Recent Blog Posts
Loop 410 Accident Leads to Three Deaths
A major rollover accident on Loop 410 led to six victims, including children, being ejected from an SUV. Two children and one adolescent lost their lives due to the crash. Four other individuals were critically injured. One of the victims of the crash was the 19-year-old daughter of a prominent regional pastor. Many of the victims of the crash were young children, and a one and two-year-old were transported to nearby hospitals for treatment.
The Chevrolet Suburban was traveling southeast around 1:20 am. The vehicle collided with the center barrier and then rolled into Rigsby Road and Presa Street in San Antonio, Texas. Police say it is not clear who was driving the vehicle at the time of the incident. Despite numerous children in the car, it appears no safety seats or seat belts were used.
Seeking Compensation
If an investigation finds the driver or another person is responsible for the accident, the victims of the crash may have a personal injury or wrongful death claim against him or her. While the victims and their families may first try and deal with the at-fault party’s insurance company, they may have to turn to the Texas legal system for help. Individuals involved in auto accidents should contact an experienced San Antonio wrongful death attorney as soon as possible. An experienced lawyer will know how to handle insurance claims or move forward with a personal injury or wrongful death suit if necessary.
Garbage Truck Accidents in Texas
Garbage trucks are a normal sight wherever you happen to live. When you see them on the roads, you do not think much about them, but these large trucks are often responsible for deadly accidents. A waste disposal truck owned by Texas Disposal Systems hit a bridge in Sealy and caused an accident killing a 12-year-old in July. A trash truck collision in Arlington left one dead and another injured in June. Accidents between garbage, waste, or dump trucks and the average car can lead to significant property damage, injuries, and death. If you were hit by a garbage truck, call the experienced San Braunfels truck accident attorneys of The Bettersworth Law Firm.
Common Causes of Garbage Truck Accidents
As experienced drivers know, there is an almost endless list of potential causes for truck and car accidents. But certain factors may lead to garbage truck accidents more than others, including:
What to do in a Car Accident with an Uber or Other Ride-Sharing Service
It is becoming more popular for individuals to take taxis or ride-sharing services than to drive themselves. There are many reasons for the rise of more driving services. Many people prefer not to take on the financial burden of a car or others want to take a cab or Uber so they can have a few drinks with friends without fear of a DUI. As helpful as ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft may be, they are not immune to auto accidents. Plus, when a ride-sharing vehicle is in a crash, there are additional considerations than if two drivers were simply in their personal vehicles. If you were hurt after being hit by an Uber, Lyft, or other car service, you may have to work with both the company and the driver to fully recover for your injuries. For more information on how to navigate this situation, contact the New Braunfels personal injury attorneys at our office for help.
Whose Insurance is Responsible?
Trucking and Commercial Vehicle Accidents in Texas in 2015
Trucks and other commercial vehicles are involved in thousands of crashes around Texas every year. In 2015, there were 34,230 crashes involving a commercial vehicle in Texas, which left 601 people dead and 1,522 individuals with incapacitating injuries. When someone is in an accident with a commercial vehicle like a semi-truck, the victim needs an attorney who will quickly and thoroughly investigate the situation to determine who is at fault. For a commercial vehicle, the party ultimately responsible for the harm the crash caused could be the driver, his or her employer, the manufacturer of the vehicle, or even the business who designed the vehicle or a defective part. If you were injured in a collision with a truck, it is in your best interests to contact an attorney immediately for help.
Accidents by County Last Year
Some regions are safer than others when it comes to commercial vehicle accidents. This could be because some counties have major highways running through them and others see less commercial traffic.
AAA Study Finds Aggressive Driving a Growing Problem
It seems like nothing can make someone angrier than traffic. Whether you have to sit in a bumper-to-bumper line of cars or people are zooming past each other on the highway, there is always something to upset you. If you have not experienced another driver’s act of road rage, surely someone you know has. In addition to our personal experiences, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found 80 percent of drivers expressed significant anger, aggression, or road rage while driving in the past year. Now this can mean a lot of things, from yelling or honking to much worse – tailgating, cutting people off, or getting out of your car to start a confrontation. It is obvious how these behaviors can lead to accidents on the road.
Aggressive Driving Increasing in the U.S.
The AAA found aggressive driving is a significant problem on our roads and it is growing. According to the foundation’s survey, two out of three drivers believe aggressive driving is a larger problem today than it was three years ago. Ninety percent of survey respondents also believe aggressive driving is a serious threat to their personal safety – and they are right. Aggressive maneuvers can cause accidents and confrontations can lead to physical assaults.
