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New Study Shows Motorcycle Crashes More Severe Than Many Car Wrecks

Kyle Patterson • November 27, 2017
Any accident can leave wreckage and injuries behind, but motorcycles are often involved in accidents with life-threatening injuries. While this has long been suggested by the gruesome nature of most accident scenes, now there’s evidence in the form of more and more studies suggesting the same. If you’ve been hurt in a motorcycle accident, your life could be changed significantly and getting help from the right legal team is imperative. You might rely on these funds for years to come as it relates to your care.

A recent Canadian study has attempted to identify the financial toll of motorcycle accidents and has found that the severe injury rate and fatality rate is much higher for motorcycle accidents when compared to traditional vehicle wrecks. This Canadian study looked at the experience of more than 281,000 people hurt in car accidents and more than 26,000 patients injured in motorcycle wrecks. They found that the injury rate for motorcycle accidents was three times higher than for traditional vehicle accidents. Severe injuries, in fact, were ten times more likely to happen with a motorcycle crash and the cost of a motorcycle crash was significant in comparison with a vehicle crash.

These motorcycle accidents cost twice as much in Canada to treat as car accidents when looking at the first two years after the collision for the accident victim. These accidents are considerably more costly and dangerous than any involving cars estimating that medical costs of care for motorcycle crashes can be complicated because of the many years of extensive treatment the injured rider might need to pursue. Injury rates were three times higher for motorcycles than cars and with the cost of medical treatments approximately doubled.

Researchers determined that the total health cost for injuries was approximately six times higher for motorcycle owners than for car owners. If you or someone you know has recently been injured in a motorcycle accident and believe you have grounds for a personal injury claim, scheduling a consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney today is extremely important. The right lawyer can have a major impact on the outcome of your case.

What Are the Most Dangerous Intersections in Pasadena?

By Kyle Patterson • November 19, 2018
A Pasadena car accident can change your life forever. You might not even remember how the accident happened or what caused it, but looking back on the issue or pulling together evidence can help you to figure out what occurred. All people nearing an intersection, including those who are on foot, riding a bicycle or motorcycle, or inside a car, face the risk of severe injuries at an accident. Someone who tries to swerve outside of the way of an accident can strike others or stationary objects leading to injuries such as spinal cord damage, a brain injury, or whiplash. Have you already been hurt while on a motorcycle, a bicycle, on foot or as a passenger or driver in a vehicle in Pasadena? Unfortunately, far too many vehicle accidents across California are caused by driver error. These driver error issues often emerge in the context of a personal injury lawsuit filed after the crash happens. New City software has identified some of the most dangerous and deadly intersections in Pasadena. This software looks to capture the highest collision rates across Pasadena. The total number of collisions since 2014 were used to arrive at the data points which were shared in late 2016. The most dangerous Pasadena intersections for severe accidents include Lake Avenue at Orange Grove Boulevard, Maple Street at Fair Oaks Avenue, and Lake Avenue at Corson Street. Many of the high collision rate intersections across Pasadena are near on and off ramps for the freeway. The primary causes of these accidents include inattention and speeding. Especially when a person is transitioning on and off of a freeway during peak hours, the possibility of accidents is that much higher. With more drivers engaged in distracted driving that ever before, it is a significant consequence when a person has been critically hurt in such an accident. Retaining the services of an experienced personal injury lawyer might be the only way for a person who has been critically hurt to protect their rights and recover compensation.

How Often Do Tires Cause Accidents?

By Kyle Patterson • October 15, 2018
A safety group has recently challenged the data put forth by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about fatalities tied to tires. The highway safety advocacy group known as the Safety Institute have asked questions regarding the discrepancies in the fatality statistics associated with tires on two different parts of the agency’s website. Tires can cause accidents in many ways, but they can also make accidents much worse when the accident was caused by something or someone else. The TireWise website has an estimate of 386 tire-related fatalities in 2014 and 733 fatalities in 2015. The safety advocacy group says that the new figure does not capture all of the data effectively. The NHTSA, according to the group, should review their past rulemaking decisions for tire safety that might have been based on methods and data that were unsuitable for a statistical study of this topic. Tire-related accidents can occur as a result of a variety of different issues. For example, a tire blowout could cause someone to lose control of their vehicle. A defective tire could also cause a person to unexpectedly suffer in an accident and leave others dealing with injuries tied to that accident as well. Appropriate data is often used to make policy-making decisions surrounding tire manufacturer guidelines and other issues. If your tire blows initially to cause the accident or if it blows out because someone else hits you, you need to consult with a lawyer about your personal injury claim. If the tire is determined to be defective, this could be its own legal claim against the manufacturer of the tire. The only way to know for sure whether you have one or multiple lawsuit claims is to have a lawyer who can conduct an accident investigation right away. Schedule a consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer if you’ve already been hurt in an accident that you believe was caused by someone else or a defective product on your car.

