An article appeared in the Buffalo News today about teen driving habits, specifically teens driving while texting and emailing. The statistics in the article are alarming. Over half of the teens surveyed in a national study, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, admitted to texting while driving. That number jumps to 58% when the study is narrowed to high school seniors. As we mentioned in a previous post on texting while driving the practice can significantly increase your risk of an accident while driving. This point is reinforced by another stat line from the Buffalo News article: Distracted driving accounts for 16% of teen motor vehicle deaths.

While these stats are scary, the Transportation Department aims to do something about it. They are in the process of awarding grants in pilot programs in California and Delaware to deter the behavior through stepped-up enforcement and education on the dangers of texting while driving. If you have teen drivers in your household do your part as well. Let your teen know that texting while driving is a reckless habit that not only endangers their safety, but the safety of other drivers on the road. Consider having everyone in your household participate in a program like WGRZ’s ‘Pledge to Hang Up’, WIVB’s ‘thnk b4 u txt’ program, or any of a number of programs that advocate again distracted driving. More information, including quick facts and tips on how to stop, is also available through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration program, ‘Stop the Texts. Stop the Wrecks.’

Do your part to stop preventable car accidents. Be sure that you and your family are practicing safe driving techniques. Don’t text and drive. If you do find yourself in an accident due to a distracted driver, contact the law firm with over 100 years of combined personal injury experience in Buffalo. Call the Law Offices of James Morris at 716-855-1118.

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What most people fail to realize is that, under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulation of 1995, employers are required to report all accidents in the workplace regardless of the incident’s severity. For this reason, it is imperative that employees do their part in recognizing when workplace accidents occur and properly recording them for employer review.  This requirement extends beyond the realm of erroneous human behavior to include spread of diseases and illnesses as well. Employees and employers should take every measure possible to prevent workplace accidents. The list below provides four preventive measures to take in every workplace:

1. Safety Training for New and Current Employees: As part of orientation, all employers should enforce a rigorous safety training session to assure that employees know what to do if a workplace accident occurs.
2. Ongoing Safety Education: an initial safety orientation is a good start, but continuing safety education in the workplace at regular intervals can save employers thousands of dollars in the long run if a workplace accident were to occur. Monthly safety meetings, bulletin board reminders and occasional informational video sessions are all good ways of continuing an employee’s safety education.
3. Provide Necessary Safety Equipment: easily the most obvious point on the list, but also the most important. Without necessary safety and first-aid equipment readily available, an accident in the workplace can go from bad to worse in minutes. Essential safety protection includes eye goggles, adhesive bandages and ear plugs.
4. Proper Training for Specialized Machinery: if your organization uses any sort of occupational-specific machinery, necessary training in machinery function should be given to all employees who will use it. This sort of training should not occur on the job, but rather before the employee begins work.

Many distractions incorporate any or all of these types causing both sensory and mental distractions. The GHSA used these distractions as criteria for their study to determine when drivers were considered distracted. Now that you know what constitutes distracted driving, here are some of the most startling distracted driving statistics from the GHSA’s report (view the full report here: Distracted Driving: What Research Shows and What States Can Do)

1. Drivers are distracted up to 50% of the time while driving: based on observations of over 100 different drivers, drivers engaged in a secondary activity 25%-50% of the time. More specifically, evidence showed that two-thirds of all drivers surveyed reported cellphone use while driving
2. Fifteen to thirty percent of all crashes involve at least one distracted driver: this proportion may be even greater due to restrictions in generating data.
3. One eighth of all drivers admitted to texting and driving: the study also suggested that texting is likely to increase crash risk more so than traditional cell phone use.

Due your part to stop preventable car accidents by shutting out distractions while driving. Should you fall victim to a distracted driver, contact a buffalo lawyer from a law firm with over 100 years of combined personal injury compensation experience. Call James Morris Law, 716-855-1118.

Source: TotalInjury.com

1. Teens are more likely to speed: In 2005, 37% of fatal car crashes involving 15-20 year olds were due to speeding. The presence of male teenage passengers increases this likelihood according to a study on the observed effects of teenage passengers on the risky driving behavior of teenage drivers.

2. Teens have the lowest rate of seatbelt use: a 2005 study confirmed that roughly 10% of teens admitted to rarely or never wearing a seat-belt, that percentage was even higher for male participants.

3. Teens are more likely to be in an accident at any BAC level: the CDC confirms that any elevated level of blood alcohol puts teens at a greater risk of a car accident than the rest of the population. Twenty-five percent of drivers age 15-20 who died in a car accident in 2008 had BAC levels of .08 or higher.

4. Teens are more likely to be in a car accident on the weekend: A 2008 study found that 56% of teenage fatal car accidents occurred on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

Fortunately, there is hope for teen drivers. Research suggests that 16-year-olds who enrolled in comprehensive graduated drivers licensing (GDL) programs slashed their risk of getting in an automobile accident by as much as 40%. An automobile accident can strike anyone at any time, not just teens. Should you, a child or a friend need a car accident attorney, call an attorney in buffalo from a law firm with over 100 years of combined personal injury experience. Call James Morris Law, 716-855-1118.

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3. Read this and think twice before driving impaired
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5. Texting while driving on the rise
6. Why automobile accidents occur between cars and buildings
7. Are teen car accidents higher in the summer?
8. Why your bus driver might cause your next car accident
9. What happens in a car accident with an uninsured motorist?
10. Most common type of car accidents in New York and its cause.
11. Teen Car Accidents: What’s the Cause?

