Multi-Car Accidents – Whose Fault Is It?

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WHEN THERE ARE SEVERAL AUTOMOBILES INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT, THE DAMAGE THAT IS CREATED IS THAT MUCH WORSE

On Friday night, July 19th, Palm Beach County Fire Rescue responded to the scene of a multi-car accident in Royal Palm Beach. The collision that took place on State Road 7 and Okeechobee Boulevard involved five separate vehicles. Of the nine victims who were transported to both Palms West Hospital and Wellington Regional Medical Center, there were several who needed to be removed from the vehicle they were in. Thankfully, none of the parties involved in this large accident had serious injuries to speak of; however, knowing what kind of damage multi vehicle car accidents can cause, they are all extremely lucky.

MULTI-CAR ACCIDENT SCENERIOS

An issue that many times presents itself when there are multiple cars involved in an auto accident is determining who in fact is at fault for the collision. This is true with even the most basic of multi-car accidents, including rear end collisions.

Everyone becomes quick to point the finger at someone else as to being responsible for the accident. It may seem pretty easy to say who is at fault in a rear end collision involving multiple automobiles, but in fact, there are many questions that are raised because people are generally looking forward and do not see what has happened behind them. Times when people attempt to shift responsibility include:

• Front Vehicle at Fault: At times, the front vehicle in a multi-car accident gets blamed for the collision. Accusations of cutting off another driver, braking too aggressively, and recklessly attempting to switch lanes are a few of the things that are used to place blame on a front vehicle.
• Middle Vehicle at Fault: There are situations when a middle vehicle in a multi-car accident receives blame for the collision. Accusations from a rear vehicle may include that the middle vehicle was the first one to strike the first vehicle in line. It is generally the case that the lead vehicle saw what was taking place behind them.
• “Phantom Vehicle” Scenarios: When there is a situation where an at-fault party claims that another vehicle, who was not involved in the actual accident, caused the collision and drove away, it is referred to as a “Phantom Vehicle” situation.
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Death-Related Hit & Run Auto Accident in Hialeah

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SOUTH FLORIDA HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT HAS SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES

Recently, Hialeah Police were forced to track down an alleged offender of a hit and run incident which took place at a public bus station. The awful event, which killed one waiting bus passenger and caused injuries to another, occurred outside of a fast food restaurant with patrons inside taking sight of this horrific tragedy. What the Pollo Tropical guests at the 49th Street and 16th Avenue store location witnessed will be embedded in their minds for a very long time. After the victim was struck while at the bus stop, his body was flung through the restaurant’s drive through. The store location immediately closed the facility due to the circumstances.

What has surfaced through reports is that the alleged offender, Henry Paz, fled the scene following the impact with the two victims. Witnesses claim that the vehicle that the suspect was driving, a Toyota Camry had a flat tire and he was driving away on the rim. During the investigation by the Hialeah Police Department, an officer responded to a nearby call of a person in need of a tow truck because of a flat tire within an hour of the hit and run accident. Upon arriving to the tow truck call, which was less than a mile away from the unimaginable scene, officers first came in contact with the alleged offender.

After putting the pieces of the puzzle together, officers arrested the suspect for the hit and run accident and charged him with leaving the scene of an accident with a death and serious injury. Statements from Police later indicate that Paz admitted to drinking alcohol prior to entering his vehicle that evening. The charges that the suspect faces may be amplified by the results of the blood alcohol tests that were administered to him following his arrest.

REASONS PEOPLE FLEE THE SCENE OF AN ACCIDENT

There are many reasons why a person might actually flee the scene of an accident. Some of those reasons include:

• No Driver’s License
• No Proof of PIP Insurance • Impaired Driving • Criminal Warrants
• Stolen Vehicle • Fear of Consequences

HIT AND RUN ACCIDENTS ARE OFTEN FATAL

When a loved one is killed in such a horrific manner, justice is many family members’ number one goal; however, civil litigation many times follows such events as well. Lawsuits for wrongful death are filed when someone has caused a negligent killing of another person. With as much heart ache that is felt by the family of the victim, there can be an equal amount of stress involved with expenses that are generated from the death of their loved one.
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Who Is At Fault When A Person Is Hit By A Car?

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SOUTH FLORIDA ROADS HAVE PROVEN TO BE HAZARDOUS FOR BOTH AUTOMOBILES AND THOSE CHOOSING TO WALK

In the early morning hours on July 22, 2013, a pedestrian, unidentified young woman, was struck and killed by an automobile in Lake Worth, Florida. Reports claim that this victim was either kneeling down, or lying on the roadway when she was struck by the oncoming vehicle. At this stage of the investigation, the identity of the victim is being withheld by authorities until the family who survives her can be contacted and notified of the accident. Officials have confirmed that she was twenty-six years old.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has released a statement indicating that the victim was hit while situated on the outside of the eastbound lanes on Lake Worth Road. The vehicle that struck and killed the woman was occupied by two people who were able to walk away from the accident without injuries. The numbers of additional facts that surround this horrific event are still limited given that the investigation remains ongoing.

Having a large populated area like we do here in South Florida creates hazardous conditions at times for many pedestrians who use sidewalks, crosswalks and other paths along busy roadways.

UNDERSTANDING PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENTS

Statistics demonstrate how serious of a problem pedestrian involved auto accidents are. On average, a pedestrian is killed just under every two hours, and injured about every ten minutes by automobiles in the United States. When pedestrian accidents occur, investigators need to look to all the parties involved as both pedestrians and motorists are required to follow traffic laws. This fact may be very basic to many; however, it is extremely important when considering liability of the accident. It can never be assumed that the motorist involved in the accident is the at-fault party by default.

