Posted on October 19, 2016 in Uncategorized

On September 15, an official recall went out for all Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones sold before the recall date. This Samsung model, a competitor of the iPhone, has been plagued since its release with reports that the batteries in the phones not only overheat, but they may catch fire. The recall notice states about one million phones were sold throughout the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. There have been 92 reports of batteries overheating. Because of the potential for injury, the Consumer Product Safety Commission states consumers of these phones should immediately stop using the device and contact their wireless carrier to receive a new phone or a refund.

Defective Batteries Cause Injuries

A phone’s battery overheating is a big deal when people expect their cells phones to work 24 hours per day. But this recall was even more important than battery life because the Galaxy Note 7’s defective batteries led to 26 reports of burns on users and 55 reports of property damage, including fires in some users’ cars or garages. The phone apparently becomes too hot during charging, but some injuries have occurred while the phone was in someone’s pocket.

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 Posted on October 14, 2016 in Uncategorized

A rollover crash occurred on the access road near West Military Drive and Highway 90 last month. The driver of the SUV lost control of the vehicle and went into a ditch. When the SUV flipped, the driver was thrown from the car and killed. The passenger, the driver’s girlfriend, was sleeping during the drive and is recovering from her injuries.

Rollover Crashes

Rollover accidents that include one or more vehicles are a serious problem on roads across the U.S. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Association, rollover crashes have a higher risk of fatalities than any other type of crash. These types of crashes account for one-third of all car accident deaths. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported 6,863 people died in rollover crashes in 2014, and 28 percent of these accidents didn’t involve another impact.

Rollover crashes tend to occur with taller and narrower vehicles like trucks, vans, and SUVs. They have a higher center of gravity and the forces exerted on these vehicles during turns can drastically affect the vehicles’ balance. However, most vehicles rollover when they hit by another vehicle or come into contact with an obstacle like a curb or pothole that throws the car’s balance off and causes it to roll.

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 Posted on October 13, 2016 in Uncategorized

The minutes that follow a collision can feel like a blur. Once the accident happens, your mind and body are wrestling with shock and the compelling need to take some sort of immediate action. What you refrain from doing after a car accident, however, can be just as important, if not more so, when it comes to protecting your best interests.

Here are five things every driver should avoid after a crash:

1. Hit and Run – Whatever you do, be sure to remain at the scene. Never flee the accident, whether you were the one to hit the other driver or not. Your presence is vital in reporting the details of the crash, as well as in protecting the wellbeing of every other driver involved in the collision. In addition, fines and penalties for hit and runs can be severe. Do not make matters worse by avoiding the aftermath of the accident.

2. Take the Blame – In general, saying too much after an accident is never ideal, especially when it comes to admitting fault of any kind. Do not take the blame and risk putting yourself on record as the driver at fault for the collision. Even if you were the one who caused the accident, you might be surprised to discover that the other driver was just as much in the wrong as you were. There is always the chance that they too contributed to the crash, and those details matter when it comes to documenting the nature of the crash and dealing with potential lawsuits.

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 Posted on October 07, 2016 in Uncategorized

The topic of red light cameras is an ongoing debate right here, in the state of Texas, and all across the nation. The controversy reaches far and wide, with arguments that the cameras really do help reduce the number of car wrecks at intersections to convictions that they exist simply to generate revenue. Multiple publications across the country have published pieces that point out the undeniable pros and cons of camera installation, proving that one thing is for sure: Red light cameras offer a number of advantages, but studies show they have significant drawbacks, too.

Hopes for the Technology

Red light camera technology is backed by the concept that by catching those who run red lights and ticketing them for the violation, we can discourage the behavior of running red lights, thus decreasing the number of car accidents at intersections. Sounds good in theory, but the question has been, and continues to be: Is this type of camera enforcement effective when it comes to safety?

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 Posted on October 05, 2016 in Uncategorized

Having to endure the stress of any car accident is hard enough, but what happens when you are the victim of a hit-and-run driver? What steps do you need to take and where do you turn for help? The moment you are involved in a hit-and-run accident, you do not have the luxury of making contact with the other driver to exchange license and insurance information, let alone the opportunity to speak with them to determine the cause of the crash.

Immediately after the crash.

