Getting Involved in a Hit-and-run: Knowing Your Rights as an Injured Bicyclist

Bicycling is one of the most convenient forms of transportation, most especially in California. In fact, bicyclists are required to comply with the traffic laws of the state, as they also share the road with other motorists. However, bicyclists are vulnerable to hit-and-run accidents, especially if automobile drivers are not aware of their presence on the road.

For some, such horrible incidents are caused by sloppy enforcement of traffic laws. Some would say these are the fault of unlicensed and uninsured drivers. Reasons for such accidents are too complicated and involve a lot of factors that are linked with each other; nonetheless, it is the victims who suffer a lot from these unfortunate instances that should not have happened had the other parties involved acted reasonably with care.

Basically, hit-and-run accidents involving bicycles in California involve criminal charges, which are classified as either misdemeanors or felonies. A misdemeanor charge is filed against the driver d if the bicyclist was hit and caused only property damage, whereas a felony charge is likewise charged if the bicyclist was injured or killed.

While these criminal charges are imperative in punishing lackadaisical and wayward motorists, they don’t actually help in paying the damages to the bicyclists, especially for those who were injured or killed in hit-and-run accidents. For the most part, involved drivers are never located, or, if they had been found, the statute of limitations had already expired.

Dissecting Known Outside Distractions of Drivers

Distracted driving is considered one of the growing pains of drivers in the United States. Recent studies showed that nearly 10 percent of all fatal crashes were partly due to drivers who were not focused behind the wheel. Such drivers may be distracted, asleep or fatigued, if not “lost in thought.”

According to the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center, nearly 284,000 drivers involved in traffic crashes every year were distracted. In the said study, the researchers also found that 29 percent of the time, a driver is likely to get distracted by something or someone outside of the car. Age is one factor why outside distractions dominate over other kinds of distracted driving.

Things to Always Keep Handy in Your Car

It is a given fact that at any point during your trip, your car could suddenly break down.

According to the Automobile Association of America (AAA), the largest emergency roadside assistance organization in the U.S., some 29 to 30 million roadside emergencies occur every year. While 3 of 5 assistance calls are fixed by the AAA without any tow help, others are quite difficult, especially when help is not nearby.

As such, the chances of receiving aid after a car breakdown would always vary, depending on the location and the condition of the road and the weather outside. To avoid such inconvenience, it would be best if you are prepared, regardless whether the trip is a long or short one. By being prepared would mean having an emergency road kit and keeping it always inside your car.

Here are some things that should always be kept handy inside your car in case of emergency:

Spinal Cord Injury: Hindering People from Fulfilling Life Activities

People normally experience occasional injury. On the other hand, if this injury is amplified to a certain degree, then it might hinder that person from fulfilling certain life activities. This impediment thus affects the victim not only physically but also emotionally. Stating all of these adverse effects, vehicle accidents come to mind. 

Meanwhile, one of the places where vehicle accidents are prevalent includes the State of California. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were some 2,715 traffic fatalities in the area in 2010.  Therefore, there is a great possibility that those who survived the crashes had sustained grievous injuries. 

One of this is the spinal cord injury (SCI). SCI’s are defined as the result of trauma where the nerve roots of the spinal cord are often severed and the part below the injury is affected that would in the end lead to the paralysis of the victim.

In addition, the spine may have fractures and it may be crushed or dislocated due to the impact of the mishap. This ends in the impediment of the movements of the patients. Consequently, they may be frustrated and depressed as a result of these. 

Additionally, SCI’s are considered by many medical specialists as a “traitor ailment” because once left undiagnosed, the SCI can aggravate the condition of the victim. Some patients who knew of their condition quite late were completely paralyzed. If left untreated for a long time, certain patients even suffer vegetative coma.

Qualified Parties for a Wrongful Death Claim

 Due to the rising number of fatal accidents in California, several wrongful death lawsuits are filed. Heightened road activity in the place has led to the deaths of local resident or a tourist.

This type of personal injury case is duly defined as the demise of a loved on due to the negligent or wrongful action of a person, organization or company. It may be intentional or truly accidental and those who are entitled for claims under this lawsuit were the surviving relatives of the victim.

PARTIES QUALIFIED FOR A CLAIM

The federal and state laws had created standards for family members in order for them to qualify for a wrongful death lawsuit. They should be well guided on the different concepts used in court litigations and California wrongful death attorneys could provide these. Moreover, a “personal representative” is needed in court coming from one of the surviving members. Here is the list of those who could qualify for a claim.