WHEN A PEDESTRIAN IS AT FAULT

When a pedestrian fails to use due care when walking along a major road or busy highway, dangerous conditions are created that may contribute to an accident.

Pedestrians can cause auto accidents when they:

• Cross roads without using crosswalks;
• Walk into the street with oncoming traffic coming;
• Fail to use traffic signals dedicated for pedestrian flow
Following all traffic laws as a pedestrian can greatly reduce the chances of being hit by a car.

WHEN A MOTORIST IS AT FAULT

It becomes a little clearer for us to see how a motorist can be liable for an accident involving a pedestrian. These violations of traffic laws are more regularly heard of by us, and include:

• Speeding • DUI • Careless Driving • Running Red Lights / Stop Signs • Failure to Yield to a Pedestrian’s Right-of-Way • Not Using Signal Indicators
As drivers on the road, it is important for us to be mindful of pedestrians who share the roads with us, and being mindful can come easy if we just follow existing traffic laws.
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Florida Drunk Driving Accidents and the Victims Involved

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Losing a loved one is the hardest thing that a person can go through. When someone you care about is no longer here, the emotions that you go through can be extremely overwhelming. Those emotions are amplified when the person you love has fallen victim to the actions of a drunk driver. In 2011 alone, there were over seven hundred fatalities attributed to drunk driving in the state of Florida. The careless decision made by a person who drinks and drives creates life altering effects for many different people. The legal consequences that a drunk driver will take on, the costs to tax payers to prosecute a drunk driver, and the grief that the family of a victim will be forced to deal with, are all examples of different lives which are effected by drunk driving accidents.

From the day that we first get behind the wheel of an automobile, we are taught that consuming alcohol prior to driving can severely increase our chances of getting into a collision. As a preventative measure to encourage drivers not to drink and drive, promoting the penalties that one can incur from driving impaired, could work to deter a person from driving drunk. When we first receive our Florida Driver’s License, we consented to alcohol testing by law enforcement who believes us to be impaired. Failing to comply with such testing will result in an automatic year suspension of our driving privilege. However, there are harsher penalties involved with failing these alcohol tests conducted by the police, even for a first time offender.

First Time Penalties Associated with DUI

Monetary Penalties Ranging from $250 up to $500
• Possible Community Service Hours • Up to One Year of Criminal Probation
• Jail Time of up to Six Months; Nine Months where a Minor is in the Vehicle • Six Month Minimum Suspension of Driver’s License
• Twelve Hour DUI Safe Driving Course
In Florida, there are over fifty thousand tickets issued annually for DUI penalties. Of those tickets, the State has more than a sixty percent conviction rate, which means that our court system is extremely busy prosecuting DUI offenders. With as many DUI cases as Florida has, you can bet that there is a high cost to state and local expenses in dealing with making sure these drunk drivers receive proper penalties for their crime.

Florida DUI Convictions in 2010 According to DMV Records

• Miami – (Miami-Dade County) – 2,274 • West Palm Beach – (Palm Beach County) – 1,561 • Ft. Lauderdale – (Broward County) – 985 • Tampa – (Hillsborough County) – 3,256 • Jacksonville – (Duval County) – 2,222 • St. Petersburg – (Pinellas County) – 1,824 • Orlando – (Orange County) – 1,383 • Melbourne – (Brevard County) – 1,072
There can be no confusion as to the amount of money that is spent annually on convicting DUI offenders. Though it is an obvious necessity to try and penalize these drivers for their actions, it should remain concerning to us as tax payers that the costs allotted for prosecution of DUIs remains consistently high.
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Changes to the Personal Injury Protection Laws in Florida

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The new laws in Florida that cover personal injury protection benefits have been made much more stringent to what they were previously. In general, the time that a person has to make a claim under an auto insurance policy has been cut down significantly, as well as additional steps being added to the process of receiving payments for medical bills.

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Beginning in January of 2013, the changes that the Florida’s legislature created took effect making victims of auto accidents analyze their injuries and property damage in an extremely timely fashion. The policy argument that came from the state was that the new imposed rules would help to prevent fraudulent claims. The unfortunate truth of the situation is that many non-insurance related groups were impacted from these changes, especially those individuals who have been injured in auto accidents.

A major concern of many Floridians is that they will continue to pay the same amount, if not more, in premiums, while possibly receiving less in benefits. It remains the law that all state citizen drivers maintain a minimum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) in PIP coverage, while certain circumstances could leave them being only able to collect twenty-five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) in medical benefits.

The reform to the previous PIP laws has created a fourteen (14) day window in which an initial consultation with a physician must be performed in order to qualify for benefits. Previously, there has been no time restriction at all. If your first date of treatment comes after the fourteen day period, nothing will be paid by the insurance company to your provider. Initial treatments must be provided by a hospital or licensed clinic, or by a select group of professionals, including medical doctor, dentist, chiropractor and paramedic.

There are also two benefit thresholds:

1st: To qualify for $10,000, your injuries must be diagnosed as an emergency medical condition.

2nd: For a non-emergency treatment, the maximum benefit is $2,500.00
Additionally, certain therapeutic treatments will no longer be covered under PIP regardless of when the claim is filed with the insurance company. Insurance companies have no duty to inform their policy holders of the changes either. Though the new PIP laws require that insurance companies lower their policy holders’ premiums by the year 2014, there is nothing preventing them from fighting this and possibly not having to follow through with it. The requirement itself forces the insurance companies to lower rates by at least 25%, but policies held by Floridians only have approximately 20% of their bills attributed to PIP coverage. This fact alone demonstrates that insured drivers in Florida will not likely even feel a decrease in their policy.
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