Motor Vehicle Accidents

January 25, 2018

Distracted Driving on the Rise

The number of car accidents in America has steadily increased since 2014, reversing a previous downward trend on America’s roadways. Experts believe that an increase in distracted driving is largely to blame for the increase in car accidents – pointing to the rise of cell phones, in particular.

Distracted driving is a catch-all term for whenever a driver is not focused on the roadways. While this obviously includes activities such as texting and driving or putting on makeup while commuting to work, distracted driving encompasses many more activities. A driver may be distracted if they are changing the radio station, inputting an address into their navigation system, or having an emotional conversation that distracts the driver from concentrating on the road. Experts believe that, since there is no test to measure what a driver was concentrating on at the time of an accident, the number of accidents caused by distracted drivers is woefully under reported. Continue reading

October 22, 2017

NY: Car Insurers May No Longer Discriminate Based on Education or Occupation

by Gallivan & Gallivan

Governor Andrew Cuomo has moved to limit the factors car insurers may use when determining a driver’s car insurance rate. The new regulation follows a report by the Department of Financial Services (“DFS”), which Gov. Cuomo had tasked with investigating the issue, detailing that some, but not all, of New York auto insurers utilize an applicant’s education and occupation as factors when determining insurance rates.

This often results in individuals with lower educational levels or those working in low-paying occupations having to pay higher rates. According the Cuomo administration, these higher rates are unjustified because there is insufficient evidence that a person’s education or occupation is indicative of his or her driving ability. Lacking sufficient justification, Gov. Cuomo stated that the use of such factors was a violation of Insurance Law provisions which prohibits insurance rates that are “excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory.” Continue reading

October 18, 2017

NY Court: After Drunk Son Drives Father’s Car Through House, Father May Be Liable

by Gallivan & Gallivan

In 2012, a Long Island man, Daniel Sajewski, rammed his father’s red Mercedes-Benz through a Huntington house, narrowly missing the two elderly sisters that lived in the residence. Sajewski was, perhaps predictably, intoxicated – blowing an off-the-chart 0.30 on a breathalyzer, far exceeding New York’s 0.08 limit. In addition to losing their belongings (including a wedding band that could not be located in the rubble), the accident left the two 90-year-old sisters homeless for several months. In 2013, the judge sentenced Sajewski to one-and-a-half years to three years in prison.

More recently, State Farm, who insured the house that was destroyed, has decided to pursue legal action against Sajewski’s father, the owner of the vehicle. State Farm is seeking $180,000 from the father to reimburse it for the money spent on repairing the home. State Farm is able to pursue this claim because, under New York law, the owner of a vehicle is liable for the damages caused by its drivers – so long as the driver has the owner’s permission to operate the vehicle. According to the statute, the permission can be expressly stated or implied.

August 30, 2017

As a “Textalyzer” Comes Closer to Reality in NY, Civil Rights Advocates Clash With Safety Groups

by Gallivan & Gallivan

New York State may be the first state in the country to equip police with a Textalyzer, meant to check whether a driver was using his or her phone immediately preceding a crash. Governor Andrew Cuomo has directed the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee to study the technology and the inevitable issues it could create for New York residents’ privacy and civil rights. Texting, or otherwise using your cell phone, is illegal in New York and violation of this law carries five driver violation points. There is an exception for hands-free calling.

The term, a play on the age-old breathalyzer which tests the blood alcohol content of potentially drunk drivers, is meant to function in a similar manner. After a vehicle accident, police would arrive on the scene and plug the Textalyzer into the driver’s cell phone. After about a minute, the Textalyzer would respond with whether the driver was texting, emailing, surfing the web or otherwise violating New York State’s hands-free drive law. Also similar to a breathalyzer test, refusing the roadside test could result in the mandatory suspension of the driver’s license. Continue reading

July 17, 2017

After Leg Amputation Caused by Hospital Delay, Man Sues

by Gallivan & Gallivan

On September 22, 2015 Delfino Cuautle was forced to have his leg amputated after a series of bureaucratic errors at two different New York City hospitals led to a 13-hour wait and a fixable medical problem turned into a mandatory amputation. Alleging medical malpractice, Cuautle is suing for $24 million in damages caused by the hospitals.

On the day of the amputation, Cuautle was hit by a car at 6 AM on Coney Island. The EMS was on the scene within 3 minutes and took Cuautle to Coney Island Hospital. Within an hour of arriving at the hospital, doctors determined there was no blood in Cuautle’s legs – which were cold to the touch. After performing a CT scan, doctors said “emergency surgery” was necessary to save the limb. Because Coney Island Hospital did not have a surgeon that performs the specific procedure Cuautle needed, med-error it contacted a “transfer hotline” at Kings County Hospital– which is legally obligated to answer after three rings. Kings County Hospital did not pick up and Coney Island Hospital was forced to leave a message. Cuautle was eventually transferred at 2 PM – a full eight hours after the accident, and in violation of New York state law requiring hospitals to perform transfers in 30 minuts or less. Continue reading

June 13, 2017

State Legislatures Toughening Laws on Distracted Driving

by Gallivan & Gallivan

While most states have laws banning “texting while driving,” states are increasingly strengthening enforcement and penalties for so-called “distracted driving.” In 2016, auto accidents and fatalities increased by 9 percent. As a consequence, in 2017, states have taken varying approaches to solve the problem of distracted driving – which often results in accidents.

