Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

Last week a Cobb County Georgia jury found in favor of Kia Motors Corporation rejecting the argument that the 1999 Kia Sportage air bag caused a 69-year-old woman's death. The case revolved around a low speed car accident where a driver turned left in front of the Kia Sportage causing the airbag to deploy. Although there was only minimal damage to the cars and both drivers appeared to have only minor injuries, the driver of the Kia died soon after the accident from a lacerated aorta where the air bag hit her chest. The case centered on whether the woman was properly positioned in the car. The State of Georgia offers the CarFit program to teach senior adults how to properly position themselves safely in cars.

The woman's family sued for her wrongful death alleging the air bag was too powerful for a small SUV. Arguing that Kia knew this type of accident was possible and chose not to spend any money to "depower" the airbag to make it safer, the plaintiff's attorney told the jury she would not have died in the car accident if there had been no air bag in the car.

Wrongful death cases, particularly products liability cases such as this one, require expert testimony from both sides to explain to the jury how the death was caused. Kia relied on an expert engineer in occupant restraint systems - seat belts and air bags - who testified the woman was not seated properly for the air bag to work correctly. He gave evidence that she was leaning forward and right as if reaching for something. According to the expert, her position in the seat skewed the impact of the air bag and it struck her in an area that would have been protected if she had been seated upright and against the back of her seat. Click here for how to properly position children and adults for air bag safety.

Air bag safety is often overlooked by drivers and passengers in cars. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration continue to look for ways to educate the public regarding seatbelt and air bag safety. Drivers and passengers must have their seat belt properly buckled and avoid positioning their seat too close to the air bag. Short adults, such as the woman in this case, must position themselves 10-12 inches from the air bag that is in the steering wheel to be protected properly.

Continue reading "Cobb County Jury Finds Death Not Caused by Air Bag" »

At a glance, four trucks and one car make for a great damages case - but liability (or negligence) is the first issue to address. As is common in the metro Atlanta area, rain was a factor in this semi-truck accident. A jury recently returned a verdict for the four trucks involved in a multi-vehicle accident on I-20 in Augusta, Georgia. The reason? A flustered plaintiff on the witness stand.

What appeared to be a sure win for the plaintiff took a turn for the worse when he became flustered on the stand and began to agree with the defense attorneys regarding the location of his car, the speed he was traveling, and the location of the trucks involved. Witness preparation is an important aspect of case preparation in any trial attorney's arsenal. Generally it includes role-playing where the witness is cross-examined by one of his attorneys and asked tough questions in order to give him an idea of what may come while he is on the witness stand. More complex issues or witnesses who lack confidence may benefit from a session or two with a psychologist.

Further, truck accidents require special knowledge of the many federal regulations the truck drivers and their trucks operate under. For example, every year trucking companies must make sure their drivers are still qualified to drive a commercial vehicle.

Continue reading "One Car, Four Trucks - August, Georgia Accident" »

A Macon County, Georgia jury awarded a motorcyclist $650,000 for injuries he suffered to his back in a motorcycle accident. Apparently the driver of the car did not see the motorcycle. This is one of the most common causes of accidents involving motorcycles. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation has published a list of safety tips for car and truck drivers to help reduce the number of motorcycle accidents. In a prior posting, we covered some of the issues motorcyclists face on public highways.

The motorcyclist was a 49 year old truck driver riding his bike on a country road when a car pulled out to make a left turn in front of him. Unable to avoid the car, the two vehicles colided leaving the cyclist with broken bones and permanent back injury.

You might wonder what it takes to prove negligence and injury in this type of case. Often, expert witnesses are called to testify to the medical injuries or to reconstruct the accident to show who was at fault. In this case, there were two independent eyewitnesses who were able to testify to what they saw happen. The trooper who worked the accident testified that there were over 147 feet of skid marks from the motorcyclist showing he attempted to avoid the accident. With eyewitness testimony and a good work up of the accident by the police, the facts are almost indisputable.

Continue reading "Motorcycle Accident Results in $650,000 Jury Award" »

Is there an easy cure for distracted driving, particularly texting, emailing and talking on a cell phones while driving? Cars have so many safety devices in place already that remind drivers to fasten their seatbelts, make sure all doors are closed, and let you know if the engine is too hot - it can't be too far-fetched to think someone will come up with a way to curb the use of cell phones while driving. Georgia has joined the many other states which ban or limit cell phone use with the recent passage of a law forbidding texting while driving.

