Any driver who forgets how dangerous it is to operate a motor vehicle is making a very big mistake. At our law office, we are reminded on a daily basis what happens when drivers are negligent, distracted and fail to follow the rules of the road. The average driver, on the other hand, rarely encounters the injurious and deadly effects of a catastrophic car accident, and this can create complacency and a lack of attention to safe driving habits.
For this reason, we’d like to familiarize our readers with two common car accident scenarios. Hopefully, an awareness of these scenarios will help our readers stay cautious and defensive while navigating Rolla traffic:
The left-hand-turn collision
Left-hand turns in which a car has to cross oncoming traffic to go in another direction create the opportunity for devastating crashes. When you consider that these scenarios happen at intersections while cars are traveling at full-speed through them, you can understand the potential for devastating injuries and death. Drivers making left turns need to look and listen — then look and listen again. Left-turning drivers especially need to keep an eye out for pedestrians, skateboarders and motorcyclists who are more difficult to see than regular motorists. Additionally, drivers approaching intersections should keep their eyes scanning ahead for any left-turning motorists who might not see them.
The cellphone distracted collision
Many blame the current rise in motor vehicle accident deaths on the rise in popularity of smartphones. It’s surprising how many drivers use these distracting devices while navigating traffic in spite of the numerous studies that prove texting-while-driving to be more dangerous than drunk driving. The best course of action is to turn off your digital devices and put them out of reach while driving.
Are you ready to ramp up your safe driving practices? If — in spite of your best efforts to be a safe and defensive motorist — you get seriously hurt in a crash that wasn’t your fault, you might want to hold the at-fault party financially accountable for your damages in Missouri civil court.