The states of Iowa and Washington have enacted the strictest laws against “distracted driving” in the country. Now, a violation (texting or calling – without a hands-free device) will move from secondary enforcement to primary enforcement. This means that police officers will not have to witness a secondary violation (such as speeding, failure to signal, etc.) before pulling a car over and issuing an additional ticket for texting or calling while driving. Instead, if a police officer witnesses a driver texting or placing a phone call, they will have the right to pull that driver over immediately and issue a ticket.

June 12, 2017

How to Teach Your Teen to Be Safe Behind the Wheel

by Gallivan & Gallivan

Make Sure Your Teen Hears You

The best advice in the world means nothing if your teenager does not listen to you – so it’s important to pick the right time, place and setting. First, pick a time and place where you can naturally ease into the conversation about driving – your teen will likely be excited about driving, but you want them to remain calm and collected during the conversation, so try to bring it up naturally. Next, be sure to ask your teen questions, such as: What do you think about how that car just swerved around three lanes of traffic? This can be a good opportunity to provide practical, wise advice about how a person should or should not drive. Lastly, there is no better way to make sure your teen hears you than to lead by example! Show your teen what good driving habits look like, and they will be sure to emulate!

Provide Good Driving Advice

March 16, 2017

Barn Owner Not Responsible for Damages Caused by Collision between Automobile and Escaped Horse, Court Finds

by Gallivan & Gallivan

Christina Piemonte sued the two owners and operators of Holiday Farm to recover damages for injuries caused by a collision between her automobile and a horse that had escaped from their farm. Piemonte sought to recover damages caused by the horse under two legal theories. First, Piemonte said that Holiday Farm did not exercise an appropriate level of care when securing the horse and should therefore be held responsible for the damage to her automobile. Second, Piemonte said that the Holiday Farm should be “strictly liable” (a legal term that esssentially means a person is responsible for damages, even though they did not actually do anything wrong) because the law imposes this burden on owners of animals with a “vicious propensity.” The Court declined both of Piemonte’s arguments and refused to hold Holiday Farm responsible for the damage that the escaped horse caused to Piemonte’s vehicle.

December 8, 2016

AAA Study Finds EVEN Hands-Free Devices Distract Drivers

by Gallivan & Gallivan

A study conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has found voice activation technology in cars to be distracting and that it takes drivers 27 seconds to regain full alertness after making a command. For example, a car going 25 mph can travel the length of three football fields before the driver’s brain fully refocuses on driving after use of this technology. One of the researchers compared the use of these systems to balancing a checkbook while driving, something no one would do. Researcher and professor at the University of Utah, David Strayer, stated once a person shifts their attention to interacting with the device they stop scanning the road and do not anticipate hazards or things in their way.

573 adult drivers were surveyed for the study in Washington, D.C. and concluded that hands-free driving distracts one-third of drivers even with their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. Seven out of 10 surveyors believed they were only distracted for 10 seconds after using an in-vehicle device to dial a phone number or change the radio station. Meanwhile, 88% said they believe other drivers are “very distracted or somewhat distracted” while using these devices. AAA spokesman, John B. Townsend stated that everyone believes they are the exception, exaggerating our ability to handle these technologies and loathing the thought of other people using it. Continue reading

July 26, 2016

U.S. Ranked Highest In Auto Accident Deaths

by Gallivan & Gallivan

According to The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) weekly Morbidity and Mortality Report, the United States (U.S.) has the highest vehicle crash death rate of 19 high-income nations, such as Belgium, Slovenia, Spain and France. In 2000, each of those countries had a death rate of 14 per every 100,000 people. The U.S. rate decreased 31%, however this paled in comparison to the 59% decrease of other comparable countries. The greatest reduction was seen in Spain with a decrease of 75% from 2000 to 2013; Slovenia also reduced their rate by 62%.

In 2013, the U.S. had the highest death rate, remaining in the double digits at 10.3 per 100,000 while other nations significantly reduced their rates. Belgium remained at second highest, however their rate significantly lower at 6.5 per 100,000. The year 2013 also saw the loss of 33,000 U.S. lives year due to motor vehicle related crashes. The nearly 33,000 people who died in car crashes in 2013 is almost 10,000 more than all of the vehicle-related deaths in all comparable 19 countries, while the U.S. population does not amount to the total population of those countries. If the U.S. was able to maintain the same death rate as Belgium, approximately 12,000 lives would have been saved that year and $140 million in medical expenses avoided.