The smart blog 0715

NHTSA Traffic Crash Statistics on Speeding and Drunk Driving National crash data shows how many people are killed on American roads each year and which driver behaviors are involved. Every figure below comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and each one is tied to its data year. A car accident attorney might use numbers like these for context, but statistics describe patterns across many crashes, not what happened in a single one. Total tr

Police Reports, Dashcam Video and Car Crash Evidence The evidence in a car crash claim starts to scatter within hours. Vehicles get towed and repaired, video gets recorded over and witnesses become harder to find. A car accident attorney typically starts with the police report, photos, video and the data stored in the vehicles. This article explains how each source fits into a claim. The police report Officers who respond to a crash usually prepare a crash report, som

How Uninsured Motorist Coverage, PIP and MedPay Work After a Car Crash After a car crash, more than one insurance policy may apply. The at-fault driver's liability coverage is usually the first source people think of, but personal injury protection (PIP), MedPay and uninsured motorist (UM) coverage can matter just as much. A car accident lawyer usually requests the declarations page for every policy that might apply, since coverage often decides how much of a loss can be pa

Tractor-Trailer Crash Claim Timeline: From the Crash to Settlement Truck accident claims move through stages that may take months or even years. Some periods apply to the trucking company, such as how long it must keep certain records, while others apply to the injured person, such as the statute of limitations. A truck accident attorney can explain where a given claim sits in this sequence, though no two claims follow the same path. The first days Medical care comes

Truck Accident Statistics From FMCSA and NHTSA Data Federal crash data gives a national picture of how often large trucks are involved in serious crashes. The figures below come from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and each is labeled with its year. A truck accident lawyer might use figures like these for context, but statistics describe patterns across many crashes, not what happened in

Who Can Be Held Responsible for an 18-Wheeler Crash? A crash involving a tractor-trailer often has more than one responsible party. The driver, the trucking company, the owner of the trailer, the company that loaded the cargo and the manufacturer of a defective part can each play a role. Working out who is legally responsible is an early task for a truck accident attorney, because each responsible party may have separate insurance. Claims against the driver The starti

What a Truck Accident Attorney Checks in a Driver's Logs After a tractor-trailer crash on a long-haul route, an early question is whether the driver had stayed inside the federal hours-of-service limits. Fatigue leaves little physical trace at a crash scene, so the answer usually comes from records rather than the roadway. A tractor-trailer crash lawyer reviewing one of these cases will usually compare the driver's logs with every other record of the trip. What the feder