Articles Posted in Car Accidents

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College and pro football season are underway, bringing thousands of tailgaters to stadiums in some of Florida’s largest cities, and prompting millions more to host watch parties in their homes.

The Florida State University Police Department is among the many agencies urging revelers to stay safe and celebrate responsibly.  Our Fort Myers injury lawyers know football weekends are prime time for serious and fatal motor vehicle collisions involving intoxicated drivers. Universities at highest risk include Florida State and Miami. football-300x214

Mothers Against Drunk Driving has teamed up with the National Football League to encourage fans to designate a driver. 

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The News-Press has reported a number of serious multi-vehicle accidents in Southwest Florida in the last month.

In one incident, a multi-vehicle collision closed the westbound lanes of NE Pine Island Road while the Lee County Sheriff’s Office questioned a number of witnesses and others who were at the scene. Media reports indicate a blue Bentley crashed into a silver Honda SUV as traffic was stopped for another accident further up the road. The Florida Highway Patrol also was called to the scene to investigate.highway

Our injury lawyers in Fort Myers and Cape Coral know there are a number of things you can do to reduce the risk of being involved in such collisions, and to protect your rights in the event you are involved in a crash with multiple parties.

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is coming under fire for lacking the proper expertise to identify dangers posed by defective vehicles.

Safety advocates content the government’s primary traffic-safety watchdog is often reluctant to order recalls and is constrained by a small staff and tight budget. Among the consequences is an agency that too often relies upon safety studies conducted by auto manufacturers, the Detroit Free Press reported. defectivevehicles-300x200

The agency countered by reporting an increase in staff with significant knowledge of new technologies and cited a record number of recalls issued in each of the last four years.

Fort Myers car accident lawyers know modern technology makes the agency’s task more critical than ever, as the industry begins deploying self-driving and autonomous vehicles and continues to incorporate more and more multi-media technology, which many safety advocates also cite as a primary cause of distracted driving. Continue reading →

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If you’ve been on I-75 or another divided highway this summer, perhaps you have been surprised, even startled, by passing drivers traveling far faster than the speed limit.

It isn’t your imagination; the number of drivers busted for traveling more than 20 mph over the speed limit is on the rise. This week, law enforcement in five states began “Operation Southern Shield” to crack down on speeding drivers and save lives. Florida joins Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and South Carolina in the enforcement effort. night-highway-1450204-300x184

Fort Myers injury lawyers continue to see far too many collisions caused by speeding. Excessive speed not only reduces reaction time, it exponentially increases the force of impact, increasing the risk of very serious or fatal injuries.

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Texting and driving became a primary offense this week (July 1) as part of a new law that also prohibits all handheld cellphone use in school zones and active construction sites.

Florida Today reports Florida is among the last states in the nation to prohibit hand-held cell phone use by drivers in school zones and construction sites. Essentially, the rest of the law only bans texting, as most other uses of a phone (dialing, seeking directions, etc.) remain legal, except in school zones or construction sites where workers are present. phonedriver-300x225

As our Fort Myers car accident lawyers reported recently on our Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, Florida continues to lag far behind most other states when it comes to laws aimed at reducing the risks of distracted driving. 

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The re-trial of a wrongful death case in Orlando is being closely watched this week as plaintiff attorneys attempt to hold Dominos Pizza Inc. responsible for a fatal traffic accident caused by one of its delivery drivers.

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Hot summer jalapeno pepper and meat pizza, macro close up isolated over white

In Wiederhold v. Domino’s Pizza, et al., 2011-CA-001589 lawyers for the victim told jurors at the opening of this week’s trial that Dominos is responsible for the driver’s actions because the company maintained a right of control over the franchise, which rendered the business an agent of the corporation. He said both the franchise owner and store manager would testify that Dominos maintained significant control over the franchise’s day-to-day operations.

Defense counters that the franchise was an independent business and not an agent of the parent company.

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How long do you think it will be before autonomous vehicles are on the roads of Southwest Florida?

If you think you are fully aware of the breakneck speed at which technology is changing all of our lives, consider this: Self-driving vehicles have already been on the roads of Lee County for more than a year.uninsured accidents

Media outlets swarmed over the news this week after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a measure that will allow self-driving cars, without human backup, to hit the roads in Florida in time for the Fourth of July weekend. Fox 13 Orlando reported it will put Florida at the very forefront of a number of progressive states that have sanctioned the use of such technology on public roads.

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Distracted walking is in the news as the nation grapples with significant increases in the number of serious and fatal pedestrian accidents.

Unfortunately, Florida is all too familiar with the crisis, as the Sunshine State leads the nation in the number of walkers who are injured or killed each year. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports more than 5,000 deaths and 76,000 injuries caused by pedestrian accidents each year; that’s one death every two hours. And, as the Miami Herald reported recently, 9 of the 20 deadliest cities for pedestrians are located in Florida.pedestriandistraction-300x208

Fort Myers injury lawyers know the increased risks faced by walkers are attributable to a number of factors, including lack of proper infrastructure such as sidewalks and street lights, distraction on the part of both the walker and drivers, and the growing prevalence of electric or otherwise silent vehicles.

A study published in 2012 by researchers from New York’s Stony Brook University found that those who texted while walking were 60 percent more likely to veer off course. Headphones are another growing problem. F.S. 316.304 prohibits drivers from wearing headphones, although no such law exists for pedestrian or cyclists.

But, while it’s true distracted walking can increase accident risks, the issue of distracted walking is also being pushed by the insurance industry as a way to reduce the liability of insured drivers for collisions that typically result in very serious or fatal injuries.

 

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It sometimes seems as though snowbirds are replaced by orange road construction barrels as summer begins in Southwest Florida.

Florida Department of Transportation is preparing to begin significant improvements to Interstate 75 at Corkscrew Road, according to the Naples Daily News.

Meanwhile, Lee County Department of Transportation is widening Burnt Store Road from Diplomat Parkway to Tropicana Parkway in Cape Coral and the City of Fort Myers is working on a beautification project along U.S. 41 between Colonial Boulevard and downtown.roadconstruction-300x225

Our car accident lawyers in Fort Myers and Cape Coral know each of these projects increases the risks to motorists and pedestrians.

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With graduation upon us, it’s time to focus on teen driving safety as we enter the long summer months in Southwest Florida.

Florida ranks 31st when it comes to teen driving safety, and 41st when it comes to laws on the books to promote safety among young drivers, according to a report by WalletHub.ambulance-300x201

Motor vehicle collisions are the number one killer of U.S. teenagers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As veteran car accident lawyers in Cape Coral and Fort Myers, we have seen far too many tragedies involving young drivers and their passengers.

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