Elderly Drivers

An East Tennessee media source reported on a bizarre car crash between a car, a hornet’s nest and a house, luckily no one was seriously injured. It appears that an 84-year-old Knoxville woman lost control of her car and on the way to hitting a house, ran over a tree stump and a nest of very angry yellow jackets before slamming into the basement of a home.

Neither the woman nor the people in the house were seriously injured. Word on what caused the elderly driver to lose control was unavailable at the time of this blog.

As an experienced Nashville personal injury lawyer I have to raise the question, “At what age is a person too old to drive safely?”

It’s a sensitive issue, because like everyone else, older adults depend on driving to maintain their independence and keep doing all the things they need and want to do. Most seniors are safe drivers. Their safety belt usage is high, and they have low rates of violations for speeding, reckless driving, and alcohol-related incidents.

However, as they age, their risk of being involved in an accident increases with each year of age. There are reasons why driving presents particular challenges to older people, including:

• Changes in vision, cognition, and physical function

• Medical conditions

• The use of medications.

Many seniors voluntarily limit their driving under certain circumstances, particularly when they realize their vision has changed and they don’t see as well at night or in bad weather. Others, however, may be reluctant to stop driving because the thought of losing their independence is too threatening, and they may fear becoming isolated, lonely, and dependent on family or friends.

In addition, any changes in vision or physical function may have happened slowly over time so they don’t realize they’re no longer as safe behind the wheel. The task of bringing up this delicate issue may then fall to a family member, friend, or caregiver.

It’s estimated that by 2020, 54 million Americans will be over age 65, and many of them will still be driving. The question of whether they should limit their driving or stop altogether is one that more and more seniors and their families will face. Conversations about this important safety issue are not easy. Your parent or relative may resent discussing the topic or resist admitting to any problems with driving. The question needs to be handled with tact and diplomacy.

To find out more about this and other Tennessee highway safety issues contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and learn what you need to help in dealing with the issue.

Elderly Drivers

Last Saturday in Franklin, Tennessee an 87-year-old man from Jackson, Tennessee was exiting Interstate-65 onto highway 31W when he failed to stop at the light and slammed into another car that had the right of way.

The man died on the way to the hospital and his 87-year-old wife is in critical condition at Vanderbilt Medical Center. The other driver was not injured. My prayers go out the family and friends of these two people.

Getting older does not necessarily mean a person’s driving days are over. But it is important to plan ahead and take steps to ensure the safety of your loved ones on the road. NHTSA offers free materials to help you learn more about how to recognize and discuss changes in your older loved one’s driving.

Talking with an older person about their driving is often difficult. Most of us delay that talk until the person’s driving has become what we believe to be dangerous. At that point, conversations can be tense and awkward for everyone involved. But there are things you can say and do to make those conversations more productive and less tense.

For most of us, driving represents freedom, control, and competence. Driving lets us go to the places we want or need to go. For many of us – even as we get older – driving is important economically. We drive to get to and from work, and sometimes as part of our jobs. Driving is important socially; it lets us stay connected to our communities and favorite activities.

Driving or riding in a car is how most older adults get around. Most people 65 and older change how they drive as they age, choosing to drive only during daylight hours, for example, or limiting where they drive, or cutting back on how often they drive.

In 2008, older people accounted for 15 percent of all traffic fatalities and 18 percent of all pedestrian fatalities. Most traffic fatalities involving older drivers in occurred during the daytime (80%), occurred on weekdays (72%), and involved other vehicles (69%).

If you or a loved one is seriously injured in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by an older driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Elderly Drivers

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney my experience tells me that when an elderly person is involved in a roadway departure crash there is a high probability that the accident was caused by a medical emergency.

Reference a crash this week in Dover Tennessee in which a said 78-year-old worker for the Federal Emergency Management Agency was injured in a car crash in Stewart County. Investigators say the man, without notice, crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic. Upon collision, the man hit a telephone pole and flipped over. At this time I don’t know his condition but my prayers go out for a speedy and complete recovery.