The moment you experience a hit-and-run, your first course of action should be the same as with any other collision: Assess yourself and any passengers for signs of injury and call 911 right away if someone is hurt. Once you have tended to any injuries and have made sure help is on the way, try your best to recall any details regarding the moments before the crash, including a description of the driver that hit you and drove away. While it may be difficult to recall such details, especially in the wake of the commotion and possible injuries, any details you can provide may prove to be valuable tools later on.

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 Posted on October 03, 2016 in Uncategorized

Multiple recent car accidents in Texas have led to children being injured. In some of these accidents, investigators found some of the children in the vehicles were not properly secured in child safety seats, despite being young or small enough to need such a seat. A crash on the Loop 410 led to the deaths of a two small boys. Two other infants were severely injured in the accident. None of the children were in safety seats or wearing seat belts. The tragedy of these accidents is deepened when it is acknowledged that the proper use of child safety seats greatly reduces the likelihood of a child dying during an accident, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite the fact that car seat reduces the risk of an infant’s death by 71 percent or a toddler’s death by 54 percent, people still fail to use this safety equipment or secure their children into the seats properly.

Buying the Correct Safety Seat

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 Posted on September 28, 2016 in Uncategorized

Earlier this month, multiple vehicles were involved in a wrong-way crash on I-10 near San Antonio, Texas, in the early hours of the morning. The police believe the driver of the pickup truck was driving drunk when he headed the wrong way down the road. He hit a sedan on the side causing it to spin and then hit another vehicle before he stopped. Multiple people were taken to the hospital with injuries. A separate wrong-way accident a few weeks ago on I-35 led to two fatalities – the driver of a truck driving against traffic and the driver of the car he hit.

If you have been involved in a similar type of accident, do not hesitate to seek legal advice from the skilled Texas personal injury attorneys of the Bettersworth Law Firm. When you are injured because of someone driving the wrong way on a neighborhood street or highway, you deserve to recover from that person.

Wrong-Way Auto Accidents Plague Texas

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 Posted on September 23, 2016 in Uncategorized

A hot air balloon crashed near Lockhart, Texas, at the end of July. There were 16 people aboard, including the pilot, and all were killed in the accident. The exact details of the crash are not clear yet, but what is known is that the hot air balloon caught fire in flight. It may have hit power lines as it came down to the ground. The National Transportation Safety Board is in charge of the investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been asked to assist. The organizations may determine if anyone was at fault for the tragedy or whether it was an accident not caused by anyone’s negligence. Car, truck, and even airplane accidents are much more common than hot air balloon crashes, but there is the potential for danger in any form of transportation. If you were hurt or a loved one was killed in an uncommon accident, contact an experienced Austin wrongful death attorney for help today.

One of the Worst Hot Air Balloon in Crashes in History

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 Posted on September 21, 2016 in Uncategorized

If you are a roadway construction worker, one of your biggest fears may not be getting hurt because of the equipment but being killed by a passing car. There are hundreds if not thousands of work zone sites on Texas roads at any given time. From highway repairs to local street resurfacing, construction workers are constantly trying to do their jobs while traffic whizzes by them. Construction workers’ fears regarding getting hit by a car or truck are justified. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, there were 21,886 work zone crashes within the state in 2015. This represented a 13 percent increase in accidents compared to 2014. During these accidents, 138 people were killed. Not all of those killed in work zones were construction workers, though. Normal motorists should also worry about work zone accidents, which can lead to significant injuries and death.

Texas Work Zone Laws

If you are caught committing a traffic violation within a current Texas work zone, the fine for that violation is doubled. For example, if your speeding ticket is for a $200 fine, this would be doubled to $400 because it took place in a work zone.

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 Posted on September 16, 2016 in Uncategorized

Toward the end of August, one individual died and another individual was injured during a rollover crash with another vehicle on Wurzbach Parkway in San Antonio, Texas. One woman was reported to be in critical condition immediately following the accident but later died in the hospital. The other individual, a 28-year-old man driving the car, was thrown from the vehicle despite wearing his seatbelt. The individuals in the other car that was hit were treated at the scene.

The details of what went wrong are unclear, but accidents such as this one often lead to personal injury or wrongful death claims against the at-fault driver.

Texas Personal Injury Claims

If you were hurt in an auto accident that was caused by another person, you have the right to recover for your injuries. All motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians on the road have a duty of care toward one another. This means everyone must behave reasonably and safely to avoid causing anyone else harm. When people speed, swerve, fail to use their signals, and drink and drive, they are breaching this duty to others because they increase the risk of an accident.

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