Practice Interstate Highway Safety

A Brownsville, Tennessee man was killed when he was struck by a tractor-trailer truck while he was standing outside of his vehicle on Interstate 40 near mile marker 66, according to local media reports. The 45-year-old man had parked his vehicle in the right emergency lane with its flashers on and was standing outside, according to the reports.

The driver of an eastbound tractor-trailer was traveling in the right lane, saw the vehicle pulled over, and merged to the left lane in plenty of time. According to the fatality report filed by the THP, the man waved his hands as the tractor-trailer approached and jumped into his path, striking the right running board. From the media reports it appears that the tractor-trailer driver did everything by the book, but was unable to avoid the suicide by truck.

For these and other important Tennessee highway safety tips visit the website of Phillip Miller & Associates or call 615-356-2000

Distracted Truck Driver

In heavy traffic, one act of negligence can turn into a chain reaction collision that might well have fatal consequences. That was the case this past week when two people were badly injured in a rear-end collision that began when cars began to slow for an upcoming construction project zone.

Somewhere back in the line was a tractor-trailer that failed to slow down and slammed into the vehicle ahead of it, and on and on, to the vehicle ahead of it. Fortunately no one was killed but a number of vehicle were wrecked and their drivers and passengers injured.

When questioned by police, the truck driver told them he was adjusting his mirrors and when he looked ahead it was too late to stop. As an experienced Tennessee accident attorney, I would remind this truck driver and all Tennessee drivers that the time to adjust your mirrors is before you put your vehicle on the road.

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. Investigators will most probably review his cell phone records and find that he was engaged in a conversation with someone and concocted the mirror story to avoid getting fired.

This accident brings to mind some advice that I would like to share for the families of those who are injured or killed in Tennessee by a negligent tractor-trailer driver. For a trucking company whose vehicles travel millions of miles per year, accidents are an everyday occurrence. Trucking companies have gotten this process down to a science and in many cases have specialized accident investigators at the scene of an accident interviewing the truck driver even before he she talks to the police investigation.

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that the trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises. During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

Time is of the essence in these type of cases. Although most cases can be reconstructed at a later time it is important to have someone looking out for your best interests as soon as possible. That’s why it’s important to contact an experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyer like those you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates. If you or a loved one is injured in a car tractor-trailer accident act quickly and take advantage of a no-cost-no-obligation consultation and learn about your rights and put our crack team of lawyers and investigators on the case. Call 615-356-2000.

Truck Driver High On Dope

North Carolina State troopers say the driver of a tractor-trailer was under the influence of marijuana and methadone when his vehicle caused a crash on Interstate 40 that killed three people Thursday. The 50-year-old Tennessee man is in the Durham County jail after being charged with driving while impaired and three counts of felony death by vehicle.

The man was driving a truck owned by an East Tennessee company that has been cited for dozens of violations related to fatigued drivers and unsafe driving, according to federal inspection records. The accident killed the drivers of three other vehicles.

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that the trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises.

During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

If you are the victim of a Nashville or Tennessee tractor-trailer accident we urge you to contact our experienced Tennessee 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.

Double Tractor-Trailer Fatality

The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating a one-vehicle accident that killed two New York men riding in a tractor-trailer just before 6 a.m. today on Interstate 40 in Decatur County. Officials said the truck was west bound on I-40 and six miles west of Sugar Tree when it ran into the median, hit a beam, went over a bridge barrier and caught fire.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney my best guess is that one of three things caused this accident. The driver had a medical emergency, fell asleep at the wheel of was somehow distracted and left the roadway.

As an experienced Nashville automobile accident attorney we know that these crashes are referred to as “Roadway Departure Crashes” (RDCs). The Federal Highway Administration defines a RDC as a non-intersection crash that occurs when a vehicle crosses an edge line or a centerline, or otherwise leaves the traveled way. According to the Federal Highway Administration roadway departure crashes are frequently severe and account for the majority of highway fatalities.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates conservatively that each year drowsy driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities.

As our population ages we might expect to see more Tennessee automobile accidents caused by drivers who suffer medical emergencies while they are driving. Incidences of drivers who had crashes precipitated by their medical emergencies while driving are relatively rare and account for only 1.3 percent of all road fatalities.

