Driving Tips on a Rainy Day

The weather can really get crazy. Summer has gone way hotter than it used to. On the other hand, it rains cats and dogs when the wet season comes. That is why you should not be surprised anymore if these changes in weather conditions happen all too frequently now. If you don’t want to figure in an accident and call your personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles, please observe these simple safe driving tips on a rainy day:

• Be conspicuous. Use your headlamps. Turn on the fog lamps, if necessary. If the rain is falling too hard, turn on your hazard lights, too. These lamps help you be seen on the road. This way, you can avoid getting rear-ended or figuring in a head-on collision. You can also spot road hazards while driving, helping you react better to the conditions outside.
  
• Turn those wipers on. Wipers are made for a reason. When it’s raining, you turn them on. This way, you’d see better what’s ahead of you. If you drive a wagon, turn on that rear wiper too. Now more than ever, it is important to see what’s happening around you better.
  
• Maintain a safe speed. Don’t drive too fast because you might lose control of your vehicle. Don’t drive too slowly because you can be a road hazard to other motorists around you. Just keep a steady, safe speed to help you control your vehicle better while it is pouring. This way, you will have a better reaction to the hazards ahead of you, with optimum control of your vehicle.
  
• Brake with caution. Hard-breaking can have your car spinning and crashing. Too much brake force can have the tires slip and the wheel locking. When this happens, your car may likely go out of control. Apply a firm but appropriate force on the brake pedal to achieve optimum breaking minus the ugly skidding and possible accident.

Liability on Bus Accidents Explained

Earlier this month, a gruesome accident happened in California involving a bus carrying tourists who had gone from a winter vacation at the ski resort town of Big Bear in San Bernardino County. Apparently, as the bus was traveling down State Route 38 going back to Tijuana, Mexico, it suddenly picked up speed after being passed by other vehicles.

After traveling for about a mile on failing brakes, the bus rear-ended a Saturn sedan that just passed by seconds earlier. A Ford pickup then rammed into the bus, causing the latter to swerve, flip, and slid on its side after going back upright and hitting a boulder. It was 6:30 p.m. when the incident happened.

Of the 38 people inside the bus, seven of them were killed, with one remaining unidentified. About three dozen more were injured.

Investigations are still ongoing with regards the accident, with brake failures as the primary cause. However, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) is also taking a look at the driver, who miraculously survived the crash but suffered injuries, whether or not he was moving too fast on the mountain highway.

Such accidents are rather complex than the typical motor vehicle accidents. Not only do these involve the number of passengers and the state’s safety precautions on the operation of large public vehicles. The legal standpoint, specifically establishing and the assignment of liability, is what makes these mishaps complicated.

BMW also Recalling Vehicles: Do Safe Well-built Cars Still Exist?

Buying a vehicle is not a simple transaction. It is not as if you’ve bought a mobile phone that you can almost always replace every time it conks out. Plus having a vehicle fail while you are using it puts you and others’ lives in great danger. Certainly, the amount you are investing and the amount of damage that goes with a vehicle is simply bigger.

For luxury brands, name is everything. While it is easier to come up with a more powerful engine or break conventions with the tech carmakers fit their vehicles, coming up with a really solid product is hard, much more building a solid brand image.

BMW is one of the more popular luxury-performance brands in the US and all over the world. Its cars have been known to be as vehicles that are well-built and relatively problem-free. However, perfection is one such difficult thing to achieve and this also affects a rather reputable carmaker like BMW. Just this February of 2013, BMW has recalled their very popular 3-series sedans, wagons, convertibles and coupes. According to the recall notice it had something to do with the cable connectors, as well as a fuse box which can make the car lose power, making the engines stall unexpectedly. BMW has recorded one minor collision in Canada caused by the defect but fortunately no injuries were recorded.

Seatbelts, Air Bags, and Other Restraint Systems: Your Savior in Deadly Car Crashes

Though your vehicle’s seat belts and air bags have saved a lot of lives over the years, there are still a few people that doubt what these safety equipments can really do to prevent deaths from vehicular accidents.

This is the main reason why the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) National Center for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA) made studies on how these restraint systems have saved the lives of people.

Seatbelt benefits

The NHTSA has been very active in promoting the use of seatbelts on vehicles for the past couple of years now. Such initiative seemed to be very much effective as more and more people are starting to wear seatbelts now. In fact, studies revealed that seatbelts have saved around 69,000 lives from 2006 to 2009. In 2010 alone, some 12,546 lives were saved because of seat belts.

Life-saving effects of other restraint systems

Frontal air bags, on the other hand, have saved 12,874 lives in the same 5-year period. Additionally, child restraints have saved some 1,711 infants and kids from dying in accidents. These figures prove that restraint systems work wonders in preventing passengers from suffering injuries due to crashes. That is why the agency has been continuously promoting the use of these restraint systems to help prevent the loss of lives.

Drinking laws save lives

Minimum drinking age laws all over the country have also helped saved the lives of young individuals from dying and getting involved in accidents. Some 3,611 lives have been spared because various states all over the country started adopting laws.

Because of the strict enforcement of these laws, there has been less likelihood of young drivers getting drunk and causing accidents endangering their lives and the others.

Things Medical Malpractice Victims Must Remember

One reason why a person seeks the helps of a medical practitioner is because he or she wants to be cured of his or her disease. A good medical practitioner is expected to give expert healthcare, providing cure to those who badly need it along the way.

However, not all medical practitioners are created equal. There are bad ones that are out to screw everything up. If a doctor, nurse, physical therapist, or any medical practitioner fails to give you the right treatment for your medical condition, or performs a very costly mistake in attending to one problem, then they have just committed an act of medical malpractice.

Basically, medical malpractice greatly affects the lives of its victims, and if you’ve been a victim of such, then you should seek all legal remedies to get the justice you deserve.

Meanwhile, here are just some of the things that you must know first before filing a medical malpractice claim.

Negligence

If you are planning to file a medical malpractice case, you must be able to prove that a medical practitioner has failed to provide the standard or care that is required of him or her. Not only should the practitioner breach that duty of care, but such actions have resulted in your injuries.

Certificate of Merit

To further boost your complaint, you will need a Certificate of Merit. This certificate is issued by another medical professional—proving that there have been mistakes in the treatment that you or a loved one received.

Statute of Limitations

For a legislation to work well, the government must set a number of statues of limitations. These statutes help determine the extent of the liability of one person.