Blog Archive - April, 2021

TALLAHASSEE, FL - The Florida House Judiciary Committee voted 18-2 in favor of HB 719, to end Florida's no-fault system and end the requirement that Florida drivers need to carry personal-injury protection (PIP) coverage.

ORLANDO, FL - Orlando's key theme parks self-reported the most severe injuries to park visitors from January 2021 through March 2021.*  According to a recent report from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  The incidents report range from motion sickness to hip injuries.

CALIFORNIA - A lawsuit filed by the families of the nine fallen Marines blames the Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAV) vehicle's manufacturer for "documented mechanical issues" leading to the tragedy that could have been preventable.  The U.S. Marine Corps' command investigation showed a "combination of human and mechanical errors" is what caused the fatal sinking of an AAV off of the San Clemente Island.  The incident tragically killed a Navy sailor and eight Marines.  The Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) released the incident report involving the fatal accident last July.

SPRING, TX - According to an online news report published on CNN.com, two people were tragically killed in a Tesla Model S collision last Saturday.  According to the Harris County Police, there was no driver sitting behind the car's steering wheel that crashed.

The fatal accident occurred in Spring, Texas, which is a Houston suburb.  According to the Harris County Police Constable Mark Herman, there was one passenger in the front passenger seat and another passenger in the rear seat of the Tesla.  Constable Herman stated that the Harris County Police investigators are certain that no one was in the Tesla's driver's seat at the time of the accident.

GEORGIA - A news article published on AJC.COM states that new crash data is showing that additional enforcement and extra publicity about Georgia's distracted-driving law may be changing the behavior of some drivers.  According to the AJC.com article, traffic tickets for distracted driving have increased, and traffic accident fatalities have fallen.  Moreover, recent surveys are reporting that most Georgia residents are now fully aware of the hands-free driving law, and it appears that Georgia drivers are attempting to comply.  A new analysis published this weekend stated that Georgia motorists are spending less time on their cell phones.

THE UNITED STATES - A  new McGill University study reports that U.S. states that have legalized the recreational use of marijuana have experienced a spike in fatal car accidents.  According to the new study, the number of fatal motor vehicle accidents grew by 15 percent, and the number of related deaths rose 16 percent.  The study suggests that if marijuana were to be legalized in all 50 states, the total number of annual traffic-related deaths may increase by 4,843.

JAPAN - According to a new Japanese Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR) study, voice assistants with special cognitive impairment features can determine a person's driving-accident risk.  The study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research discovered that drivers who were 60 years or older who were in accidents or near accidents had notable changes in their speech features, which indicates that they suffered from some cognitive impairments.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) proposed examining the commercial truck's rear impact guard during a commercial vehicle's annual inspection.  Although rear impact guards have been required on most commercial vehicles for about 70 years, rear impact guards are not required to be inspected during an annual vehicle inspection.  This means a missing or damaged rear impact guard would not prevent the commercial truck from passing its annual safety inspection.

LOS ANGELES, CA - Law enforcement authorities have reported Tiger Woods was driving almost 90 mph, which was twice the legal speed limit.  The report states that Mr. Woods was driving on a stretch of road when he lost control of his SUV and crashed leaving him seriously injured. 

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reported that approximately 328,000 motor vehicle accidents per year are caused by sleepy drivers in the United States.  The study also states that about 109,000 of those accidents resulted in an injury, and another 6,400 accidents result in death.

A jury has awarded a family $29.5 million in a lawsuit that alleged their daughter sustained brain damage after MedicWest negligently failed to manage their daughter's anaphylactic shock.  According to the news report, the adult daughter accidentally consumed peanut butter, to which she is highly allergic.  The woman did not know the pretzels she had consumed had peanut butter in them.  The EMS service, MedicWest Ambulance, was the service provider at the event.  The woman sustained a lack of oxygen to her brain under MedicWest Ambulance's care for a few minutes causing terrible consequences.

LAS VEGAS, NV - The Nevada Highway Patrol Southern Command has reported that the number of wrong-way driver calls has surged in 2021.  The Nevada Highway Patrol reported that they have received around 140 phone calls from January 1 to April 6 in 2021. During the same time frame in 2020, there were 128 wrong-way calls. According to the Nevada Highway Patrol, this troubling trend has law enforcement officials throughout the United States initiating new safety campaigns.  

UTAH - A news report published on deseret.com states that Utah Highway Patrol's Lieutenant Nick Street conducted a conference call with other state highway patrol troopers' administrators.  Lieutenant Street stated that the discussion shifted to a serious problem that had been weighing on his mind: head-on accidents caused by wrong-way drivers.

The 35% drop in motor vehicle traffic in 2020 due to the COVID-19 business closures and lockdowns has safety advocates concerned about the possibility of a sharp rise in traffic accidents due to bad driving habits.  The preliminary nationwide crash statistics show that fatal motor vehicle accidents have increased by 4.6 percent according to LOSSPREVENTIONMEDIA.COM.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) research has discovered that women are at an increased likelihood of being injured or killed in motor vehicle accidents even though women are involved in fewer accidents than men.

ATLANTA, GA - A news article published new statistics showing the State of Georgia saw a significant increase in fatal traffic accidents last year.  According to Channel 2′s Lori Wilson, a speeding driver tragically killed a young mother last year.  Tragically, the fatal I-75/I-85 accident took the life of a 27-year-old mother.  The driver is awaiting trial on a long list of criminal charges, including driving too fast for conditions and homicide by vehicle. 

Honda and Acura have initiated a recall of approximately 600,000 sedans, SUVs, and trucks due to a defective fuel pump that can shut off, causing the vehicle to suddenly decelerate, putting owners at risk of being in an accident.*

ST. PETERSBURG, FL - Advocates state that the new bill signed into law by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis protecting businesses from COVID-19 related lawsuits does not protect employees.  Representatives for the Florida Justice Association stated that the bill does not permit workers to hold employers accountable for acting negligently during the pandemic. 

GEORGIA - The Blue Bird Corporation is working to develop a C-V2X technology that will "talk" with Audi vehicles to help prevent school bus accidents and alert Audi vehicles to active school zones to protect children from pedestrian accidents.  The Blue Bird Corporation and Atlanta's Fulton County School System have teamed up to pilot the C-V2X deployment.