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In response to Adam Gee’s recent post regarding the new New York Don’t Text While Driving law (a GREAT law in my book), I received a FaceBook Comment from one of my best friends. Before even discussing her comment, I want to say that my friend is one of the kindest, most intelligent people I know so I truly take her comment to heart. She expressed a sentiment I hear all too often—THERE ARE TOO MANY LAWS!

While I certainly understand that sentiment and I am the first one to admit that there are plenty of absolutely stupid laws on the books, the plain fact remains that most laws are designed to protect us and our quality of life. We are incredibly lucky to live in a society governed by laws rather than the law of the jungle…..

MY FRIEND’S COMMENT:

You know – I was just saying the other day if we added up all the new laws that protect us from ourselves and the cost to enforce these laws – states could really turn their budget around. Seat belts, cell phones, texting, car seats for 8 year olds – it’s staggering.

MY RESPONSE:

Dear Friend: From my perspective, the costs of our laws are a VERY small price to pay for MANY, MANY saved lives.

When seat belts first came out, people thought it was nuts but just think of the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives saved…. Last week, I sat with the family mourning the loss of their 9 year old daughter who died because she wasn’t wearing a seatbelt while riding in the car with a teen driver…..

I WISH people just used more common sense and such laws wouldn’t be necessary but the plain fact is that it takes laws to change behaviors….. Sorry about the soapbox speech but I think too many people focus on the bad side of the laws rather than focusing on the good that is achieved. I prefer my glass half full……

Thanks, Jim
______________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14901
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: jreed@zifflaw.com
Web: http://www.zifflaw.com

Email me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

Free is ALWAYS good in my book!

There is a great new FREE resource available to all New York and Pennsylvania car accident victims. AccidentSketch is a online utility that anyone can use to graphically document a car accident. The service is free and doesn’t even require registration!

Why Drawing an Accurate Accident Sketch is Important

Insurance companies, courts and lawyers all require detailed depictions of an accident to successfully resolve claims for compensation. Often there will be disputes about where each car involved in an accident was prior to, during or after the car crash. Ther may be disputes about the direction of travel for each car. There may be disputes about what car had the right of way at the time of the accident.

Experienced accident lawyers know that working with an accident sketch is a great way for your clients to discuss with you the details of EXACTLY how an accident occurred.

I discovered the existence of the AccidentSketch service through the Lifehacker weblog. I think it is a fantastic tool to ease the process of making an accurate accident report – and it puts the means in the hands of the people who were involved in the crash. AccidentSketch is one of those tools that is essential, once you know it’s out there.

One Warning!

Because it is critically important that an accident sketch be as accurate as possible, I would strongly urge anyone who was injured in a car accident to consult with an experienced accident lawyer BEFORE submitting an accident scene sketch to any insurance company. Why? Because anything you submit to an insurance company, even your own insurance company, may be used against you by the insurance company for the other driver involved in your accident. Accordingly, you want to make certain that the sketch is 100% accurate and there is nothing in the sketch that might shoot you in the foot…..

How AccidentSketch works

The software is amazingly simple to use. All of the standard road elements are already created – just put them together like a puzzle to recreate the circumstances of an accident.

First, you select road “pieces” to map an accurate depiction of the road, be it a curve, a urn, an intersection or other type of street. The pieces drag and snap into a grid at a scale of 1:100.

Then select your vehicle type (trucks, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians are also options) and place it in the road map you created. You can choose vehicle colors and input license plate numbers.

Continue to add vehicles and other details, such as traffic signs, lights, arrows, braking marks and more, until you have an accurate drawing of your accident.

You may even create a time-lapse version of the accident, by placing multiple images of vehicles on the map and using arrows to show their courses of action.

To complete your account of the accident, AccidentSketch allows you to type in a text report, where you can explain the accident in depth.

At this point, without paying a fee and with minimum effort, you will have a detailed, accurate and easy-to-follow accident report that will be invaluable information in settling insurance claims or a court case. Check out this sample: AccidentSketch-example.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
New York Accident Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

Where do drivers ignore the speed limit? A clue – it’s not a superhighway, the Autobahn or a racetrack.

