The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles recently released preliminary data indicating that 4,841 of the traffic crashes that occurred in 2012 involved a driver using an electronic communication device. Using such a device significantly increases the chances of a car accident occurring and lawmakers in Florida have tried several times to get a law passed that would ban texting and driving. Unfortunately, past efforts have been unsuccessful. 

Our West Palm Beach Car Accident attorneys  know that Florida is one of a minority of states that doesn’t have a statewide ban on texting and driving, as more than 39 other states within the U.S. have some type of ban in place. Hopefully, however, this will be changing soon. This April, which also happens to be Distracted Driving Month, the bill is moving forward.

Update on Florida’s Distracted Driving Law

A bill on texting and driving is moving through both the Florida House and the Florida Senate. Local 10 recently reported that the House Economics Committee cleared the distracted driving bill- HB 13- by a 16-1 vote.  At the same time, the companion bill in the Senate- SB 52- is also moving along.

Having cleared the House Economics Committee, HB 13 is now moving to the floor for debate and for a vote. SB 52 is also going to move towards the full senate for a vote.

The bills would make texting and driving a secondary offense, which means that a driver who is texting cannot get pulled over unless he is also breaking some other primary offense law such as speeding or running a red light. If a texting driver is stopped and ticketed, the driver would be fined $30.00. If a driver offended again and was caught two or more times within a five year period, the texting driver would be fined $60 and would get three points on his or her driver’s license. Finally, if a driver was texting and was involved in a car accident, the driver would get six points on his or her license.

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Snowmobile Accidents Cause Injury, Death, Lawsuits

Maybe it’s because snowmobiles are also known as recreational vehicles. Whatever the reason, many snowmobile operators do not take their responsibilities seriously whenever they mount their sleds to take a ride, leading too often to serious injuries, fatalities and accident lawsuits in Maine courts over their reckless behavior.

Experienced accident lawyers say they see many parallels between snowmobile accidents along the state’s 13,000 miles of signed trails and highway crashes involving automobiles, trucks, motorcycles and other vehicles.

Amongst the most common factors throughout all motor vehicle accident lawsuits is a driver’s unreasonable rate of speed. Just like some motorcyclists, many Maine snowmobile drivers feel they have to feed their “need for speed” See : accident lawyer – the sensation of the wind whipping over their bodies. However, the circumstances of riding a snowmobile – speeding along a slippery surface of snow or ice with limited braking ability – make it necessary to use extreme caution. The failure to use common sense and exercise defensive driving skills can change even a routine ride on the trails into a high-speed trip to a court date with a Maine snowmobile accident attorney.

Similarly, Maine snowmobile accident lawsuits often follow crashes involving a drunk driver whose thoughtless behavior is responsible for life-changing injuries or fatalities. The blood-alcohol limit for a snowmobile driver, like other motorists, is .08. Within the carefree playing field of snowmobiling, a great deal of people are in clubs that organize group trips with rest stops at local bars. A cocktail or two at each and every stop impairs judgment and slows the response time of even experienced snowmobile operators. Riding in a team with riders who drink also poses dangers, including raising the risk of crashing with another impaired driver and raising the possibility of injuries while getting caught up in mimicking their high-speed, careless behavior.

Another danger cited by Maine accident lawyers is the fact that consuming alcohol accelerates a drop in the body’s temperature. Along with the frigid outdoor environment, the operator runs the risk of hypothermia, which also impairs a driver’s judgment.

Poor judgment extends beyond driving behavior, Maine snowmobile accident attorneys note. Every winter, lives are lost and snowmobile accident lawsuits are filed when operators foolishly disregard the perils of traveling across ice. The thickness and strength of ice can vary widely on rivers, streams, lakes and ponds. Snow often creates a blanket that hinders the formation of thick, strong ice. Even a well-worn trail across water can give the false impression of safety if previous travelers have weakened the ice.

A Maine snowmobile accident lawyer knows that responsible operators can have the ability to protect themselves, their passengers and innocent bystanders by following a few simple rules. Safety equipment, including a helmet with a visor or a set of protective goggles, as well as layers of water-repellent clothing, is an essential. Carry a first-aid kid including a flashlight, knife, compass, map and waterproof matches.

And don’t, Maine attorneys say, travel alone. Little is more dangerous to the life and well being of a snowmobiler than being injured without fellow riders around to provide or seek help.

When someone injured or lost a loved one resulting from a snowmobile driver who ignores common sense when operating a 500-pound machine, they will need to seek out a Maine snowmobile accident lawyer who has experience in protecting their rights and pursuing fair financial compensation.

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Drastic changes are taking place in the oil industry workforce, with a major shift in the average age and expertise of oil industry employees. This mass changing of the guard is due to many longtime employees retiring and leaving the brunt of responsibilities in the hands of younger, less experienced workers. Though the idea of new jobs opening up for oil rig workers is a positive one overall, it also means a reduction in collective expertise, particularly in maritime safety practices, and could increase the likelihood of more offshore injuries occurring, including deaths at sea.

Harrisburg Pa best injury lawyer in Harrisburg Pa Contact the
Metzger Wickersham Law Firm – Personal Injury Attorneys Who Mean Business

Contact us now for a free initial consult with one of our experienced personal injury lawyers. With more than 120 years of experience, we represent clients throughout Pennsylvania. We have
offices in Harrisburg, Shippensburg, Lancaster, York, and Wilkes-Barre. You can rely on our dedicated and focused lawyers. Our lawyers work relentlessly to secure the compensation that you need –
and deserve.

Vice president of accreditation and certification at the International Association of Drilling Contractors, Mark Denkowski, told NPR that in-depth safety training programs are now mandatory and a distinct contrast from his own experience in the oil industry. “No longer would you have a person that’s just hired and literally put on a boat or on a helicopter and flown out to a rig with little or no orientation or training,” he said. “Companies are going to be required to prove that that individual has been through that orientation.”

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Injured in a crossing the street? Please call for a free consultation: 1-800-WIN-WIN-1 To learn more about pedestrian car accidents:

Car Accident Lawyers Chicago

Video Transcript:
If you who have been a pedestrian and you have been hit by a car, you understand that the injuries can be devastating. Typically if a pedestrian is involved in a vehicle accident they don’t walk away from the scene. If you or a loved one has been hit by a car call the Mike Slocumb Law Firm we’ll give you a free consultation and we’ll explain your rights as a pedestrian.

We had a case just this past year that we handled with a pedestrian who was walking in the roadway. He was hit by an SUV and the insurance company predictably said “well, your client was walking in the road so he can’t recover because he was at fault for the accident.” We disagreed, we filed a lawsuit against the driver, we took the case to a jury and we won the case.

Why did we win the case? We won the case because we proved that the driver that hit our client had over twenty seconds after she first saw him to apply the breaks and she never applied the breaks. So even though he was in the road, she had the last opportunity to avoid the accident and she took no evasive action. The Jury agreed with us, we won the case and our client received the compensation he needed for the injuries that devastated his life.

In a pedestrian case just because you may not have had the walk signal, just because you may have been in the roadway, doesn’t mean that a recovery cannot be made. If a driver of an automobile has the last chance to avoid a collision with you, they must avoid the collision and if they don’t avoid the collision, they are responsible for your injuries. Regardless of what you were doing.

Mike Slocumb
http://www.youtube.com/user/MikeSlocumbLawFirm

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