Make the Pledge to Avoid Distractions while Driving for Distracted Driving Awareness Month

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and an opportune time to recognize the dangers of distracted driving as well as the simple steps you can take to prevent it.

Whenever you get behind the wheel, you are responsible for your own safety and the safety of other people on the road around you. A driver may be comfortable doing other things while driving, like talking on the phone, texting, eating, drinking, or other tasks, but it takes the driver’s attention off the road. All it takes is one second of inattention to cause a fatal distracted driving accident. Looking down at a phone or even GPS navigation can make a driver miss a green light turning to yellow and red. If there is pedestrian is in the crosswalk when that driver runs the red light or applies his or her brakes too late, it may result in a tragic accident.  

What You Can Do

Any task that takes a driver’s eyes off the road, hands off the wheel, or mind off of driving is a distraction and can potentially lead to causing injury or death to someone’s child, parent, spouse, sibling, or best friend. It is important to recognize these as distractions and not do them. This will not only help you drive more safely, but you will then be in a position to avoid dangerous situations that may be caused by other drivers.

For Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the Kiley Law Group urges drivers to help keep themselves and others safe by pledging to:

1. Never text and drive;

2. Never talk on a cell phone while driving;

3. Never eat while driving, especially when involving a full meal;

4. Never turn around to have conversations with passengers;

5. Secure children and/or pets when in the car;

6. Never drive while fatigued or drowsy;

7. Never surf the Internet while driving; and

8. Never read or watch video while driving.

If there is an emergency, pull over before making or taking any phone calls or texts. Cell phones haven’t always been around. For the convenience of being able to get personal news wherever a driver is (if he or she has a cell phone), he or she can take the first highway exit or pull over and park before handling the situation.

Wrong Way Crashes Mostly Caused by Drunk or Senior Drivers

A recent study conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board looked at more than 1,500 auto accidents between 2004 and 2009, and nine other wrong-way accidents that the NTSB directly investigated. The results showed that a majority of the crashes (59%) involved drivers with blood alcohol levels (BAC) of more than twice the legal limit of 0.08. In 10% of the crashes, drivers had BAC levels between 0.08 and 0.014.

Age Matters in Wrong Way Accidents

Age is also a factor in wrong-way driving. Older drivers appear to be a part of the problem, researchers said. Drivers over 70 were overrepresented in the accidents. Senior operators driving the wrong way caused 15% of the accidents studied, compared to 3% of the right-way drivers they collided with.  

Wrong way accidents involving high speeds, like those occurring on interstates, expressways, and other high-speed highways are especially deadly. Roughly 80% of the accidents studied involved head-on crashes in which the vehicles closed on each other very rapidly.

According to the NTSB, wrong way driving usually occurs when drivers enter an exit ramp in the wrong direction, make a U-turn on the highway, or use an emergency turnaround through a median. Most wrong-way collisions happen in the fast lane of the highway.

Preventing Wrong Way Collisions

Since alcohol intoxication plays such a major role in causing wrong way driving, reducing drunken driving is a big step in reducing the number of wrong-way crashes. Until stricter laws on drunken driving and repeat drunken-driving arrests are the norm in all states, individual drivers need to exercise more caution when it comes to driving before driving. 

If an intoxicated driver has caused an auto accident that resulted in injuries to you or a family member, you may have the right to sue the driver for personal injuries.

To find out about your legal options after a Massachusetts car accident, contact one of our Boston personal injury lawyers at (888) 208-1695. Attorney Tom Kiley has over 30 years of experience fighting for the rights of injured victims. Call the toll-free number (888) 208-1695 to schedule your FREE consultation with attorney Kiley today.

Tragic Accident Claims Life of Chelmsford Man Pinned Under Vehicle

An unidentified Chelmsford man has died after being pinned underneath a vehicle that he had been working on in a Westford shopping plaza this past Tuesday evening.

The Lowell Sun reported that the 52-year-old man was on the ground fixing the vehicle in the plaza located at 160 Littleton Road around 8:00 p.m. that night when the vehicle fell on top of him, pinning him underneath. 