According to a recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, older drivers face substantially elevated risk of being involved in and responsible for crashes in which they themselves die, and they pose more risk to other road users than the lowest-risk drivers do; however, the degree to which older drivers’ risk to other road users is elevated depends upon whether risk is being measured on a per-driver, per-trip, or per-mile basis.

If you or a loved one is seriously injured in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by an older driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Photo thanks to http://www.dreamstime.com/

It’s the same old story being played out on highways across Tennessee. A driver, not wearing a seatbelt, crosses the center line of a highway, hits andother oncoming car , or two, and is killed. This story played this past Sunday night when a 70-year-old man in a Toyota pickup truck, crossed the line, side swiped a Dodge Q15 and then slammed head on into Chevrolet 4SK.

The man was not wearing his seat belt and was killed. The three people in the two other vehicles were slightly injured, although one man was hospitalized and his condition is unknown. My prayers go out to the family and friends of the deceased man, and my wishes for a quick and complete recovery to the others.

Crossed The Center Line

The usual cause of a crash like this one is driver distraction, something taking the drivers attention off of the road, something like a cell phone, or talking to a passenger and not paying attention. When a driver is in his 70s, another consideration is that he might have suffered a medical or a medication emergency.

Police investigators will look into each of these theories. If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a serious Tennessee automobile accident caused by a negligent driver, contact the experienced Tennessee auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and find out about your rights and remedies.

Intersections and Motorcycles

As an experienced Nashville automobile/motorcycle accident lawyer, I have never seen a good outcome for the motorcyclist in a collision with a car or truck. A 57-year-old Knoxville motorcyclist was involved in an intersection crash with a Nissan Maxima driven by an 80-year-old Knoxville woman.

It appears, from local media reports, that the two met at an intersection and the Maxima turned left in front of the motorcycle. The local media source said that the motorcyclist is hospitalized with life threatening injuries. The motorcyclist did not have a motorcycle driver license as required by law. Our prayers here at Phillip Miller & Associates, go out to this man for a quick and complete recovery.

More crashes happen at intersections than at any other place. Intersections constitute a very small part of rural and urban street/highway systems, yet they are implicated in 31.9 percent of all motor vehicle crashes and 15.5 percent of all fatal crashes (2004 NHTSA data). Be very careful when approaching any intersection or driveway. Never assume another driver will yield the right-of-way to you.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee intersection auto accident caused by a negligent driver contact the experienced Nashville motorcycle accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation.

Don't Even Think About It

As an experienced Tennessee automobile accident attorney, there is a list of at least one hundred things that you should never do while behind the wheel of a motor vehicle. I won’t recount them all for you here today in this Blog, but at the top of the list is the warning to never try to cross a flooded road.

There are so many things that can go wrong, your car could stall, the water pressure could wash your car off of the road, I think you get the picture. Unfortunately, a 90-year-old Kentucky man has learned this lesson the hard way. He tried to crossed the flooded road and he was unable to see the road. He drove off of the road and into a 12 foot deep flooded ditch.

Attempts to rescue him by civilians and emergency personnel went for naught due to the cold water and current. Four emergency responders had to be treated for hypothermia and were released later in the day. Divers found the man’s body the next day.

For this and other safe Tennessee safe driving information check the website of the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates, or call 615-356-2000.

Most older people are capable and have a lifetime of valuable driving experience. For these reasons, decisions about a person’s ability to drive should never be based on age alone. However, changes in vision may cause safety concerns. People who accurately assess these changes can adjust their driving habits so that they stay safe on the road, or choose other kinds of transportation.

Symptoms

Do you have problems reading highway or street signs or recognizing someone you know across the street?

Do you have trouble seeing lane lines and other pavement markings, curbs, medians, other vehicles and pedestrians, especially at dawn, dusk and at night?

Do you experience more discomfort at night from the glare of oncoming headlights?

What You Can Do

Make sure you always wear your glasses and that they are a current prescription. If you lose or break your glasses, don’t rely on an old pair; replace them right away with your newest prescription. Avoid eyewear with side pieces that may block your vision.

