- When Reckless Habits Lead to Catastrophic Trauma
- Dangers of Drowsiness on the Road
- Who Is Most at Risk?
- Evidence in a Fatigued Driving Case
- Contact an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney
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When Reckless Habits Lead to Catastrophic Trauma
Many of us have first-hand experience with driving late at night when drowsiness starts to set in, either on a long road trip or after working overtime. This practice can, and has, lead to dangerous traffic collisions that result in a large amount of property damage, traumatic injuries, and death. When our bodies are fatigued, we have slower reaction times and can even fall asleep and swerve across multiple lanes of traffic.
Fatigued driving is a pervasive problem and multiple government agencies have sited it as a major cause in traffic collisions. If you were struck by a fatigued driver in Los Angeles County, then you should not hesitate to contact a Glendale fatigued driver accident attorney at Aghabegian Law Group, P.C. Our legal team has more than two decades of experience advocating for fair and proper compensation for our clients after they have suffered traumatic injuries. Do not let a negligent driver leave you penniless following an accident.
Call us at (818) 350-HURT (350-4878) or contact us online to secure sound legal representation.
Dangers of Drowsiness on the Road
Government agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Highway Traffic Safety Agency (NHTSA) as well as non-profits like the National Safety Council (NSC) have all advocated for safer driving practices to eliminate the risk of fatigued driving. Tens of thousands of vehicle accidents and hundreds of deaths are attribute to this behavior each year and it can easily affect anyone on the road.
Driving while drowsy can lead to:
- Slowed reaction times
- The inability to identify road hazards
- A reduced chance of breaking or slowing down
In addition, the NSC notes that drivers who are awake for more than 20 hours have the same reaction times and driving capabilities as someone who has a BAC of 0.08%, the legal limit.
Who Is Most at Risk?
Drowsy driving can affect anyone, from an office worker who has a long drive home after working overtime to a college student who has been up all-night studying. However, the most common groups who are at risk for being involved in a fatigued driving accident include:
- Commercial vehicle drivers like truck drivers
- Delivery drivers handling late night food orders
- Rideshare drivers who transport travelers after red-eye flights
- Individuals who work late-night shifts either in the evening or overnight
- Drivers who take medication that causes drowsiness, including over the counter drugs
- Individuals with sleep disorders
Often, these accidents are limited to a single vehicle with no passengers and occur on rural roads. But many still happen on major highways and can easily lead to a driver drifting into on-coming traffic, leading to head-on collisions.
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Evidence in a Fatigued Driving Case
Determining whether a driver was fatigued or not at the time of the accident can be difficult without clear evidence or witness statements. In some cases, drivers might admit to falling asleep at the wheel when interviewed by the police and the accident report may place fault on them. In addition, an accident reconstructionist can analyze tire tracks, vehicle damage, and surveillance footage of the accident to determine the driver’s state at the time of the accident. If they suddenly drifted across multiple lanes or failed to break for an obvious hazard, it may be a sign of drowsiness.
Truck drivers are among the most common group of drivers who fall asleep at the wheel and the federal government has employed strict hours of services to combat this problem. Drivers are required to log their driving hours and breaks with their truck’s black box. When they go over their hours of service, they put themselves at risk for fatigued driving and an accident. However, many still disregard these rules in order to complete a job on time or due to pressure from their trucking employer. Evidence of fatigued driving is stored in the truck’s black box and after an accident your attorney can subpoena its information to review the hours of service. If the driver violated it, it could be used as a clear sign of fatigue.
While delivery and rideshare drivers do not have the same black box in their vehicles or restrictions to keep them from driving too many hours, the apps they use on their phones do log their daily hours at the wheel and can demonstrate that they were driving for long periods with no breaks. In addition, a shift worker’s schedule can also be investigated to determine if they were working overtime and were fatigued.
Contact an Experienced Personal Injury Attorney
Even though fatigued driving is so prevalent, particularly on LA County freeways, insurance companies still try to devalue or reject car accident claims based on it. They may claim that because you were also driving late at night, you are just as likely to have been fatigued as well. Or that if you were wide awake, you were capable of avoiding the accident yourself.
The Glendale car accident attorneys at Aghabegian Law Group, P.C. have dealt with numerous insurance adjusters over the years and have successfully countered their erroneous arguments in order to achieve the compensation are owed after a fatigued driving accident. When you bring your case to us, we will investigate every piece of evidence and avenue to determine what caused the accident, who is liable, and how much money you are owed.
Contact us at (818) 350-HURT (350-4878) or online to hold drowsy drivers accountable for your injuries.
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