Emergency responders to the scene pulled the man out from underneath the car and attempted to revive him while waiting for the ambulance.  The man was pronounced dead at an area hospital after being transported there.

When to Contact a Personal Injury Attorney

If you have been seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident in Massachusetts because of someone else’s recklessness or negligent driving, before you sign any forms, talk to the at-fault party’s insurance company or hire a lawyer, get this free Massachusetts car accidents book to learn how to avoid making the 7 mistakes after an accident.

For a completely free evaluation of your accident case, contact the knowledgeable personal injury attorneys with Kiley Law Group at (888) 208-1695.

Are You Prepared for St. Patrick’s Day? To be on the Road That Is

St. Patrick’s Day is a widely celebrated Irish holiday and people pull out all the stops to do it right with lots of green décor, Irish food, and, of course, Guinness and other alcoholic drinks. Many of you will be celebrating St. Patrick’s Day this coming Sunday, March 17, 2013, at a friend’s home, at a local pub, or by even hosting a party at your home. But the holiday is not all fun and games.

What You Might Not Know about St. Patrick’s Day

While enjoying the festivities of St. Patrick’s Day, you may not realize how dangerous the holiday could be. All it takes is for one person to drink too much, get on the road to head home, and cause a drunk driving accident. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 700 people were killed across the U.S. during the St. Patrick’s Day holiday from 2006 to 2010.

Helping You Stay Safe

Impaired driving endangers not only yourself but everyone on the road. As experienced car accident attorneys, the Kiley Law Group legal team has seen firsthand the consequences of drinking and driving. In order to stay safe this St. Patrick’s Day weekend, our firm encourages you to follow these tips:

• As a guest or pub patron, plan a safe way home before arriving for festivities. Either designate a sober driver or take a cab.
• As a host, don’t let guests who have been drinking drive. Take their keys and arrange for a safe ride home or make sure they sober up before leaving.
• Use a sober ride program. Boston has the “Be My DD” program available 24/7. A driver will take you home in your own vehicle. For more information, call (877) 823-6933 or visit http://www.bemydd.com/designated-driver.html.
• Avoid driving in the late night/early morning hours before, during, and/or after St. Patrick’s Day.
• If you see a potentially drunk driver on the road, stay away and call it in to your local police department.

As the saying goes, don’t drink and drive, and help your friends and family stay safe by not letting them drink and drive. Also, be cautious of others when on the road this holiday weekend. If you can do those things, you’ll not just have a fun St. Patrick’s Day but a safe one too!

Defective Airbags Prompt Toyota Recall of Almost 900,000 Vehicles

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced the recall of 887,709 potentially affected Toyota Corolla and Pontiac Vibe vehicles due to an airbag defect.

The vehicles’ supplemental restraint system (SRS) circuits may short, creating an abnormal flow of electrical current, which subsequently increases the level of heat and potentially damages the circuits. As a result, the front airbags and/or seat belt pretensioners may malfunction and inadvertently deploy the airbags, increasing the risk of a car accident and/or injury.

Toyota is recalling model year 2003 – 2004 Corolla and Corolla Matrix cars, and General Motors is recalling model year 2003 – 2004 Pontiac Vibe cars.

What to Do Now

Owners of the recalled vehicles will be notified by Toyota or General Motors and dealers will install a supplemental harness including an electrical filter between the airbag control module and its wire harness at no cost. A recall notification schedule has not yet been established.

If you would like additional information regarding this recall you can call Toyota at (800) 331-4331 or Pontiac at (800) 620-7668. You can also call the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at (888) 327-4236 or visit www.safecar.gov.

What if the Defect Has Already Caused Injury?

Recalls are necessary safety measures, but they sometimes come too late to prevent all incidents of injury. If you have been injured directly as the result of an auto defect or a car accident caused by an auto defect, you may be able to hold the auto manufacturer financially responsible for medical bills, loss of income, pain and suffering, and other damages. To find out if taking legal action is the best option for your particular situation, contact Kiley Law Group today to discuss your legal rights.