Do not wear sunglasses or tinted lenses at night. This reduces the amount of light that reaches your eyes and makes driving much more hazardous. Don’t darken or tint your car windows. Avoid driving at dawn, dusk and night. If you are extremely light-sensitive, check with your eye doctor to see if it can be corrected.

Keep your windshield, mirrors and headlights clean, and make sure your headlight aim is checked when your car is inspected. Choose a car with larger dials and easy-to-read symbols. Turn brightness up on the instrument panel.

Sit high enough in your seat so that you can see the road for at least 10 feet in front of your car. This will make a big difference in reducing the amount of glare you experience from opposing headlights at night. Use a cushion if your car seats can’t be raised.

Look to the lower right side of the road when there is oncoming traffic. Some vehicles have rearview mirrors that automatically filter out glare; you might find this feature beneficial, especially for nighttime driving.

If you are 60 or older, see an eye doctor every year to check for cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and other conditions associated with aging.

If you or a loved is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident caused by an elderly driver, contact the experienced Nashville auto accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates.

Medical Emergency?

As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer when I hear about a crash involving a 77-year-old woman who for some unknown reason crosses the centerline of a highway and slams head-on into another car, my first though goes to some type of medication problem or medical emergency as the cause of the crash.

Reference a local media report of a crash like the one described above in Memphis Tennessee. The 77-year-old driver was killed and the 18-year-old victim is hospitalized in serious but stable condition. My prayers go out the the young victim for a complete and speedy recovery and to the family and friends of the deceased.

According to a recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, older drivers face substantially elevated risk of being involved in and responsible for crashes in which they themselves die, and they pose more risk to other road users than the lowest-risk drivers do; however, the degree to which older drivers’ risk to other road users is elevated depends strongly upon whether risk is being measured on a per-driver, per-trip, or per-mile basis.

For example, the results of this study suggest that if a randomly-selected driver in his or thirties and a randomly-selected driver aged 85 or older were to drive equal numbers of miles, the older driver would be over 1500% more likely than the younger driver to be responsible for and die as a result of a crash, and about 220% more likely than the younger driver to kill an occupant of another vehicle or a non-motorist.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident involving an elderly driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Tennessee car accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.

Elderly Driver Killed

An 81-year-old man was killed in Knoxville Tennessee when the car he was driving hydroplaned on a downtown street hit a tree in the median leading to the man being ejected from the vehicle. Police investigators say that the weather played a major role in the crash. As an experienced Nashville auto accident lawyer I only have the few facts that were contained in the article, but based on those facts, there appears to me to be two more important factors that lead to his death.

Hydroplaning is not something that occurs simply because there is heavy rain. The problem of hydroplaning becomes an issue when the driver is carrying to much speed for the wet conditions. I can tell you without hesitation that speed and no seatbelts never lead to a happy ending.

Speeding is one of the most prevalent factors contributing to traffic crashes. Th economic cost of speeding-related crashes is estimated to be in excess of 40.4 billion dollars per year. In 2007, speeding was a contributing factor in 31 percent of all fatal crashes, and 13,040 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes. The total economic cost of crashes was estimated at $230.6 billion in 2000.

Tennessee law requires the use of seat belts. An overwhelming number of studies show that seat belts, when used correctly, save lives. Seat belts help prevent injury by Preventing ejection. Ejection greatly increases the chance of death or serious injury.  The chance of being killed in a crash by being ejected from a vehicle is one in eight.  Safety belts virtually eliminate ejection.  The belted driver stays inside the car and is better protected from injury.

For more information on these and other topics check the web site of the experienced Nashville automobile accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

RV Tractor-Trailer Collision

It’s getting to be like a broken record. What was the driver of an RV doing when he was supposed to be driving? A tractor-trailer had come to a stop on the right shoulder as directed by  a Tennessee State Trooper who was conducting a routine log book check.  The Trooper had his emergency blue-lights flashing. Instead of staying in his lane and passing the stopped commercial vehicle he left his lane and ran into the side of the parked trailer. The RV missed the Troopers car by inches.

Driver inattention is the leading factor in most crashes. 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. The driver was a 78-year-old man and investigators will probably inquire into his physical health with special emphasis on his medication.

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