Seat Belts Save Lives

A Maynardsville, Tennessee woman is dead after she lost control of her vehicle late Friday night, according to local media reports. The 38-year-old woman was driving on Monroe St. in Maynardville when she lost control of her Chevy Blazer and was ejected when it overturned on an embankment. The article mentioned that she was not wearing her seat belt. Our prayers go out to her family and friends.

This Tennessee highway fatality presents two important issues, the first one is seat belt use, or rather, failure of seat belt use and the other is what caused her to run off the road.

Restraint use is clearly designed to reduce injury severity and prevent occupants from being ejected from their vehicles. Tennessee law requires the use of seat belts. An overwhelming number of studies show that seat belts, when used correctly, save lives. As an experienced Tennessee auto accident lawyer, whenever I read about an accident in which a driver or passenger is ejected, I automatically relate it to failure to wear seat belts.

The primary cause of this accident was that she left the roadway. Police investigators will look to see whether speed was a factor, or whether the driver was somehow distracted and not paying attention to the road ahead. Distraction is a factor in 80% of  all accident in the United States, and the leading cause of distraction is the use of a cell phone. Police investigators will look to her cell phone records to see if she was using the device at, or near, the time of the crash.

The lesson here for Tennessee drivers is to take a few seconds to secure yourself and keep your eyes and mind on the road.

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 and remedies.

Cell Phone Distraction

A 47-year-old Tennessee woman lucked out when her car left US Highway 41, over-corrected, lost control then left the roadway again striking an embankment and then rolled over. The cause of the crash was that she had dropped her cell phone and took her eyes off of the road in her attempt to reach it. She was transported with non-life endangering injuries.

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.

Drivers who use a cell phone – either handheld or hands-free, are four times more likely to be involved in a crash, according to a 1997 New England Journal of Medicine examination of hospital records, and a 2005 study funded by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety linking injury crashes to cell phone records.

About 30 research studies conclude that there is an increased crash risk when using a cell phone while driving. Many of these studies further conclude that using a hands-free phone while driving is just as risky as talking on a handheld phone.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney I implore you to put the cell phone down when you are driving. You might think that you are a good enough driver to driver and talk at the same time, but statistics say you are not.

If you are injured or killed in a Tennessee auto accident caused by a cell phone using driver, you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Tennessee personal injury lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and secure your rights and remedies.

A Seat Belt Would Have Mattered

When we talk about distractions leading to Tennessee fatal automobile accidents we are talking about a serious issue in these days of cell phone’s, GPS and other navigation devices. The distraction can take only seconds and lives change forever. Take for example a recent crash in Thorn Hill, Tennessee. A Grainger County man was killed in a single-vehicle rollover crash Saturday night on state Highway 131 near Delmer Welch Road at approximately 7:35 p.m. when he lost control of his 2004 Dodge SRS.

According to local media reports his right front tire dropped off the roadway, he driver overcorrected, lost control, crossed both lanes and went airborne over an embankment. His car struck several trees and came to rest on its roof in a small creek.

The report quoted the investigating Trooper Toby Cameron as saying that the deceased was not wearing his seat belt, and he thought it would have made a difference. The man possibly lost his life because of two errors, he failed to take a second to buckle up and he took his attention off the road for a second. Our prayers go out to the family and friends of this unfortunate man.

The personal injury lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates plead with your to take a minute and buckle up before you head out onto the highways and byways of Tennessee, and above all avoid distractions. Call 615-356-2000 to find out all you need to know if you are injured in a Nashville auto accident.

Teach Teens The Danger Of Distractions

Over the last several Blogs at “The Tennessee Auto Accident Attorney” we have talked about younger drivers and the hazards they face as the travel the highways and byways of Tennessee. As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney, I regularly speak to parents of teen drivers, and on every occasion I remind them that simply telling their children to act in a safe manner when they are behind the wheel, it is the duty of the parents to teach them by example.

I also share some sobering statistics. Traffic crashes are the leading cause of teen fatalities, accounting for 38% of all teen deaths in the United States. In 2008, about 3,500 teens in the United States aged 15–19 were killed and more than 350,000 were treated in emergency departments for injuries suffered in motor-vehicle crashes. Young people ages 15-24 represent only 14% of the U.S. population. However, they account for 30% ($19 billion) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among males and 28% ($7 billion) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries among females.

Reference a fatal accident in Bristol, Tennessee, in which one teen boy is dead and another remains in serious condition as I write this Blog. According to local media sources, the 16-year-old driver lost control rounding a curve, left the road and slammed into a tree. As an experienced Nashville personal injury lawyer, my first thought is that speed and/or distraction were the cause of this tragic accident.

Most Americans typically learn to drive during the teen years, when the brain is not fully mature yet. Recent research is beginning to give us insight why many teens have difficulty regulating risk-taking behavior:

* The area of the brain that weighs consequences, suppresses impulses and organizes thoughts does not fully mature until about age 25.

* Hormones are more active in teens, which influence the brain’s neuro-chemicals that regulate excitability and mood. The result can be thrill-seeking behavior and experiences that create intense feelings.

Chances are, your community has been struck by a tragic accident involving a teenage friend, classmate or family member. Tennessee parents have an excellent resource available at the website of the National Safety Council. Check out http://teendriver.nsc.org/ for helpful tips and suggested study materials.

My experience investigating and trying Tennessee teen driver accident cases tells me that it is never too early to start training your child for the day he or she gets behind the wheel and you watch them drive off into the real world.

If you or a loved is injured in a Nashville or Tennessee automobile accident caused by a teen driver contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies. Call us at 615-356-2000.

