Thousands of lives around the world are lost every year because of car accidents. The United States alone loses around thirty seven thousand people every year to car accidents – that’s around one hundred people every day! Why do we have to lose so many people when the basic rules of driving are simple and straightforward? How many of these accidents are avoidable and what can we do prevent them? The answer isn’t as straightforward as it seems – some causes are obvious, others aren’t. We list some of the most common reasons:
Drunk Driving:
Binge drinking and drunk driving are far more prevalent in the United States than we’d like to believe. We don’t just need to change the laws related to drunk driving, but also change our attitude towards DUI. For example, in some Scandinavian countries like Sweden, there’s no concept of, “I just had one beer.” If you have had alcohol, you do not drive! The BAC limit in Sweden is 0.2 as opposed to the US which allows driving up to 0.8 BAC. Similarly, fines aren’t uniform; rather, they are based on your bank balance. If you have been injured as the result of a drunk driver’s negligence you call an experienced Florida car accident lawyer today.
Distracted Driving:
While distracted driving rates have increased from 2015 to 2016, the figures are steadily declining when compared to 2007. More than ten Americans are killed every day, and nearly a thousand people are injured every day because we’re not paying attention while driving. Common instances of distracted driving include texting, speaking on the phone, eating, drinking, and other activities that take your focus away while driving. A recent survey by Zendrive found that nearly 60% of drivers check their smartphones while driving and use it for an average of 2 minutes an hour. You don’t need a Florida accident attorney to tell you that distracted driving is a traffic offense that could set you back a lot of money and maybe even cause a car accident injury or worse.
Speeding:
This is one of the most common reasons for car accidents, accounting for nearly 27% of crashes in 2016 alone. A majority of them are drivers in the 15-20 age group. A report by the National Transportation Safety Board blames speed as one of the major reasons for the rise in traffic deaths in the country – between 2005 to 2014 it accounted to around 31% of all traffic fatalities. Recommendations range from changing the consequences of speeding to running a campaign to change the culture prevalent around speeding. Unfortunately, speeding isn’t viewed as negatively as drunk driving or unbelted driving.
Do you or a loved one need assistance to file a claim for compensation for negligent driving? Contact Florida car accident attorney, Jarrett Blakeley.