New App Uses Sensors to Detect Vehicle Accidents

By Kyle Patterson • September 18, 2018
A whole new portion of the technology industry has become dedicated to detecting possible accidents and preventing them. Although driving is a common practice throughout the U.S., far too many people find themselves suffering from serious injuries or the loss of a loved one after a preventable accident. Have you ever been involved in a vehicle accident and been concerned about reaching out to first responders to get help on the scene? If so, a new app may be for you. The Driver 360 app uses smartphone sensors to detect when a vehicle accident has happened and to call for help. According to the Association for Safe International Road Travel, approximately 1.3 million people die in vehicle accidents every single year. A further 20 to 30 million people end up seriously disabled or injured. This has led to a growing need and development of technologies that can assist with emergency response. Other technologies have looked at how to prevent accidents before they occur. A new driving solutions company based out of Massachusetts has developed a new kit called Driver 360 that uses smartphone sensors and artificial intelligence to determine whether or not a car crash has already happened automatically. After the algorithms in the application detect a crash, no later than 30 seconds later, emergency contact centers are contacted. Those emergency centers then reach out to insurance carriers, tow service providers and first responders. The company alleges that due to the development of their new technology, the application identified 95% of vehicle crashes in which an airbag was deployed and 88% of crashes that required a tow. If you have already been involved in an accident and are concerned about your costly medical expenses and how best to protect your interests going forward so that you can return to work and live as normal a life as possible, you need to schedule a consultation with a lawyer immediately.

Is Self-Driving Vehicle Technology Safer Than Human Drivers?

By Kyle Patterson • June 10, 2018
Self-driving cars have made a lot of headlines recently, but unfortunately, not for the best of reasons. Some have been involved in accidents causing the public to be concerned about their overall safety in the midst of roads filled with cars driven by humans. A new study identified that the technology inside self-driving vehicles must be much safer than human drivers in order for members of the public to trust it. The study was published in the journal Risk Analysis and found that despite the many benefits or even conveniences presented by self-driving vehicles, recent crashes including this autonomous technology have the public wondering if they’ll really be able to sit back and relax during a road trip. People’s demand for safety increases to a very high level when it is officially entrusted to an external factor, so they are much less likely to trust an autonomous vehicle if they have the same risk level as human driven crashes, which lead to serious injuries and fatalities in states all across the country. Human error is expected to be the cause behind 94% of traffic accidents in the United States, and the purpose of self-driving vehicles was to improve road safety and reduce car crashes. However, autonomous vehicles carry their own set of risks, making a self-driving vehicle that appears to be perfectly safe, economically or technologically infeasible. The current risk, around the world, of dying in a vehicle accident is 17.4 for every 100,000 people. That rate is 350 times greater than what the study’s participants found acceptable for self-driving vehicles. The researchers suggested that self-driving vehicle risks are distinguished by three criteria; tolerable, unacceptable and broadly acceptable. If you have been involved in an accident of any type and believe that you have grounds to pursue a lawsuit against the responsible party, you should schedule a consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer.

New Study Shows That Southern California Leads the State in Fatal Car Accidents

By Kyle Patterson • May 17, 2018
Fatal car accidents are too common across California but a new study shows that Southern California is home to more accidents than people previously realized. These devastating accidents can lead to catastrophic injuries or fatalities and fatal accidents are an increasingly common aspect of research studies. This most recent study found that Riverside, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties are the most dangerous places to drive due to the risk of being involved in an accident. California represented more than 10% of the 36,000 deadly accidents reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2016. Many people who were asked about the survey’s results indicated that they felt that it fell to speeding and distracted driving, common behaviors engaged in by people who may be found as negligent in a lawsuit. When an area becomes increasingly popular for people to live, it can also increase the amount of traffic on the roads and the sense of urgency that people experience in trying to get to their destinations. Fatal car accidents leave behind devastating problems for the surviving family members. It may be difficult or impossible for the family members to financially get through this situation without the help of a wrongful death claim. In California, it’s important for those survivors to get help from an attorney as soon as possible. If the other party can be identified, the family members may be able to win compensation for the loss of their loved one. This can mean that anyone hurt in an accident could be dealing with devastating consequences. If you or your loved ones have been trying to figure out how to move on with your life after a serious accident, you may be eligible to pursue compensation with the help of an attorney but you must take action sooner rather than later. You have a limited period of time in which you can file for compensation from an injury claim and the support of a lawyer may be the only thing that helps you avoid taking a low settlement offer or failing in court.