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.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer traffic accident contact the experienced Nashville tractor-trailer accident attorney’s at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to determine your rights and remedies.

Who Was At Fault?

In my last Blog I wrote about a woman who turned in front of a fast moving SUV and paid for her mistake with her life and the life of her son. This past Friday, the same day as this accident, a UPS tractor-trailer turned into the UPS depot on Whites Creek Pike, directly in the path of a 35-year-old Nashville woman driving a motorcycle in the oncoming lane.

The woman died enroute to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. My prayers go out to this woman and her family and friends for their loss. Investigators have several questions to ask. Did the tractor-trailer driver fail to yield? Was the woman on the motorcycle driving in excess of the speed limit?

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident caused by a driver who is distracted or following too close, you owe it to yourself to immediately contact the experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that the trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises.

During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

Time is of the essence in these kinds of cases. Although most cases can be reconstructed at a later time it is important to have someone looking out for your best interests as soon as possible. That’s why it’s important to contact an experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyer like those you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates. If you or a loved one is injured in a car tractor-trailer accident act quickly and take advantage of a no-cost no-obligation consultation and learn about your rights and put our crack team of lawyers and investigators on the case.

Congress is in the middle of working out a multi-year transportation funding bill, the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act. The Bill was reintroduced in the House of Representatives in February. The legislation, introduced in the House as H.R. 763, would increase maximum weights for single-trailer trucks by 8 1/2 tons, from 80,000 pounds to 97,000 pounds. The Bill would also remove restrictions of triple trailers.

This increase is opposed by a wide-range of groups, like AAA, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union and Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association oppose the bill as well, according to the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks. The bill is opposed on several grounds, the first is safety, the second is the damage the heavier trucks would cause to an already overworked infrastructure.

The pro argument is that trucks are good for the economy, and I agree, but, as with anything, a balance has to be struck between profit and safety on the highways. Presently, it takes a loaded truck 10 times longer to stop than a 2,000-pound car. I oppose the bill as it is presently written and it appears that only a very small segment, the freight companies, will benefit. The average highway traveler will lose and hundreds, if not thousands of people will die as the result of the passage of this bill.

If you or a loved one is injured of killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident, time is of the essence. Contact the experienced Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyers at Phillip Miller & Associates at 615-356-2000, and take advantage of a free consultation.

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

How Big Is Too Big?

Was He Following Too Closely?

It’s really hard to say what happened in a fatal 5-car collision on Lee Highway in Chattannooga, Tennessee yesterday. As usual, local media reports don’t go into the reasons that these things happen. One thing for sure, when something goes wrong on a busy 4-lane-highway, things can get very bad, very quick.

According to the media report it appears that the thing get started when a vehicle stopped to turn off of the highway. Either the car didn’t properly signal or the tractor-trailer following the car was too close or the driver was distracted. The tractor-trailer swerved to avoid rearending the turning car and then things went south.

A second car swerved to avoid the semi but hit it in the rear-end, lost control, crossed the centerline and slammed head-on into an oncoming car and that car was rear-ended by a fourth car. The driver of the car that was hit head-on died at the scene. The other drivers suffered non-life threatening injuries.

Investigators piecing these facts together have a hard job ahead. It is the responsibility of every driver to be prepared to stop and it appears that the tractor-trailer driver wasn’t. That a car would stop to turn off the highway is perfectly foreseeable and points out the need for a driver to avoid distractions while behind the wheel.

Drivers must know and understand the safe and proper braking procedures for vehicles. This includes the principles of allowing adequate following distances or “safety cushion around your vehicle and the laws of required stops (signs, signals, railroad crossings, school buses, etc.).

To share the road safely, stay a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you. Nationally, safety agencies and driver education programs have tried to define a safe following distance for drivers to maintain. This has ranged from a two to four second following distance. Use the following tips to determine if you are following too closely:

A. As the car ahead of you passes a stationary point on the road (a sign post, driveway, utility pole, etc.), count the seconds it takes you to reach the same spot. (In the illustration below, you are driving the red vehicle.)

B. Count to yourself “one-thousand and one, one thousand and two,” etc. You should NOT reach the same point on the road before you finish counting to at least “one-thousand-two.” If you do, you are following too closely.

