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It is still not entirely clear what happend earlier this month, but it appears that a teenager swerved into oncoming traffic, causing serious injuries and some of his or her passengers’ deaths. Without knowing who was actually behind the wheel, it is impossible to say whether the driver survived the crash, or if he or she was one of the few survivors. Ultimately, however, the families of passengers who died or the fortunate few who survived the crash can still file wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits, respectively.

When the individual who causes a fatal accident also dies in the crash, a victim or his or her family can file a lawsuit against the responsible driver’s estate. Before of the individual’s family and friends were to inherit, a personal injury or wrongful death award would need to be paid out. Oftentimes the insurance company will also contribute to the award.

Again, it is not entirely clear who was behind the wheel of a car of five teenagers earlier in the month, but four of the five passengers were killed. The other suffered serious injuries and was rushed to the hospital. The driver, for some unknown reason, swerved into oncoming traffic and smashed into an SUV. Both the driver and the passenger in the SUV were also seriously injured.

Whether it is to better one’s health, to enjoy nice weather or just to reduce the cost of transportation, there are a number of people in Herkimer County and across upstate New York who are choosing to walk instead of drive. It is undeniable that there are benefits to walking, but there are also risks, too. Pedestrian accidents can be serious and sometimes fatal. Moreover, drivers don’t always pay attention to pedestrians, which puts them in even greater risk of danger.

There are a number of safety campaigns in place around the country to lower the risk of pedestrian accidents, but the number of pedestrian fatalities has actually risen since 2009. It appears, however, that the first half of 2013 actually had fewer fatal pedestrian crashes than the first six months of 2012, a first since 2009.

What is truly important when talking about pedestrian safety, however, is reducing drivers’ speed. The faster a car is traveling at the time of impact, the higher the risk of severe injury or death. According to the former chief scientist for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, when someone is hit by a car that is going faster than 20 mph, the impact is more likely to be fatal.

Articles Tagged with insurance

Teenager causes fatal accident on Long Island

Reducing speed should reduce the number of pedestrian deaths