Safety Tips for Motorcycles and Vehicles Sharing the Road This Summer
Texas weather allows people to take their bikes out for a significant portion of the year, but the summer months are popular for riders across the U.S. Unfortunately, motorcycle accidents commonly make the news despite the fact that they can almost all be avoided. Since motorcycles, passenger vehicles, and semi-trucks have to share the roads, every driver is responsible for avoiding these types of accidents. If you were hurt while riding your motorcycle and you believe another driver is at fault, call an attorney as soon as possible to learn more about your rights.
Whether you are a motorcycle rider, average driver, or a trucker, consider motorcycle safety this summer.
Tips for Motorcyclists
There are certain dos and don’ts of riding a motorcycle, including:
- Buy a bike that fits you: Motorcycles come in various sizes. Make sure your feet can rest on the ground while you are seated on the bike and you can easily reach the handlebars. Bigger is not always better. If your motorcycle is not the right size for you, it will be difficult to control;
Texas Consistently Ranks High for Pedestrian Fatalities
Texas is one of the most states for pedestrians in the United States. The Insurance Council of Texas has gathered data from the Texas Department of Transportation since 2010. It reported at the end of last year that pedestrian fatalities in the state increased 36 percent between 2010 and 2015. In 2010, 357 pedestrians died in traffic accidents. This figure peaked in 2013 with 493 deaths and fell slightly to 485 fatalities in 2015. Many of these fatalities lead to wrongful death claims in which the decedent’s survivors must fight for a fair recovery.
Population and Poor Planning Increase Pedestrian Risk
The 2014 data by the Governors Highway Safety Association shows Texas is one of the four leading states for pedestrian deaths. California, New York, Florida, and Texas account for 43 percent of all pedestrian fatalities in the country. The danger facing pedestrians around Texas is disproportionately high compared to that in most other states.
Fatal Truck Wreck Highlights Negligent Retention of Poor Drivers
Early last month, a truck collided with a bridge in Sealy, Texas, causing debris to fall on another car, killing a 12-year-old girl and injuring her mother. Authorities believe the arm of the waste carrying truck that would lift trash dumpsters was raised. This was what hit the bridge, tearing off part of the concrete, which landed on the front of the car.
“The force that the beam was hit was catastrophic,” Sealy Police Chief Chris Noble stated, according to KTRK Houston. “Walking around on the upper level of bridge, the asphalt and next section of beam has been also moved and that bridge is what I call rotten from the inside out now.”
The police are investigating the trucking accident as a homicide. The bridge has been closed and all traffic for the U.S. 90 overpass and Texas 36 have been rerouted.
More Details on the Accident
The truck that caused the deadly accident was owned by Texas Disposal Systems (TDS) and was being driven time by a 72-year-old man. The driver did not heed the warning system that alerted trucks of the clearance height of the bridge. According to a video of the accident from a motorist behind the truck, the TDS driver hit the warning sign and continued driving.
Federal and State Truck Driving Regulations
Every state in the country maintains specific regulations regarding truck drivers. Indeed, each state is responsible for overseeing compliance with the federal rules regulating this industry – issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) – including both trucking companies and truck drivers alike. The FMCSA oversees several aspects of commercial truck and truck driving safety, including driver qualifications, safety records, and hazardous material warnings for large vehicles requiring specialized licenses for operations, among others. These rules are complex, but their goal is to ensure the safe operation of trucks to avoid fatal and catastrophic accidents.
FMCSA Regulations
The FMCSA’s regulations for commercial trucks covers all types of these large vehicles, including tractor-trailers, tanker trucks, and other commercial vehicles. The FMCSA’s regulations address topics such as:
Top Violations of FMCSA Driver Rules
Although, statistically, commercial truck drivers are more careful than average drivers of passenger vehicles, a truck accident is generally more serious than one that does not involve these large, heavy vehicles. Indeed, the requirements for a commercial driver to get behind the wheel are more stringent than for a regular driver’s license. The commercial driver’s license (CDL) test itself is more complex, a driver must pass a physical exam with specific requirements, a driver must be at least 21 years old, and the person must speak and understand conversational English. Notwithstanding, the cargo being carried by a semi-truck involved in the wreck (which can include flammable or hazardous materials) enhances the danger.
When large tractor-trailers weighing 10,000 lbs. or greater crashes into a pedestrian or another vehicle, a trucking accident has occurred. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) reports that approximately 500,000 trucking accidents occur annually. About one percent, or 5,000, of these semi-truck wrecks are fatal; one out of eight traffic deaths was the result of a truck accident.
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