How Distracted Driving Can Get Things All Screwed Up

 
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving is any activity that diverts a person’s attention away from driving. Sending or reading text messages, fiddling with a cell phone or smartphone, eating and drinking causing the driver to let go of the steering wheel, excessive talking to passengers, grooming or putting on make-up, reading including maps, fiddling with a navigation system, watching a video, even the excessive adjusting of a radio, CD player or MP3 player all count as distractions when driving.

Facts about distracted driving

Most people don’t recognize the ill effects of distracted driving. In fact, a lot of people believe that distractions can really affect one’s skills, preventing them from being successful in avoiding accidents as hazards suddenly pop out of the road.  In fact, the number of those involved in accidents got lower at 387,000 in 2011 compared to the 416,000 involved in accidents back in 2010. However, the number of people who died increased to 3,311 in 2011, 64 deaths higher than the recorded 3,267 deaths because of crashes brought about by distractions to the driver, 64 cases higher than the number of casualties for the same period in 2010. These staggering numbers prove the point that distracted driving can really get one person into serious trouble.

The aftermath of an accident caused by distracted driving

Beyond the numbers mentioned in the statistics, the damage caused by such accidents can be devastating. For one, crashes bring about damage to property. Accidents can cause damages to the car of both parties, as well as other structures on and off the road. These accidents can also cause bodily injuries which hurt or leave a victim temporarily and permanently disabled.

Running after irresponsible drivers
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
If the negligence of a driver has caused an accident that resulted to damage to one’s property or worse, caused one to get injured or dead, the driver can be held liable for personal injury. By filing a personal injury claim through the help of a car accident attorney in Los Angeles, one victim can avenge what has happened to him or her. This will help them get compensation to have the damaged properties fixed. More importantly though, such repayments can be used by one to get the treatment, medication, and rehabilitation that they need, while also being paid of the earning they should have received while they are unable to work because of these disabilities. This will help these poor victims rebuild their good life that they’ve almost lost when this accident happened.

So when you’re out on the road, keep those distractions away and focus on what you should really be doing; driving—nothing more, nothing less.

Important Qualities to Look for in a Personal Injury Lawyer

If you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence, the first thing you should do is to seek immediate medical treatment. After you have been treated for your injuries, the next thing to do is to recover damages. As it is, filing a personal injury claim is a step towards receiving monetary compensation from the liable party; however, doing so may pose certain hassles.

Since you’ve just recuperated from your injuries, you may have a hard time understanding what you really need. Of course, you won’t be able to create your personal injury claim. You need someone to help you on that, and that role lies on the hands and minds of a personal injury lawyer.

What you should look for when choosing a personal injury lawyer

The role of the personal injury lawyer is to guide the client throughout the duration of the latter’s case. Whether it is a car accident, slip and fall, wrongful death, product liability, or dog bite case, the lawyer has the expertise to carry out legal measures to meet the primary objective, and that is to compensate the injured client with the right amount of monetary compensation.

Meanwhile, if you wish to have an attorney by your side, here are the things that you should consider when looking for the right legal representative:

•    He or she must have won many personal injury cases before. You know that your chosen lawyer is the right one if he or she has prior experience winning personal injury cases. Your chances of winning your case would increase if he or she has already taken up a case that is similar to yours.

•    He or she has the reputation of resolving cases soundly. You know you have chosen the best lawyer if he or she has the reputation of comprehensively taking clients’ cases and quickly resolving them. Plus, if he or she is well-regarded among legal circles in your area, then you know that your claim for compensation in a personal injury accident will favor you.

•    He or she is objective. You know you have chosen the right lawyer for your case if he or she genuinely cares for his or her clients. The lawyer is not one to quickly resolve a case just to receive a fee and move on to another client. Instead, he or she must be willing to spend time and effort to enable him or her to reach a settlement going to your favor.

Accordingly, if you’re from California and you have been injured because of someone else’s negligence, there’s no other legal representative to retain but a personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles from Personal Injury Defenders. Aside from having the qualities mentioned above, he or she works on a contingency-fee basis, which means that if the lawyer wins your case, he or she will be paid a percentage coming from the amount awarded to you after the settlement. Otherwise, your attorney won’t get any compensation.