Passing Fatality

In Tennessee passing another vehicle is a normal part of driving, but it can be very dangerous. Collisions resulting from improper passing are often fatal, since the impact is greater in this type of crash. Before you attempt a pass, be sure you have enough room to complete the maneuver. If you have to cut back to your lane too soon, you risk sideswiping the vehicle you are passing. If you do not cut back to your lane soon enough, you risk a head-on collision.

It is equally important to know when NOT to pass, as well as when to pass. The decision of whether or not to pass is influenced by the knowledge, judgment, attitude and behavior of the driver. BE PATIENT. Study and learn the following passing rules well and practice them each time you pass another vehicle.

Had a 54-year-old Maynardsville Tennessee woman followed that advice she would be alive today. According to police and local media reports the woman was killed when she hit an oncoming car head-on as she tried to pass other vehicles in front of her. Two people in the other vehicle were injured, the extent of those injuries are unknown at the time I write this Blog. My prayers go out to the victim and her friends and family and for the innocent injured parties my prayers go out for a speedy and complete recovery.

If you or a loved one is seriously injured or killed in a Tennessee auto accident caused by a negligent driver, contact the experienced Nashville auto accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I can tell you that the four-car rear-end collision on the Opryland Exit of Briley Parkway could have been tragic, but luckily no one was seriously injured, according to Nashville Police and local media reports.

It appears that a driver exiting Briley Parkway was not paying attention or was somehow distracted and took his eyes off of the road for long enough that he failed to observe that the traffic had stopped in front of him.

Rear-end collisions came become serious and many times the full extent of a “whiplash” injury are not known for a period of time after the collision. Just because the injuries don’t manifest themselves immediately these injury, if not properly treated can become a life long problem.

What did we learn from this accident? First of all we learned that when you are driving a motor vehicle you must remain vigilant and avoid any distractions such as cell phones, eating, talking to passengers and children. Secondly, we learned that whiplash injuries may not always manifest themselves at the time of the accident but that they can be serious if not properly treated.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident caused by a distracted driver you owe it to your family to contact the experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Two Teens Killed

It was a bad holiday weekend in Middle Tennessee for teenagers. Two Lawrence County teens, a 17-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy, were killed and three persons were injured in a single car accident on the Fall River Road on Friday night. Three others were injured and transported to local hospitals.

The 22-year-old driver lost control of the vehicle in a curve and left the road, hit a mailbox and then a fence before coming to a stop. There is no indication from local media sources whether any of the people involved were, or were no wearing their seatbelts.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney the facts indicate to me that either driver distraction or speed, or both, were contributing factors in this tragic accident. The lesson here is that a driver, no matter what is going on in their vehicle, must keep his/her eyes on the road and observed all traffic rules.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a negligent driver contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights.

Teen Girl Killed

A teenage girl was killed and two other people were injured Saturday night in a two-vehicle wreck on U.S. Highway 231 South just outside Murfreesboro. The 17-year-old suffered fatal injuries when the car she was riding in crashed into a tractor-trailer. The compact car in which she was a passenger made a left hand turn into the path of an oncoming tractor-trailer

She was wearing her seatbelt but the driver wasn’t and he was transported to Vanderbilt Hospital, his condition is unknown at this time. Police have ruled out drinking and drugs as a contributing factor. It appears that the driver was distracted and not paying attention to the road ahead. My prayers go out to the family and friends of both of these two young people.

Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event.  Primary causes of driver inattention are distracting activities, such as cell phone use, and drowsiness.

If you are the victim of a Nashville or Tennessee automobile accident we urge you to contact our car accident attorneys today for a free consultation. When you hire an auto accident attorney from Phillip Miller & Associates, you’re getting a qualified and dedicated lawyer. Details about our attorneys and staff can be found by viewing our website at www.seriousinjury.com where you can get to know the men and women who will be looking out for your best interest.

As the holidays approach I am reminded of the dark side of the holiday buying season and that is the craziness that surrounds what has come to be known as “Black Friday”. I’d like to take this opportunity to remind my readers to pay particular attention to the rules of the road and to practice safe driving, especially in and around the parking lots of shopping centers.

There seems to be a frantic nature about this day, we see people getting trampled as stores open before dawn, normally peaceful people get into fist fights over merchandise and parking spots. On the road this day is know by the Tennessee Highway Patrol for the higher number of calls regarding aggressive driving.

