A Florida distracted driving accident attorney can play a crucial role in helping you to recover the compensation you need to move on with your life. Unfortunately, distracted driving accidents take a toll in all states throughout the country and not just Florida. Many safety advocates believe that legislators in Florida have not gone far enough to combat the risk of distracted driving despite the fact that it causes so many deadly and catastrophic accidents.
An experienced Florida distracted driving attorney can assist you when you need to bring a claim against a party you believe is responsible for an accident and in which your injuries have gone far beyond what your health insurance or personal injury protection insurance coverage will pay. Today the US government blames one in six fatal accidents on some form of distracted driving behavior. This is an increase from one in ten just a few years ago. Distracted driving behavior does not only include texting and driving, although texting and driving is still a leading cause of significant accidents and injuries.
Distracted driving can include putting on makeup, talking to other drivers in the car, adjusting radio dials or GPS, and eating or drinking. Thousands of lives are lost every single year to accidents blamed on distracted driving and despite the fact that legislators have increased their focus on this deadly behavior, far too many people overestimate their ability to stay focused behind the car while doing more than one activity.
When you have been injured because another party was not paying attention and breached his or her duty to you as a fellow driver, you could be eligible to initiate a legal claim against that person. Although distracted driving is a loose term, it refers to anything that makes driving a secondary task. All it takes is looking away for a couple of seconds for a vehicle traveling at 55 mph to drive the length of a football field, possibly causing an accident on the way.
Different Types of Distracted Driving
Distracted driving breaks down into three primary categories; manual distractions, cognitive distractions, and visual distractions. Manual distractions include eating, applying makeup, cellphone use and reaching for items in the car because these require the driver to take their physical hands off the wheel.
Cognitive distractions refer to distress, thinking or emotions which pull a driver’s mind away from the road and the task at hand.
Visual distractions include a person outside of the vehicle, or an object that pulls the driver’s attention away, even for a few seconds. One news report says that approximately 40,000 Florida drivers are distracted by technology at any given moment.
Despite the ban on cellphone use that took place in Florida in late 2013 and the thousands of citations that have been issued to drivers since then, many law enforcement officers still argue that Florida’s laws are not enforceable enough, especially the texting ban.
Common Injuries and Distracted Driving Accidents
Distracted driving accidents can leave behind devastating and even fatal injuries. The support of an experienced and trusted personal injury lawyer can make a big difference in the recovery for the victim. Common injuries can include broken bones, whiplash, and traumatic brain injuries. Your Florida distracted driving lawyer will be responsible for exploring whether or not an act was negligent which means that the other driver unreasonably put you in harm’s way or is responsible for something else or another person being damaged.
If you have lost a loved one because of distracted driving or have had to deal with the impact of these serious injuries on your own. You need to take action as soon as possible. Your rights as a distracted driving accident victim should be protected by a dedicated and trusted personal injury lawyer. The law demands that anyone who bears some fault in this situation cannot recover all of the damages. This makes it extremely important when you need to fight against a claim from the other party that you were somehow also distracted or responsible for the incident.
Gathering evidence from the scene and working from the accident reconstruction team are some common examples that you can enhance your positioning in a personal injury claim. The support of your attorney can make it that much easier for you to attend all of your medical appointments and remain focused on healing from your accident and injuries. You deserve to be compensated for the injuries you’ve sustained.
Filing a Legal Claim for Distracted Driving Injuries
As an accident victim, you might feel like your world has been turned completely upside down by a few seconds in which someone else was distracted. Legally, you could have grounds to pursue compensation for the injuries you sustained as a result of this negligent behavior. Speaking with a lawyer is the first step towards figuring out how you can proceed. Contact our office today for a consultation and to get started on the path to healing after another person’s distractions caused you critical injury.