Most responsible car owners know that taking care of your car can save you significant amounts of money on costly future car repairs. However, did you also know that car maintenance could actually save your life? That’s right! Regular car maintenance like changing your tires and routinely checking your brakes for wear and tear can actually prevent serious and fatal accidents from occurring. Plus, when you regularly visit your auto shop, you’re more likely to be informed of any serious recalls or safety issues.
Colorado commutes can be painful and long. Gridlock traffic into and out of cities like Denver, Colorado Springs, and Arvada increases the number of car accidents that occur. In fact, traffic congestion costs the average driver over $1,400 per year in excess gasoline and traffic accidents. Yet, how is Colorado driving compared to other cities in the United States? Do we have the worst commutes or the best? And are we falling behind?
Did you know that a fifth of all states are dangerously behind when it comes to implementing basic road safety laws? Even more astonishing is that every single state has work to do when it comes to keeping drivers and passengers safe from sustaining serious and life-threatening injuries. In fact 406 laws were needed in all 50 states to improve safety on the road. Only six states were given the green light in safety and Colorado was not one of them. Learn more about Colorado road safety laws below.
Preventable accidents involving guns and cars are responsible for six out of ten childhood deaths. According to a study published by the New England Journal of Medicine, these two factors account for the majority of childhood deaths in the United States. In comparison, childhood cancers are responsible for less than 1 in 10 deaths.
A hit and run accident occurs every minute on U.S. roads and nearly 65% of all hit and run accident victims are pedestrians or cyclists. Sadly, a 2018 AAA study found that hit and run accidents are on the rise across the United States In fact, in 2016 alone, the most recent year for statistics, there were 2,049 deaths from hit and run accidents, a 60% increase from 2009. Why are hit and run accidents increasing?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2017 saw the largest increase in trucking accident fatalities in 29 years. According to many in the trucking industry, this increase in trucking accident fatalities may be tied directly to drivers’ resistance to federal trucking rules mandated in recent years. Many truck drivers are breaking the federal rule that requires a rest break after eight straight hours of driving. Why are these drivers breaking “rest break” rules? Pressure to deliver their loads quickly may be partly to blame.
Unpredictable weather can add a significant challenge to operating a vehicle safely, and the winter months can bring more than their fair share of unpredictability. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 17 percent of all vehicle crashes happen during winter driving conditions. Road conditions and visibility can change quickly, without much warning, and require drivers to take extra care when on the road. Reducing speed, allowing for extra time to reach your destination, and choosing not to drive in poor weather conditions unless absolutely necessary are just some of the ways of reducing the risk of winter driving accidents.
Trucking accidents are almost always catastrophic. Due to the size of large commercial trucks, semi trucks, and big rigs, they can cause massive amounts of damage and life threatening injuries to anyone involved in the accident. Unfortunately, the majority of the injuries sustained are to the occupants of passenger vehicles. Yet, even when trucking accidents are clearly the fault of the truck driver or the trucking company, trucking accident victims don’t always get the money they need to recover. That’s why it’s extremely important to reach out to a lawyer after a trucking accident for help.
Cell phones have changed the way we interact with our friends and family, how we work, and how we manage our day. They’ve made us excellent multi-taskers by giving us the world at our fingertips. Yet, sadly, they’ve also made us worse drivers. Throughout the last decade, drivers have been increasingly more distracted behind the wheel and cell phones are largely to blame. Even though the majority of states have enacted some form of distracted driving laws, cell phone car accident cases continue to be a common legal problem.
Fatal car accidents involving teenagers are now on the rise. In 2015 alone, there was a 9% increase in fatal driving among teenagers. This is particularly upsetting because for years, the number of teenage fatal car accidents was on the decline and heading in the right direction. Now, new research reveals that teenagers drivers are actually more likely to be involved in a serious or deadly crash than any other age group. This is a sobering fact for parents everywhere and one that has safety experts wondering, “how can we keep our teens safe behind the wheel?” Here are some helpful safe driving tips for teenage drivers that all parents should know: