Atlanta Personal Injury Lawyers Blog

According to an article I read this morning on the AJC online, dozens of accidents have been caused by icy roads in the metro Atlanta area in the last 24 hours. As an Atlanta car accident lawyer who practices in all over north Georgia, I have wanted to write a blog on the issues of car and tractor trailer accidents caused by icy roads. Because of the snow we had yesterday, I am finally getting around to it.

As we all know, driving on icy roads is very difficult and dangerous. Because we all know this, it is not an excuse that an accident is not your fault because you lost complete control of your vehicle and there was nothing you could do to avoid the accident. The fact that you decided to drive when there are icy conditions can be negligence in and of itself.

In such situations, it is likely that if you are the one who ran the stop sign or red light or traveled out of your lane and caused an accident, you will be liable for the accident and liable for the damages arising from the accident. These damages can include, but are not limited to, the property damages to the other vehicle or vehicles and the injuries (or deaths) of anyone in the accident, including their medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering.

All things being equal, if there is ice on the roads, it is best not to operate a car or truck. I understand that unfortunately, because we live in the real world, sometimes we feel we have to drive when there are icy conditions - we have to go to work, for instance. If you have to drive, drive very slowly. You should drive so slowly and anticipate stops as far as possible in advance so that you can avoid using your brakes as much as possible. Braking is one of the main causes of accidents when the roads are icy.

Rapid acceleration is also a main cause of accidents. When starting from a complete stop or increasing your speed when traveling slowly, accelerate very gradually. This allows you to keep your vehicle in control. Braking and quick accelerations cause the tires of your vehicle to loose grip on the road, which is very difficult to regain on ice.

If you do loose control of your vehicle, do not panic. If your car is sliding to one side, although it is counterintuitive, steer in the same direction to regain control of your vehicle. Apply your brakes as gently as you can or not at all. Be very alert, and if you do get in a collision, keep cool headed and call 911. Hopefully, you will have been travelling slowly enough that neither you and nor anyone else will be injured.

The attorneys in our office regularly represent clients injured by drivers on icy roads. It you have been injured or a loved one has been injured or killed in an accident caused by icy roadway conditions, please contact our firm and talk to one of our experienced car accident lawyers about your rights and claims.

I know I am beginning to sound like a broken record, but texting and driving kills. I just read another article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution on line where a Douglasville driver ran a red light in Alabama killing the driver of the other vehicle. It is not certain that the driver was texting, and I hope that is not the case. Unfortunately, it is likely the driver was texting and that is why he ran the light.

As an Atlanta personal injury lawyer who practices all over north Georgia, I am seeing more serious injury and deaths caused by texting drivers causing violent collisions. The article I read about the Alabama fatality, also mentioned a collision where a Lilburn man six days ago crashed his car into a tree while texting a friend. Thankfully, in that crash, the driver had only minor injuries and was treated and released from the hospital.

Charges have not yet been filed in the Alabama case. The State Patrol is still investigating, and although they feel texting was involved, they cannot yet prove it. The next step will be to subpoena the Douglasville driver's phone records. If the records confirm he was texting, charges will be filed, most likely for vehicular homicide. The Lilburn driver was charged with improper use of a cell phone by a driver.

As I mentioned in a previous blog, the Georgia General Assembly is working on two bills that would make the act of texting and driving illegal in Georgia. Both bills would require a fine between $100 and $300, and one of the bills would put two points on the offender's license. As far as I am concerned, the legislation can not be passed fast enough. Ever day I get another call or read another article about the perils of texting and driving. You would think that the perils of texting and driving are now absolutely obvious (both intuitively and because of all the press on the topic), and that legislation would not be needed. But like drinking and driving, we human beings will put others at serious risk of injury unless it is illegal to do so.

And even when it is illegal, we human beings will continue at some level to ignore the law and cause great harm. Even if the legislation is passed to make texting and driving illegal, I expect it will still be a problem for that very reason. And I worry many more drivers will continue to text and drive than now drink and drive. For the family of the driver killed in Alabama and all others killed and seriously injured by texting drivers, I hope I am wrong.