On a day like this it is hard for drivers to focus their attention on the task at hand. So little time, so many multi-taskers. If you’re driving your vehicle, you are already multitasking. At a minimum you are: operating a piece of heavy machinery at high speed; navigating across changing terrain; calculating speeds and distances; and responding to all the other drivers and obstacles around you. Putting one more activity in the mix, even talking to your passengers or changing a radio station can be enough to make you lose control of your vehicle or fail to respond in an emergency.

Many road and parking lot rage incidents have resulted from drivers overreacting and allowing their egos to stand in the way of common sense and good judgment rather than safely reporting aggressive driver incidents. A simple display of common courtesy will often be appreciated and may even become contagious. Try it!

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Black Friday road incident contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Man Gets 15 Years

Last year I wrote about a fatal bicycle/car accident that took the life of a man training for a Triathlon. The driver of the car fled the scene. This past week the fleeing driver pled guilty to first-degree manslaughter, driving drunk and was sentenced to 15 years in the state penitentiary. He will be eligible for parole after serving 11 years.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyer I have railed in this Blog about Hit & Run drivers. Hit & Run drivers are, in my consideration, the worst kind of human being. Most H&R drivers are under the influence of alcohol, others have already run afoul of the law and have lost their driving privileges, yet they continue to get behind the wheel and ignore the rules.

Many H&R drivers are trying to avoid detection because they don’t have insurance and they don’t want to face the responsibility for their actions. No matter which category they fall into they are the very worst type of person, someone who will leave an injured or dying fellow human being lying in the street.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident contact the experienced Nashville auto accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Failure To yield

The tragic scenario began with a Lexus driver, age unknown, who was doing donuts in the parking lot of a Kmart store in Chattanooga. After acting like a fool, the Lexus driver, without yielding to oncoming traffic raced out of the parking lot onto Signal Mountain Rd. and broad-sided a Nissan Sentra.

A witness told Police that upon impact, she observed a body flying out of the Nissan and on to the pavement. The Lexus plunged left the road and plunged down a 25-foot embankment. Local media did not have the names of those involved in the wreck nor were the extent of the injuries available at the time.

The police will obviously focus their attention on the Lexus driver as the cause of this accident. That driver was acting foolish and failed to yield before s/he pulled into oncoming traffic. The driver or passenger of the Nissan who was ejected from the vehicle was obviously not wearing a safety belt. What a mess. My prayers go out to the injured and I wish them a complete and speedy recovery from their injuries.

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney I find it hard to believe that people still get into an automobile and fail to secure their safety seat belts. I mean this isn’t rocket science and it’s not like they don’t know that it’s a deadly mistake.

In 2009, 388 people in passenger vehicles died in motor vehicle crashes in Tennessee between the nighttime hours of 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m.  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly two-thirds (64%) of those killed in traffic crashes at night nationwide were not wearing their seat belts, compared to less than half (45%) of the passenger vehicle occupants killed during the daytime hours of 6 a.m. to 5:59 p.m.

According to NHTSA, when worn correctly, seat belts have been proven to reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passenger car occupants by 45 percent, and by 60 percent in pickup trucks, SUVs and minivans.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee motor vehicle accident contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and learn about your rights and remedies.

Speeding Teen Driver

A carload of teenagers, on holiday, out way past curfew, traveling at a high rate of speed and you have the makings of a tragic ending. The driver lost control of the vehicle, left the road and slammed head-on into a tree in a residential neighborhood.

A 17-year-old passenger died at the scene and an 18-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy were transported to Vanderbilt medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. The 16-year-old driver fled the scene leaving his friends to fend for themselves. Fleeing the scene insured that would probably be a series of traffic citations will now become criminal charges. Smart move by the teen driver.

I’ve discussed here many times the sad fact that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens, accounting for more than one in three deaths in this age group. Among experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorneys, the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), it is generally agreed that teen drivers have the highest crash risk of any age group.

Per mile, the crash rate for 16 year-old drivers is 10 times the rate for drivers between 30 and 59. The basic reasons behind this statistic are obvious, teen drivers have no experience with the myriad issues faced by drivers with experience, furthermore, they are immature and often takes risks, most often speeding, and are easily distracted which contribute to the increased death rate.

The basic reasons behind this statistic are obvious, teen drivers have no experience with the myriad issues faced by drivers with experience, furthermore, they are immature and often takes risks, most often speeding, and are easily distracted which contribute to the increased death rate. The main question here is, why were these underage teenagers out driving around at 3:30 am?