Because it is so difficult to enforce the texting ban - after all, unless a police officer pulls up next to you while you are texting it will be pretty difficult to ticket for this offense - I believe consumers will come to rely on other devices to limit the use of cell phones while driving. For example, technology may be developed and built into a car that will limit the use of a phone except in emergencies.

Research has shown that talking on a cell phone is distracting to drivers whether they are using a hands-free device or holding the phone. The U.S. Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Technology Administration is trying to find ways to reduce mobile device distractions - the problem is creating a technology that provides safety without causing an additional distraction for the driver. In others words, it is all about getting drivers to just drive.

Georgia recently banned texting, a one form of distracted driving which has been responsible for many car accidents. The Senate and House also sent a bill to the Governor banning any use of cell phones while driving by 16-17 year old drivers. Distracted driving is a problem and the U.S. Department of Transportation has an entire website devoted to it.

Admittedly, these laws are important, but Georgia already had a law on the books that made it illegal to use a mobile device improperly while driving. Police officers frequently used this law when investigating accidents and cited drivers who were distracted by their cell phones and caused a car accident. The improper use of a mobile device and the new laws will carry a one point penalty in addition to fines.

The Georgia legislature is in session only 40 days a year and with all the other pressing concerns related to economic recovery in Georgia; it might have spent its time on issues that were not already addressed in the code. As you can imagine, several legislators took the opportunity to gain positive political press on the issue.

The Atlanta Journal and Constitution recently reported on a series of wrong way crashes that resulted in fatalities including two on I-20 and one on State Bridge Road in Johns Creek. While the final reporting numbers are not in, the Georgia State Department of Transportation says about 22 people have been killed since 2004 by a wrong way driver just in the metro Atlanta area. The DOT believes most of the drivers in wrong way car crashes are impaired due to alcohol, drugs or prescription medications.

The DOT has looked at other possible barriers to cars gaining access to the wrong way ramps. They cannot use the traffic spikes that lay flat when going the right way, but puncture tires when going the wrong way because emergency vehicles often have to go the wrong way on ramps.

Each year motor vehicle crashes in Georgia affect thousands of citizens. According to the most recent data provided by the Georgia DOT, car accidents are the leading cause of death for persons ages 1-35. Our state's population growth (which did slow in the past 18 months due to the sluggish economy) and the reliance on personal passenger vehicles versus mass transit have contributed to the high numbers of deaths caused by car crashes. I read in the AJC the other day that our population has begun to grow again, I hope the state will give serious thought to increasing our mass transit availability at least in the metro area as one apporach to reducing traffic injuries and fatalities.

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently released statistics showing a continuation of the downward trend in traffic fatalities. The overall number of 33,963 car accident deaths in 2009 is the lowest since 1954. The fatality rate is calculated by the number of deaths per the number of vehicle miles traveled. The 2009 fatality rate declined 8.9% from the 2008 fatality rate.

All of this is very good news for the travelling public. David Strickland of the National Highway and Safety Administration noted, "Our work is far from over. We must continue our efforts to ensure seatbelts are always used and stay focused on reducing distracted and impaired driving."

I believe distracted driving will be the pivotal issue in car accident wrongful death cases at least through the rest of this decade as the public becomes more aware of the danger of using mobile devices while driving. Texting and talking on cell phones has already become a normal fact-finding mission in personal injury cases involving car and truck accidents. A thorough personal injury lawsuit will include a search of mobile records to determine if the at-fault driver was using his mobile device during or just prior to the accident. Everyone must take responsibility for educating themselves and their family members as to the dangers of distracted driving.

The most recent data provided by the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration indicates that nationally 56% of fatal car accidents occurred on rural highways. Of 1,368 fatal car accidents, 635 crashes occurred on Georgia rural highways in 2008, the most recent year for which data is available. This means 46% of fatal Georgia car accidents occurred on rural highways.

About 65% of these Georgia rural car crashes occurred at speeds of 55 mph or higher. This is not surprising considering that traffic is generally lighter in rural areas and drivers tend to take advantage of the "open road" and drive at higher rates of speed.

Drivers are often lulled into a false sense of security in rural areas thinking they are in safer areas with fewer accidents. Data supports the fact that drivers travel about 2.5 times more miles than cars in urban areas which translates into longer time on the road and more time to develop driver fatigue.

