Posted on April 05, 2021 in Car Accidents

Learning how to drive and getting a license is probably the most dangerous rite of passage for modern teenagers. Thousands of teens get hurt in car crashes every year, and some of them die. As a parent, you want to give your child every opportunity to thrive while also protecting them from the most significant risks and dangers that they face.

Setting rules and boundaries is one of the most important parts of teaching your young adult how to navigate the world. There are four rules for new drivers that might help keep your teen safe on the road.

1. Institute a zero-tolerance policy requiring safety restraints

It can be hard for teenagers to make safe decisions in part because the portion of the brain that allows us to consider consequences is still in the process of growing. Wearing seat belts may seem ridiculous because the chance of getting into a crash is minuscule. Strict enforcement of a seat belt requirement will make sure that your teen prioritizes safety when they get in the car.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on April 01, 2021 in Car Accidents

Everything from your health and behavior to the weather influences your likelihood of getting into a crash. You probably already take steps to keep yourself safe by minimizing your driving risks.

You know that texting at the wheel leads to crashes, so you turn off your ringer when you get in the car. You know that you can't safely drive after consuming alcohol, so you limit what you ingest or have someone else drive you home. Unfortunately, some of the risks on the road are issues that you simply cannot avoid by changing your driving habits.

For example, no matter how much you may want to stay safe, you likely can't avoid driving on the streets that are closest to your home. Is it really true that most crashes occur within two miles of someone's home?

Being close to home really is a known risk factor for major crashes

Location plays a big role in crash risk. The data that researchers have found is hard to ignore. Almost a quarter of all crashes, 23%, occur within just a single mile of someone's residence. Crashes that happen 50 miles from home or more represent just 1% of the collisions reviewed. More than half of all crashes happen somewhere less than five miles from your home, with another 29% happening somewhere between two and five miles from a person's residence.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 22, 2021 in Pedestrian Accidents

As of March 1, 2021, pedestrians who are caught jaywalking in Virginia will no longer be slapped with a ticket. The legislature passed the new rule decriminalizing jaywalking so that law enforcement authorities would have more time to attend to other, more serious offenses.

Does that mean you can now throw caution to the wind and walk where you please? Absolutely not. Pedestrians still need to be careful how they handle themselves because there's no way to guarantee that drivers are watching for them.

Important safety tips for pedestrians

As the weather continues to improve, more people will be walking around the city streets, strolling through their neighborhoods and walking their dogs. If you plan to be among them, remember these rules:

• Stick to sidewalks whenever possible. You're far safer on a sidewalk than the curb of the road. If you must use the road, make sure that you walk facing traffic and as far to the side as possible.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 12, 2021 in Motorcycle Accidents

With spring just around the corner, many people start to get the itch for outdoor activities. If your preferred warm-weather pastime involves cruising on your motorcycle, you can start getting ready for that right now.

Before it is warm enough to go out for your first ride of the new year, you will want to make sure that your motorcycle is in top condition after having been in storage for several months. Handling the spring maintenance on your motorcycle can help you be ready for the first day where it's warm and dry enough to safely ride.

Spring maintenance helps you catch issues before they affect your safety

Seasonal maintenance doesn't just keep your bike running smoothly after a long stay in storage. It also gives you a chance to check for preventable issues, like problems with the brakes or burned-out light bulbs.

Making all the necessary repairs and performing routine maintenance before you start the bike up for the first time this year will help protect its long-term performance and keep you safer on the road.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 04, 2021 in Commercial Vehicle Accidents

DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats and your local pizza delivery drivers are probably familiar sights to you by now, whether you're out on the road running errands or just looking out the window for your own delivery to arrive.

Unfortunately, delivery drivers actually have a really dangerous job — and that puts both their lives and the lives of others at risk.