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by a teen driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Teach Your Children Well

I’ve written often about a parent’s responsibility to teach their teens about highway safety. A recent article on the web site of WBIR TV in Knoxville highlighted and interesting concept that is taking wings across the country.

The process is called ‘Commentary Driving”. You should start this process when the child first starts showing an interest in driving, about the age of 13 or 14. Here’s how it works: As you drive with you teen in the car you actually do a play-by-play like you would hear from a football game on the TV.

Comment on what you see as a driver. Look for things you see as the driver that might make you change direction or speed. Turn off the radio and cell phone off so that you have no distractions.

The article points out that a driver has to deal with 200 events per mile of city driving and from those events has to make 100 decisions during that same distance. It is suggested that you keep up this dialogue for five minutes or so and then let the child comment on what he/she sees.

Once the child is old enough for driving lessons have them comment from behind the wheel. So, what do we learn by using this process? We learn that driving a car on a public street is a serious and dangerous business and that the person behind the wheel cannot take chances or become distracted.

If you or a loved one is seriously injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident caused by a negligent driver, contact the experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Holiday Highway Safety

This form the Tennessee Department of Safety and Transportation for the holiday season:

With millions of Americans hitting the roads this holiday season, the Tennessee Highway Patrol will be kicking up its Thanksgiving Day enforcement from 6 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 24 through midnight Sunday, Nov. 28. State Troopers, who will also be conducting a 12-hour “C.A.R.E. Across Tennessee” campaign from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Nov. 24, have a message for motorists traveling through the state – “Let your little light shine.”

To participate in the C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Enforcement) safe driving campaign, drivers are encouraged to travel with their headlights on to indicate their commitment for safe driving, seat belt usage, and traffic law compliance. In addition, State Troopers will be assigned to every 10-mile stretch of road on both the eastbound and westbound lanes of travel on Interstate 40.

“In addition to the Thanksgiving Day Holiday Weekend enforcement, our State Troopers are covering a large portion of the interstate to ensure motorists are obeying the law and wearing seat belts, especially,” said Department of Safety Commissioner Dave Mitchell.

“We want to increase our visibility and remind everyone to start the holidays off on the right foot and buckle up on every trip.”

Although safety belt usage climbed to 87 percent in 2010, more than 56 percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed in Tennessee traffic crashes were not wearing a safety belt in 2009.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), on any given day about 38 passenger vehicle occupants who are not buckled up are killed in motor vehicle crashes. Research shows that it is almost nine times safer to wear your safety belt every time you get in the car.

“Our C.A.R.E. campaign and holiday enforcement is a chance for motorists to stand in solidarity with us by turning on their headlights to send a strong message that if you are not wearing a seatbelt, or driving aggressively or drunk, and displaying a total disregard for the law and human life, will not be tolerated,” said THP Colonel Tracy Trott.

“We want everyone traveling through Tennessee and beyond to get to their destination safely.”

Ten people were killed in eight fatal crashes on Tennessee roads during the 2009 Thanksgiving Holiday, 102-hour period. That is the same number as 2008 and fewer than the 13 people who died in 2007.

Five of the seven vehicle occupants who were killed during the 2009 Thanksgiving Holiday weekend were not wearing safety restraints.

NHTSA statistics show that those least likely to buckle up are teens; young adults; males; nighttime riders; motorists traveling on rural roads; and individuals traveling in pickup trucks. In 2009 alone, over 11,500 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants lost their lives on U.S. roadways.

“The ultimate goal is to boost seat belt usage and save lives,” added Colonel Trott. “Don’t let this joyful holiday turn into a tragedy by failing to buckle up – Click it or Ticket.”

Regular seat belt use is the single most effective way to protect people and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes, according to NHTSA.

Research has shown that when lap and shoulder belts are used properly, the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passenger car occupants is reduced by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate to serious injury is reduced by 50 percent.

As of Nov. 18, preliminary statistics indicate that 934 people have died on Tennessee roadways in 2010, an increase of 61 deaths compared to 873 fatalities at this same time a year ago.

Statewide, fatalities are up this year after a year in 2009 when fatalities fell to their lowest level since 1963. Many of the deaths could have easily been prevented by simply buckling a seatbelt.

“All it takes is a couple of seconds to buckle your seatbelt,” said Kendell Poole, Director of the Governor’s Highway Safety Office.

“If people would take this one simple and easy step before they get in a vehicle, Tennessee fatalities could be reduced significantly.”

The Tennessee Department of Safety’s mission is ( www.TN.Gov/safety ) to ensure the safety and general welfare of the public.