Add all this to the fact that the rural roads in Georgia, especially near the Atlanta area are carrying more and more traffic which they may not be able to handle. With the spring weather finally beginning to appear, be more aware as you travel to vacation areas which often takes you through rural areas. Keep your seatbelts on and your eyes on the road.

This week the Georgia Supreme Court defined the term "accident" in an auto insurance policy so as to possibly limit the recovery where there are multiple injuries. While insurance companies are obviously pleased with the verdict, what happens to you if you are involved in an accident where several people in different vehicles are killed or injured by the actions of the same at-fault driver? If your policy already defines the term, then the case may not affect you, but if it doesn't define the term, then this case may limit your coverage in a car accident where more than one person is injured.

The insurance policy at issue provided coverage of "$100,000 each accident," but did not define the term. The policy also indicated this was the most the insurance company would pay for any one auto accident regardless of the number of claims. In the 2008 multi-million dollar wrongful death case before the court, a teenage driver in Harris County veered onto the shoulder of the road and struck two bicycle club members. The car struck the first bicycle rider and, then within 1-2 seconds, struck the second bicyclist. The first bicyclist died and the second was seriously injured. The families each sued for the $100,000 limits of the policy and the driver supported their claim as being two accidents under the policy.

The auto insurance company filed a declaratory action in federal court in Columbus, Georgia, asking the court to rule the incident was one accident under the terms of the policy limiting the total amount available for the two claims to $100,000. The federal court certified the question to the Georgia Supreme Court which, instead of applying contract rules of construction to the policy, ruled on the definition of "accident."

This is significant, because Georgia law is clear that an insurance policy is a contract and any ambiguity in its terms is determined in favor of the insured. The Supreme Court went outside this well-established legal precedent and adopted the "cause" theory where the number of causes determine the number of accidents.

Importantly, the Supreme Court left the application of the law to the lower court whereby the lower court must apply the definition to the facts of the case and determine if based on the timing of the events or whether the driver regained control between the two events there were in fact two separate accidents. In the meantime, the $3.4 million judgment against the driver hangs in the balance.

One woman was killed in a single car accident on I-75 in Macon. Five others were injured and one was missing from the accident. Apparently, no one had on seatbelts and the police are trying to identify the driver. Car accidents involving alcohol have dangerous consequences for more than just the people involved in the crash. For example, the Georgia Dram Shop Act holds bar owners (or anyone else serving alcohol) liable if they continue to serve someone who is obviously impaired.

Fortunately, over the past twenty years there has been a decline in the number of impaired drivers on the road. In 2007, there was a decline of 71% in the percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers on the road on weekends which is good news for us. Car and truck accidents involving impaired drivers require special attention from the investigation to the criminal prosecution to any civil action filed on behalf of the victims.

A car accident involving alcohol requires special attention particularly because of the liability of those who served the alcohol. This is especially important if a person is injured by a motorist with minimal insurance. If other parties are liable, particularly bars and restautants, there will be additional insurance available to assist the victims of the drunk driver. If you or a loved one are ever involved in an accident with a drunk driver, make sure you speak with an informed and experienced attorney to know what your rights are.

With all the attention on cell phone use while driving, I decided to look at studies related to other types of driver distraction. The Virginia Tech Traffic Institute has completed several studies of the effect of inattentiveness on car accidents or near accidents. Interestingly, driving while drowsy increases the risk of a crash by four to six times. One of the reasons for limited driving hours for truck drivers is the impact of fatigue and drowsiness on the ability of the driver to react appropriately while driving. Because Atlanta is a hub for the south, we have more through-drivers on our local highways than many other areas. As a result, we have a higher car accident rate than rural areas.

Drowsiness is a factor in 22-24% of accidents and near accidents. Because of this, it is important for drivers to take breaks and rest on long trips. The best option is to alternate drivers. Having just completed an eight hour trip to Florida as the only driver, I can attest to the road weariness that comes from highway travel.

Other factors of inattentiveness that carry a high risk of causing a car accident are reaching for something, typing in a location on a GPS, and rubber-necking at other accidents. On this upcoming holiday weekend, be careful out there.

With all the discussion in the metro Atlanta news about texting while driving as a cause of car accidents, maybe it's time to step back and review exactly what distracted driving is. There are three types of distractions which make up distracted driving as defined by the U.S. Department of Transportation: 1) taking your eyes off the road; 2) taking your hands off the wheel; and 3) taking your mind off driving. In other words, any activity that requires a driver to remove his attention from driving will increase his risk of a car accident. According to the Virginia Tech Traffic Institute study for the National Highway Safety Administration 80% of all car wrecks are directly related to distracted driving.

