Reckless Driver Slams Into Parked Car
Motorists on Round Rock’s Greenlawn Boulevard were surprised on May 22, when a car came speeding through the neighborhood, slamming into the side of a parked car and hitting several others before coming to a stop. Police stated that the driver was stopped, but not arrested – however, any more property damage or injury and an arrest might have been forthcoming. Side collisions can cause significant damage to people and things, despite the casual reputation they often have.
Sideswipe Collisions Make Up High Percentage of Casualties
Approximately 20 percent of all deaths in single-vehicle auto accidents are due to side-swipe accidents, with the percentage climbing to 32 percent in multi-vehicle accidents. There are multiple potential causes of such collisions, but recklessness and negligence do figure prominently in the list. Other potential reasons include distracted driving and substance abuse, but the majority of such accidents are largely due to driver error.
Perhaps the most dangerous sideswipe accidents are called T-bone crashes, and they cause significant injury because there is comparatively little protection on the sides of cars to insulate occupants from damage – some modern automobiles have side impact airbags, but older autos and trucks do not. Because of this, sideswipe collisions such as that perpetrated on Greenlawn Boulevard have some of the highest potential to injure, though whether injury or fatality may be a matter of luck.
If You Are Injured or Lose a Loved One
If you are injured in such an accident, and you have reason to believe that the other driver’s recklessness or negligence contributed to your injuries, you would bring suit under a theory of negligence. Negligence law in Texas has three components. The plaintiff must show that there was a breach of the duty of care that all motorists owe to each other and that the breach was the direct cause of harm they suffered, with no intervening cause. They must also show that the harm they suffered is significant – worse than mere bruises, or shock.
If you have lost a loved one in a sideswipe accident, a wrongful death suit would try to establish the same criteria of negligence – the relevant statute holds that a person may be liable for the death of another if their or their agent’s “wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, unskillfulness, or default” caused the death. Because so many sideswipe collisions can be shown to be the result of driver error, it may be easier in some cases to link such behavior with ‘neglect’ or ‘carelessness,’ though it is by no means a foregone conclusion that this would occur.
Seek Experienced Legal Help
If you are harmed due to the recklessness of a driver such as the one in Round Rock, you may have a claim for compensation. Consulting a knowledgeable attorney can help answer any questions you have. The skilled New Braunfels collision lawyers at the Bettersworth Law Firm have years of experience with these types of accidents and are happy to try and help you decide how best to handle such a situation in your own life.
Source:
http://www.kxan.com/news/local/williamson-county/video-driver-slams-into-cars-parked-in-round-rock-neighborhood/1194907578
https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CP/htm/CP.71.htm
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/topics/t/general-statistics/fatalityfacts/passenger-vehicles
