It is a crisis situation for many families. Someone in their family has been in a car accident. They might be injured or even dying. There’s a rush to find out what is going on. They are struggling to keep it together. They want details. Finally, they are able to get someone on the phone. And they find out what has happened.
Over 3 million people die in car accidents around the world every year. Over a hundred thousand people die in car accidents in the United States every year. And while there are many reasons and situations in which someone dies in a car accident, there are three major causes, and they all could be preventable.
The three leading causes for car accident deaths in the United States are drunk driving, distracted driving, and aggressive driving. In each case, someone was negligent. This means they are responsible for the damage done to the other vehicle and to the person, if that person has been injured or killed.
Drunk driving causes over 30,000 deaths per year according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The statistics surrounding drunk driving are numerous and they can be shocking if someone is not involved in the bar or club scene in the world. The statistics are fairly straightforward.
One statistic states that over 80,000 people drive drunk every day but only 4,000 are arrested. Furthermore, the average drunk driver has driven drunk 80 times before his or her first arrest. And of course that Mothers Against Drunk Driving statistic: 30,000 or more die from drunk driving related accidents every year.
Drunk driving is a straightforward situation in which someone else is at fault. The driver, who drove under the influence, is subject to arrest and jail time. They are also responsible for any damage caused to the car and the person.
Distracted driving is the second leading cause of car accident deaths in the United States. Everyone associates the distracted driver with someone who is trying to send a text while driving along the way, or someone who takes their hands off the wheel. There are some statistics surrounding distracted driving but one takes special significance:
Every day light moment in the United States, hundreds of thousands of people are manipulating electric devices while driving.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, distracted driving falls into three categories. The first, visually distracted driving, occurs when someone takes their eyes from the road. The second, manually distracted driving, occurs when someone takes their hands off the wheel. The third, generally distracted, is for anything else.
Distracted driving takes the lives of tens of thousands each year. It began with the rise of cell phone and electronic device usage, as more and more people, especially teenagers, began to drive while taking their attention from the road. They tried to send text messages and use the phone while driving.
The third leading cause of car accident deaths is aggressive driving. Aggressive driving can be seen rather than explaining why it happens. An aggressive driver is likely to drive at a high speed, weaving in and out of lanes, tailgating, and generally causing danger with his or her behavior on the road.
Those three causes of car accident deaths lead to hundreds of thousands of deaths each year, and they all could have been prevented. Because of this, a family of a loved one who has died in a car accident or a person who has been injured can file a lawsuit to recoup damages from the person who caused the car accident.
Some statistics are included in the following section.
- The annual cost of civil lawsuits to the U.S. economy is $239 billion. (Association of Trial Lawyers of America, 2015)
- At any given daylight moment across America, approximately 660,000 drivers are using cell phones or manipulating electronic devices while driving.
- In 2013, 9.9 million people reported driving under the influence of illicit drugs in the past year.
Law firms are capable of taking on cases where a person has been injured in a car accident or there is wrongful death situation. Law firms can be staffed with good lawyers or lawyers that are less competent. The quality of law firms depends on the lawyers in there. Law firms can advocate for someone in the courtroom.
