Each year, 17,500 people in the United States suffer from spinal cord injuries. This is 48 new injuries on a daily basis. Most of these people get injured in falls, auto accidents, sports-related accidents, and violence. Newly injured patients are generally aged 42.
In 2018, the National Safety Council reported that two-car collisions were the most commonly occurring motor vehicle accidents. Of these, unsurprisingly, close to 50 percent of cases were found to involve rear-end collisions. Like any other busy city, New York is no exception to such accidents that mostly occur because drivers do not have the patience to maintain the specified distance from the car in front.
Research from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has shown that the risk of a head-on collision is greatest at intersections. This happens because when traffic flows in opposite directions, vehicles that cross the center line may hit another vehicle traveling in the opposite direction. Sometimes, a car going the wrong way on a one-way lane can also cause a head-on collision.
When driving in an unfamiliar area, it is not uncommon to miss taking the correct turn in the road. In such a situation, the car driver may try to make up for the error by making a U-turn to proceed in the opposite direction. This type of maneuver requires a lot of space and if the driver tries to execute it in a narrow space, or across several lanes of traffic, it can quickly turn dangerous and cause a horrific crash.
Automobile accidents in the US are responsible for the death of almost 6,000 pedestrians every year. New York is one of the most congested cities in the world has more than 3,000 pedestrians every year suffering serious injury in such accidents. When you hear of a pedestrian accident, your first instinct may be to believe that it was caused due to the driver’s fault. However, there are cases where car accidents in NYC are caused due to the negligence of pedestrians.
While the word ‘accident’ implies that an event occurred unexpectedly, when it comes to car accidents, this may not always be true. A Stanford Law School study has in fact shown that close to 90 percent of motor vehicle collisions arise, at least partially, due to human error. This is the reason why it is important to hold errant individuals accountable for their actions.
To compensate for the expenses that accident victims incur on their medical treatment and recovery, the personal injury law in New York allows them to claim damages. Based on the nature of the injury, it is possible for the injured person to get compensation from either their own insurance company and/or from the party at fault for the accident.
Driving on the congested streets of New York can be a huge challenge and the dangers of causing a crash are especially high when you navigate around a busy intersection and have to make a left turn. Data from the NYC Department of Transportation’s (DOT) study in 2016 shows that left turns are the cause of more than double the bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities as right turns. Left-turn accidents in New York have also been known to cause three times as many fatalities and serious injuries as right-turn accidents.
A New York car accident injury can have devastating consequences on not just your health but also on your ability to earn your living. It is quite understandable for you to be worried about paying the medical bills and financing your vehicle repairs. In cases of severe injury when the victim has to miss work due to their injuries, there is the added stress of loss of income.
If you have been injured in an accident caused by the negligence of another individual, you have the right to file a personal injury claim. In situations when you have sustained only a minor injury or if your vehicle has suffered negligible damage, it can be quite simple to handle such claims on your own. However, in cases where there is evidence of major injury or extensive vehicle damage, the legal process can get quite complex. In such situations, hiring the services of a skilled New York City personal injury lawyer is the best way to ensure that you get the maximum compensation that you deserve.