While all the news has been on texting, other activities that interrupt a driver include dialing a cell phone, talking on a cell phone or with a passenger, reading or replying to email, eating and drinking, trying to read maps or navigation systems, changing the radio station or music selection on an i-pod, drowsiness and reaching to the floor to find something that has been dropped.

Just this week on the way to work, I passed a gentleman who was reading the newspaper on Georgia 400 heading into Atlanta! Maybe he has no concerns about causing an accident, but I don't want to be the car next to him when he veers over into another lane.

What can be done to educate drivers about the impact of a few seconds of distraction? The DOT has launched a website specifically to educate, publicize and gather information related to distracted driving. Valid suggestions to curb distractions while driving include setting the cell phone on mute so you won't be tempted to answer or see who is calling, driving defensively and being aware of drivers who appear to be talking or texting, and remembering it isn't just your life when you remove your focus from driving, it may be someone else's life you interrupt.

More Resources:

Guage Your Own Distraction

Thursday morning, a 23 year old man from the Atlanta metro area caused a fatal accident after running a red light. Police believe he may have been texting which distracted him from watching for the traffic signal. The car accident happened near Athens, Alabama at about 7:00 am. The 59 year old victim was on her way to work and died at the scene. Although both drivers were wearing seatbelts, the Georgia man was driving a 350 Chevrolet truck and the woman was driving an Acura. The State Highway Patrol is still investigating the wrongful death and has not yet determined charges.

This car accident will only add fuel to the debate in many state legislatures as to a ban on texting whiled driving. As recently reported, the Federal Motor Carrier Administration banned texting for all commercial bus and truck drivers on January 26, 2010. Georgia and Alabama both have proposals before their legislatures related to banning text messaging while driving.

There are many issues involved in the debate such as enforcement. How does the state enforce that type of law? They really can't until there is an accident and they subpoena the cell phone records - it isn't much different than enforcement of DUI laws.

Opponents of the law suggest that there may be better alternatives than putting additional laws on the books - we do have laws that cover wrongful deaths in traffic accidents. They are proponents of education in safety and driver "distractability." Just as the number of DUI's has declined over the past 20 years with high profile ads, education in the schools, and safety campaigns by states and the Federal government, we could reduce the number of accidents caused by distractions (i.e., cell phone use, texting, eating, reading the newspaper) with well-planned education and safety campaigns. For example, simple tests like the one posted previously in this blog are eye-opening as to the impact of texting while driving. Maybe it should be tied to getting a drivers license?

In Lilburn, Georgia, a texting teen crashed into a telephone phone. While typing a text to a friend and he ran off the road - the impact broke the pole in two. The young man suffered a traumatic head injury due to the impact of the accident. Gwinnett Police plan to charge him with improper use of a cell phone while driving and failure to maintain his lane.

Cell phone usage and texting while driving are distractions that are widely recognized as a cause of traffic accidents. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), approximately 16% of all fatal crashes were caused by driver distraction. While this distraction factor includes more than cell phone usage, it is estimated that at any given moment 11% of drivers are using an electronic device while driving.

In fact, the Federal government is so concerned with cell phone use while driving they have joined with the National Safety Council in forming FocusDriven, a nonprofit organization which will focus on raising awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. FocusDriven is modeled after MADD which successfully changed America's drinking and driving habits.

Placing the focus on educating the public about the high rate of car accidents caused by cell phone use is a great idea.

Your Atlanta accident lawyers want to share some good news: The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration announced that between January and June 2009 motor vehicle acccident deaths on our highways declined by 7% when compared to the same period of 2008, following a downward trend. The second quarter of 2009 is the thirteenth consecutive quarter of declining traffic fatalities since peaking in 2005 with 43,510 deaths.

So what has caused this historic decline in auto accident deaths? The data gathered so far indicates people are traveling less - about 6.1 billion miles less in the first half of 2009 which is about a .4% decline. This is probably attributable to the economy. Other factors may include record high seatbelt use and safer vehicles. Just think about the differences in safety features in cars today and ten years ago. Air bags are generally standard as are anti-lock brakes. Stability control, better signal lights, automatic headlights - all of these increase your chances of maintaining control and being seen by other vehicles.

Continue reading "Traffic Accident Deaths Reach Record Low" »