C. Slow down slightly to increase the space between you and the other vehicle. Find another spot to check your new following distance. Repeat this exercise.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident you owe it to your self to contact the experienced Board Certified civil trial lawyers like you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates and put them to work for you

Watch Out For Wildlife

A Georgia tractor-trailer driver who hit a metal guardrail then ran head-on into the bridge’s concrete rails, knocking out a large portion before falling off the south side of the bridge said the accident was caused when he swerved to avoid a deer.

Deer-related crashes are on the rise in Tennessee as urban growth encroaches into rural areas. In 2006, there were 5,884 deer-related crashes, including 289 that involved injuries and two that were fatal. That was up 19 percent from 4,942 in 2005. Since 2003, deer-related crashes in Tennessee have risen over 33 percent.

In 2006, the month of November recorded 1,334 deer-related crashes, by far the highest month for such crashes. December and October were the second and third highest months, which saw double the average number of deer-related crashes throughout the year.

A couple of suggestions:

•            If you see one deer there will probably be several more;

•            If you happen to collide with a deer, never approach it, an injured deer can prove very dangerous.

•            Do not try to swerve around an animal.

I repeat, do not swerve to avoid the deer, the danger is far greater when your vehicle leaves the road. The driver here was piloting a vehicle that weighed over 80,000 lbs and would hardly have noticed hitting a deer that weighed only somewhat more then a hundred pounds.

As an experienced Nashville personal injury lawyer, I’d bet the ranch that the driver was somehow distracted and not paying attention when his truck hit the guard rail and lost control.

As I’ve said many times, when you are involved in an accident with a trucking company vehicle time is of the essence and you ought to get an experienced tractor trailer lawyer on the case as soon as possible. The trucking company will have it’s investigators on the scene within an hour or so of the collision.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident you owe it to your self to contact the experienced Board Certified civil trial lawyers like you will find at Phillip Miller & Associates and put them to work for you.

Tractor-Trailer Fatality

This is the scene. I-75 in rural east Tennessee somewhere near 3 AM. A 43-year-old professional truck is traveling in excess of 85 MPH in the right lane. In front of him is another tractor-trailer traveling at 45 MPH with his safety blinkers. For some unknown reason driver one doesn’t notice the safety lights or the fact that he is bearing down on the trailer and slams into it.

The speeding trucker died at the scene. What was going on in the cab of his truck? Did he fall asleep? Was he talking on his cell phone? These are all questions that police investigators are going to have to answer, and the chore won’t be an easy one. Bottom-line here is that something kept the driver from seeing the road ahead.

What does this mean to you if you or a family member are the victim of a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident and suffer a serious or life threatening injury?  It means that the trucking company has a huge advantage in investigating the cause of the accident and developing a strategy for its defense to any claim that arises.

During one of these situations evidence can disappear and negligent drivers can be coached on what to say to police investigators. The trucking company has the benefit of an expert that was actually at the accident scene. This may not be possible for the victim since injuries are usually severe in nature. Needless to say it is important to act quickly so that an expert can examine the evidence on your behalf.

If you or a loved one is injured in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident caused by a driver who is distracted or following too close, you owe it to yourself to immediately contact the experienced tractor-trailer attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates.

Would Seat Belts Have Made A Difference?

Even with the decades of experience as a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident lawyer I am having a hard time understanding how a fatal one-car collision in Greene County Tennessee happened. It appears that a tractor-trailer was turning left onto US Highway 11A and had almost completed the turn into the right lane when a Honda driven by a 27-year-old man in the left lane struck the rear end of the trailer.

The man in the Honda was not wearing his seatbelt and as the car spun around in the median he was ejected onto the roadway. The local media report doesn’t mention anything that could have obstructed the drivers vision, and it’s hard to understand how the driver didn’t see the tractor-trailer in front of him.

Under those circumstances, it appears that the driver was either speeding or was somehow distracted. My prayers go out to the family and friends of the driver. It is up to each of us, when we are behind the wheel of a motor vehicle to keep our attention on the road ahead and the road around us at all times.

If you or a loved one is injured or killed in a Tennessee tractor-trailer accident you owe it to your family to contact the experienced Nashville truck accident attorneys at Phillip Miller & Associates and take advantage of a free consultation to learn about your rights and remedies.