Photo Courtesy of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety

Distracted Tennessee Driver

Whenever you see an accident, usually involving one car that crosses the centerline and crashes into another, an experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyer starts thinking about driver distractions. Just what was the driver doing moments before the crash that caused his/her vehicle to go off the highway? What caused the driver to change focus from driving to other things?

This is the question several families in Fentress County, Tennessee will be asking themselves following a 2-vehicle crash. A 26-year-old Jamestown woman crossed the centerline and crashed head-on into an oncoming vehicle driven by a 40-year-old woman, also of Jamestown. The 26-year-old was dead at the scene and the other woman was injured.

What was she doing that took her eyes and her mind off of the task of driving? It only takes a second for the distraction to lead to calamity. Distraction from the primary task of driving could present a serious and potentially deadly danger. In 2008, 5,870 people lost their lives and an estimated 515,000 people were injured in police-reported crashes in which at least one form of driver distraction was reported on the crash report. While these numbers are significant, they may not state the true size of the problem, since the identification of distraction and its role in the crash by law enforcement can be very difficult.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident caused by a distracted driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Good Samaritans Come Forward

According to a local Chattanooga TV news report a Tennessee man was driving along I-24 and for some unknown reason, lost control and left the highway and down a 60 -foot embankment, before being ejected from the vehicle. Fortunately for this man, two of the 9 witnesses who stopped had the Samaritan spirit and the training to help.

A Florida man, a hospital lab supervisor and another man who was an MD, climbed down to assist the man. They got him laying flat and covered him with blankets supplied by other witnesses and tended to him until emergency responders arrived. The injured man was taken to Vanderbilt Medical Center and will survive.

During the climb down to the injured man the Florida man lost his wedding band. So often we read about people who put their own safety at risk to save another human being. The lawyers and staff at Phillip Miller & Associates wish to send out a big thank you to these people and the others who stopped.

If you or loved one has been injured or killed in a Tennessee automobile accident, the Nashville automobile accident law firm of Phillip Miller & Associates has the experience and knowledge needed to successfully handle your auto accident case. Contact us immediately after an auto accident and we will discuss the situation with you, free of charge, and come up with a plan of action to help you receive appropriate compensation for your losses.Call 6150356-2000.

From The Highway To The River

The good news is that the vehicle driven by a 23-year-old man, that included his 21-year-old woman passenger, missed a concrete barrier after they ran off US Highway 72, near Scottsboro, TN. The bad news is that the vehicle also missed two separate guardrails that would have prevented the vehicle from flipping several times before ending up in the Tennessee River. Fortunately, both people were able to get out of the vehicle and make their way to the shore, underneath a bridge to await rescue.

Police investigators will try to piece the minute-by-minute scenario of what the driver was doing in the time prior to leaving the highway.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 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.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee car crash by a distracted driver or a case like the present one that will require and experienced Tennessee automobile accident lawyer contact the lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates for a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.

Would Seat Belts Have Made A Difference?

A roadway departure crash is East Tennessee left one woman dead, and three other injured. According to local media reports, a 2010 Murano driven by a 27-year-old man rounded a curve on Boyd’s Creek Road, lost control and crossed the yellow center line and slammed into the 1999 pickup truck driving by the deceased, a 51-year-old woman. None of the people involved were wearing their seat belts.

Was it speeding or distraction or both that caused the driver to lose control? Distraction from the primary task of driving could present a serious and potentially deadly danger. In 2008, 5,870 people lost their lives and an estimated 515,000 people were injured in police-reported crashes in which at least one form of driver distraction was reported on the crash report.

While these numbers are significant, they may not state the true size of the problem, since the identification of distraction and its role in the crash by law enforcement can be very difficult.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Nashville automobile accident caused by a distracted driver you owe it to yourself to contact the experienced Nashville automobile accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to find out about your rights and remedies.

Teen Drivers

According to witnesses the facts are simple, a 2009 Pontiac G-3 Hatchback, driven by a 19 year old, made a left turn out of KFC’s parking lot, headed east on Madison Street, the vehicle hit a curb, left the roadway, and struck a utility pole. Any questions? Was he speeding or hot-rodding, or was he distracted by the other teens in the vehicle?

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney, I’d bet that he was hot-dogging, and because of his inexperience was unable to maintain control of the car. Fortunately the driver and three passengers were uninjured, but unfortunately, the bad news is that the 19-year-old passenger in the middle backseat, the one not wearing his seatbelt, slammed forward into the windshield and suffered serious head injuries.

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.

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.

Drinking + No Seat Belts = Death

According to local media reports the TSP determined that the two Greenbriar, Tennessee men involved in a one-car roadway departure collision had been drinking and were not wearing their seatbelts.

The reports went on to say that the men were driving in a a Jeep Wrangler were heading southbound on Highway 49 when the driver lost control of the vehicle near the Owens Chapel Road intersection. The Jeep veered off the left side of the road and rolled over, ejecting the two men inside.

The 22-year-old passenger was killed and the other man was treated and released. Since the vehicle was registered to the injured man, criminal charges will probably be brought. The sad part of this whole incident is that TSP Investigators believe that both men would have survived had they been wearing their seat belts.

On average a human being loses their life at the hands of a drunk driver every 45 minutes. In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people died in drunk driving related crashes, a decline of 9.8 percent from the 13,041 drunk driving related fatalities of 2007. Tennessee law requires the use of seat belts. An overwhelming number of studies show that seat belts, when used correctly, save lives.

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. Call 615-356-2000.