Truck Accidents, Sleep Apnea and Fatigued Driving: A Deadly Combination for Trucking

By Kyle Patterson • December 29, 2017
Unfortunately, one of the most common causes behind many preventable truck accidents today has to do with fatigued driving. Given the number of truck drivers significantly affected by problems with sleep apnea, it may come as no surprise that truckers under pressure to deliver on a deadline may be pushing themselves too hard and dealing with fatigue behind the wheel to cope with it. Sleep apnea is a condition that causes people to wake up numerous times over the course of the night. This might lead to a less than restful night of sleep and increase the chances of a serious and life-changing trucking accident. If a driver is tired behind the wheel, he or she might lose focus and get into an accident. If a truck driver or the employer company is responsible for the injuries sustained, a liability lawsuit may be filed by the injured victim. Estimates in the United States are that more than 25 million different people suffer from this chronic disorder, and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute shows that truck drivers who suffer from sleep apnea and who don’t have a treatment program they regularly follow, are five times as likely to be involved in a critical truck accident. The experiences of more than 3,000 different truck drivers were included in that recent study, and truck drivers may be hesitant about disclosing their sleep apnea concerns because they don’t realize how it could affect their job. However, the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute study showed that when 1,000 drivers suffering from sleep apnea did not follow treatment, this would lead to up to 70 preventable, serious tractor trailer accidents. Whereas the number of sleep apnea affected truckers who did follow through on a treatment program only had 14 preventable accidents during the same period. If you or someone you know has been involved in a serious trucking accident, you deserve to have the insight of a lawyer.

What Are the Most Common Car Accident Injuries?

By Kyle Patterson • May 23, 2017
Some of the most common car accident injuries are also the most serious. They can have a lifelong impact on anyone who is critically injured in an accident and this can lead you to consider filing a personal injury lawsuit. Read on to learn more about some of the most common car accident injuries and what you should do if you find yourself suffering from these medical conditions after a major car accident caused by someone else’s negligence or reckless behavior. The most common injuries include: Neck and back injuries Head injuries Chest injuries Leg injuries Ankle and foot injuries Knee injuries Injuries to any part of a crash victim’s legs can have a major impact on their ability to walk. You may find yourself unable to return to work or enjoy the physical activities that you found fun prior to the accident. Along with the emotional trauma represented in any serious car accident, all of these impacts related to your limbs can make it difficult for you to get through the day to day. You may have no choice but to consider consulting with a knowledgeable personal injury lawyer about the best way to handle your case. Do not wait to get the help that you need from an experienced attorney who can assist you with all aspects of your personal injury claim. There’s a lot on the line when you have suffered in an accident. You may not even realize the full scope of your injuries until it is too late. Do not wait too long to consult with a lawyer. Many attorneys offer free consultations and scheduling a consultation now will give you a good idea of what to expect should you choose to move forward with a legal claim. With so much potential impact on your future, it is essential that you consult with an attorney now to discuss the possibility of bringing forward a case later. If you allow your case to lapse past your state’s last statute of limitations, you will be unable to pursue a legal claim on this matter in the future. This is why it makes such a big difference when you choose to contact your attorney.

Should You Accept a Personal Injury Settlement?

By Kyle Patterson • January 18, 2017
If you were injured in an accident, you may have been quickly offered a settlement from the liable party’s insurance company. If you haven’t, you likely will soon. Insurance companies offer lower settlements at the beginning of a case to decrease the amount they have to pay out. But should you accept it? Here’s how to know. Figure Out What “Fair Money” Is If an insurance company puts fair money on the table, it’s perfectly fine to accept the settlement, even in rare cases where the first offer is a fair sum. However, most insurance companies don’t start out by putting fair money on the table. In order for you to confidently accept or reject an offer, it’s important to know what fair money is in your case. The term “fair money” refers to the amount of compensation offered for the various damages incurred as a result of the accident. There are economic damages, such as medical bills, lost wages, and property damage, and there are also non-economical damages like pain and emotional suffering. It’s important to take all of these factors into account when considering a settlement offer from an insurance company. At the very least, you want to be sure that the offer made will cover all of the economic damages accrued and future economic damages. Never Accept a Settlement Without the Guidance of a Personal Injury Lawyer Knowing what fair money is in your case can be difficult. Although adding up your medical bills and lost wages is part of estimating fair money, it’s not all of it. There are numerous things to think about that individuals who do not work in field of personal injury don’t realize. For example, count bonuses and wage increase opportunities you missed while injured. Have the best estimate possible of what your future expenses are likely to be. Once you’ve settled your claim, you cannot come back to the individual or company who is liable with further expenses. The most important thing you can do after an accident is contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. At Chang Mattern LLP, we can help you estimate what fair money would be in your case. If the insurance company refuses to offer you the compensation you deserve, we can help you take your case to court. Contact us today for a consultation at (626) 792-5888.
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