any type of motor vehicle accident, please contact our Chicago trucking accident attorneys . Our attorneys will provide a free consultation to help determine what legal rights may be available to you.

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FMCSA Releases New Truck Driver Regulations

January 16, 2012 - Accord ing to reports a motorcyclist was died Sunday after be

ing involved in a crash with a Toyota. According to the Long Beach Police Department the collision occurred at Seventh Street and Redondo Avenue in Long Beach at approximately 5:12 p.m. The motorcyclist has been identified as Thomas Hand age 26 and police believe he was traveling at a high rate of speed when the collision occurred. Long Beach police said that Hand, who was in the eastbound lanes of Seventh Street made a sudden lane change, in order to enter the intersection and ran a red light. Hand struck a Toyota Yaris that was making a turn onto Redondo Avenue. The driver of the Toyota Yaris was identified as a Long Beach woman age 42, who was not injured in the collision. According to Long Beach police an officer saw the accident occur and aided the rider until paramedics arrived on the scene. This was a public service message from the Los Angeles personal injury attorneys at Ehline Law Firm PC. Contact Us. 6700 East Pacific Coast Highway #275 Long Beach, CA 90803 USA+1.562.342.9092

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Motorcyclist Dies in Sunday Collision

The NHTSA is planning to include an emphasis on electronic accident prevention technologies as part of an effort to update its auto rating system.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is planning to include an emphasis on electronic accident prevention technologies as part of an effort to update its auto rating system. Read entire article

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NHTSA Plans to Include Electronic Accident Prevention Technologies in Crash Testing