High-demand deliveries can lead to bad accidents

There are numerous dangers out there for food delivery drivers, but the hazards they pose to others isn't insignificant. Way back in 1993, for example, Domino's ended it's 30-minute delivery guarantee over deadly accident claims caused by their drivers — but that hasn't stopped the problem. Many independent restaurants still push their drivers to meet guarantees in fear of losing customers.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 03, 2021 in Pedestrian Accidents

Pedestrian fatalities due to SUVs rose 81% over the 10 years leading up to 2019. Those caused by cars also increased, at the considerably lower, but still alarming rate of 53%. According to the Governor's Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the number of pedestrians killed by vehicles hit a 30 year high, with about 18 pedestrians killed by vehicles every day around the country.

SUVs are more lethal than smaller cars

SUV sales have increased hugely during the past few years. They are promoted as the ideal vehicle to keep you and your family safe. Unfortunately, that comes at a cost to pedestrians and cyclists.

SUVs do more damage when they hit someone. They weigh more, so impact has more force. They are also higher than other cars. The impact comes at a critical body height, where the vital organs are. Lower, smaller cars are more likely to impact someone in the legs.

Why are drivers killing more pedestrians?

There are several behaviors exhibited by drivers regardless of vehicle choice that makes being a pedestrian more dangerous than ever:

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on March 01, 2021 in Car Accidents

Automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems will soon be a reality for many U.S. drivers. It comes after a concerted campaign by road safety campaigners across the world together with the United Nations.

Most new cars sold in the U.S. will have AEB featured as standard from September 2022 after 20 car manufacturers pledged to do so. Currently, AEB systems are available as an optional extra on some vehicles only, despite the technology being used in some cars since 2006.

How effective are automatic emergency braking systems?

According to The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), cars that have AEB experienced:

• 43% fewer front to rear crashes

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 24, 2021 in Car Accidents

Three main considerations affect how safe you are on the road. The first is a combination of weather and overall road conditions. The second is the behavior of other drivers. You don't have control over either of these two factors that could lead to a crash.

However, you have control over your own vehicle and driving decisions, which make up the third set of road safety considerations. If you want to prioritize safety on the road, trying to adjust your driving habits for current road conditions is a smart move. So is learning to identify when drivers near you might increase your risk of getting into a serious crash.

How to identify potentially impaired drivers

Impaired drivers don't operate at their full ability. While they may normally be skilled drivers, chemical or medical impairments have decreased their driving ability. Exhaustion can have a similar effect, making it harder for someone to pay attention to the road and maintain control over their vehicle.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 18, 2021 in Fatal Motor Vehicle Accidents

On average, Americans are living longer than ever, including here in northern Virginia. The Baby Boom generation is now mostly in their 60s and 70s. As the number of senior citizens with driver's licenses continues to grow, experts used to predict that fatal car accidents among older drivers would surge.

But the opposite has ended up happening. According to AARP, the number of fatal crashes per driver over age 70 dropped by 43 percent from 1997 to 2018. And in 2017, over-70 drivers had fewer traffic collisions per mile than middle-aged motorists, according to police reports.

Why are deadly accidents among seniors going down?

For one thing, seniors are living healthier as well as longer. AARP notes that better physical fitness and health among Americans in their 70s compared to past generations is likely one reason for the drop in fatal crashes. By maintaining relatively good strength, flexibility, vision and mental acuity, drivers in their 70s are safer now than their parents and grandparents were.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on February 17, 2021 in Truck Accidents

Commercial truck rollovers are one of the most visually dramatic kinds of crashes you can witness. It is also a crash that has the potential to involve other vehicles. It could affect multiple lanes of traffic or even cause damage to businesses and homes near the location of the rollover.

Rollover crashes are sometimes the result of an unusual combination of events. The trucker takes a curve slightly too fast with an improperly loaded trailer during high wind conditions. The trailer rolls and takes the cab with it.

What causes most rollover crashes in big trucks?

The vast majority of rollovers are the result of driver error. Although there can be many contributing factors to a rollover crash, research has shown that more than three-quarters of these collisions occur because drivers make mistakes at the wheel. Their best practices while driving should be proactive and cautious enough to limit the risk of a rollover occurring even when other risk factors are present. Drowsiness and lack of attention are often contributing factors.

Continue Reading ››