Drunk-driving accidents can be prevented by both impaired drivers and pedestrians. If you’ve been drinking, avoid operating a vehicle at all costs, regardless of whether you’re below the legal limit. As a general rule, if you’ve had anything to drink, find a different ride home. For pedestrians, be aware that drivers do take the risk of driving impaired, so stay alert of your surroundings and avoid walking on roads, especially dim lit roads at night. If you’re interested in testing your BAC purely for informational purposes, consult the sources below:

• BloodAlchoholCaclulator.org
• BAC Estimates
• Erie County: Stop DWI
• Home Breathalyzer Kit

President Kelmachter stressed that there is no malpractice “crisis” in New York, pointing out that since 1991 insurance premiums have risen less than the rate of healthcare cost inflation. President Kelmachter advocated for greater efforts to reduce medical errors, stating that “the biggest driver of malpractice insurance costs is tragic and preventable medical errors themselves.”

The pair was returning to Buffalo from Indiana. The woman drove from Indiana to Pennsylvania until she grew weary, at which point the man took the wheel. The man, driving under the influence of drugs, lost control of the vehicle between Exits 55 and 56 on a Hamburg highway and was struck by a passing vehicle. The passenger side took the brunt of the collision, resulting in the woman’s devastating injuries. In addition to his impairment, the man operated the vehicle with a suspended license.

In a statement to the Supreme Court, the driver said “I didn’t mean for this to happen. . . I cry myself to sleep every night. I’m sorry, that’s all I can say.” Despite the man’s remorse, in addition to the vehicular assault charge, the court charged him with aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and possession of marijuana. In a statement to the Buffalo News, the victim’s husband stated “Everything my wife loved to do, she can no longer do because of this accident… She can’t do anything by herself.”

You can avoid accidents like this. Do not drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or allow anyone in that condition to drive your vehicle. If you’ve suffered due to someone else’s recklessness, call James Morris Law today 716-855-1118.

Children are more susceptible to lead poisoning due to an underdeveloped digestive system and ease of ingestion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry suggest that a child’s digestive system absorbs up to 10 times more lead than that of an adult, and will excrete only 32% of the absorbed lead, as opposed to 99% excreted by an adult. Children ingest lead through everyday behaviors like sucking their thumb, eating with their hands or even playing with certain toys, making lead poisoning difficult to prevent.

Once a child ingests lead, diagnosis of lead poisoning can be costly and mistimed. There are few, if any, external signals alerting parents that a child has ingested lead. A doctor administered blood test is the only conclusive way to tell if a child’s lead levels are elevated. Through early detection of lead ingestion from lead-based paint or from another lead source, parents alleviate I.Q. decline, physical and intellectual debility, attention deficit disorder, delayed reaction time,  and kidney damage that may occur to the child later in life.

Don’t let your child fall victim to lead poisoning at the hands of lead based paint in your home. If your child has tested positively for lead poisoning due to exposed lead paint, call a Buffalo personal injury lawyer today. Contact James Morris Law at 716-855-1118.

What would you do if you were injured in an accident caused by a teenager in New York State? You need a determined Buffalo NY accident lawyer on your side. You need the Law Offices of James Morris. An experienced Buffalo auto accident attorney at our firm can guide you through the complicated red tape often associated with such complicated accidents. We know the kinds of games insurance companies often try to play. They don’t intimidate us. We’re not afraid to vigorously fight for our clients’ rights. Put your trust in a Buffalo New York car accident attorney who puts people first. Contact the Law Offices of James Morris.

Teenage drivers kill thousands of people every year. In 2009, a teenager (15 to 19 years old) was killed in an auto accident nearly every 3 hours nationwide, according to the CDC. That’s more than 3,000 teenagers that year. Here’s another sobering statistic: between 2005 and 2009, nearly 15 teenagers (13 to 19 years old) were killed every single day nationwide between Memorial Day and Labor Day in car accidents, reports AAA. That’s more than 7,300 teenagers during that five year time period.

Teenager drivers in New York State regularly cause serious accidents. You shouldn’t have to suffer because of someone else’s reckless behavior. Take back control. Contact the Law Offices of James Morris. We’re on your side.

The information contained in this communication is provided for informational purposes only and should not be constituted as legal advice on any subject matter.

What would you do if you were involved in an auto accident with an uninsured motorist in New York State? You need a determined auto accident lawyer in New York on your side. You need the Law Offices of James Morris. An experienced car accident attorney in Buffalo at our firm can give you the attention you rightfully deserve. Don’t leave your future to chance. Count on an auto accident attorney in Buffalo with years of experience fighting for clients. Contact the Law Offices of James Morris.

Financial concerns are not the only reason why some drivers have no insurance. Sometimes, these high-risk drivers are not supposed to be on the road because they lost their license due to a drunk driving offense. The driver may have even been under the influence of alcohol when they had their accident with you. Car accidents involving uninsured motorists can be complicated. The best way to recover damages varies depending on the circumstances of your accident. The most direct route involves making a claim against your own uninsured motorist policy. But insurance companies can sometimes be unresponsive.

Don’t let an accident with an uninsured motorist derail your life. Get your life back on track. Take action. Contact the Law Offices of James Morris. We’re not afraid of insurance companies and their lawyers. We’re ready to fight for you!

The Law Offices of James Morris – we mean business!

The information contained in this communication is provided for informational purposes only and should not be constituted as legal advice on any subject matter.