It’s the same place drivers also ignore poor road conditions. But it’s not an off-roading park.

The place where most of our nation’s traffic fatalities occur is a situation many Twin Tiers drivers see every day: a rural road.

Unfortunately, it’s also a place with a double danger. Not only do most traffic accident deaths happen off the major highways, by their very nature rural roads take emergency services more time to arrive at the scene.

I’ve written about some of the most dangerous roads in the region before on the NY Injury Law Blog. As New York accident lawyers, we have handled WAY too many cases on these roads:

• Route 352 between Elmira and Corning is a busy road with some serious curves, but many drivers apparently see the open farmland and figure the speed limit is optional.

• County Route 64 in Big Flats and Horseheads, the rural road that passes into the busy snarl of traffic for Consumer Square in Big Flats. It’s a hub for commerce, all right, and traffic accidents.

• On Route 14 between Elmira, Watkins Glen and Geneva, drivers zip along at highway speeds, but there are many hidden drives down to lakeside properties, not to mention an active deer population.

I am revisiting this topic because of a recent USA Today story, “More Motorists Die on Rural Roads” (10/7, Copeland). The story exposes the fact that a majority of the nation’s traffic fatalities occur on rural roads. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that in 2008, 56% of 37,261 traffic deaths occurred on rural roads.

It goes to show that the roads we take for granted as places to play with the rules are riskier than highways. The best solution is to hope that individual drivers take the statistics to heart and drive strategically for the safety of all.

In South Carolina, the state with the highest percentage of rural road accident deaths, lawmakers are making changes – roads are getting rumble strips and an anti drunk-driving task force formed in July aims to cut down the number of alcohol-influenced accidents. I searched for similar rural road safety initiatives in New York and Pennsylvania where I routinely handle car accident lawsuits but I was unable to find a single program devoted to improving the safety of our many rural roads. That’s really too bad…..

There was some good news to the NHTSA report: Overall, traffic accidents are down on all types of roads, across the nation. I think it shows that we can learn from our accidents – and strategies do work to make the roads safer.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
New York Car Accident Lawyer
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

A volatile and deadly combination kills and maims far too many young adults. The mix? A young, intoxicated driver and a car full of young passengers. It is pretty much a recipe for tragedy.

WETM-TV recently ran the story “Drunken Crash Injures Two” (Honda, 9/6).

Shortly after midnight on Sunday, Steuben County Sheriff’s deputies say that 18-year old Jacob Canute crashed his truck along County Route 22 in Cameron.

Canute had two teenage passengers in the truck, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle – 18-year-old Thomas Robbins, and 18-year-old Eric W. Graham, both of Cameron. Both were thrown from the vehicle in the one-car crash.

Robbins was flown to Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, where he was treated and released. Graham went first by ambulance to Corning Memorial Hospital, then by helicopter to Packer, where at last report he was still, in fair condition.

Canute has been charged with several infractions, including driving while intoxicated. He attempted to walk away from the accident. The Democrat & Chronicle reported a strange twist – his 18-year-old girlfriend, Ashley M. Woodard, tried to take the blame for driving the truck at the time of the accident. She was also intoxicated and not even in the truck at the time of the crash. Her bid to take the fall landed her with charges of obstructing governmental administration, falsely reporting an incident and consuming alcohol under the age of 21 – but didn’t fool authorities as to the real identity of the driver.

I just hope these passengers will be OK. So far, Canute faces charges of DWI, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, and first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation. He was being held in the Steuben County Jail in lieu of $1,000 bail.

Thanks for reading,

Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

Here’s a natural follow up to our recent post regarding New York’s new law banning texting while driving. While the $150 fine isn’t a huge deterrent to drivers engaging in the dangerous practice of texting while driving, hopefully the gory video below will make people think twice about risking it…….

Three teenage girls are driving down a busy road laughing and chatting. The driver is texting a message to a boy they know, and doesn’t realize she’s drifting into the oncoming lane until …

I’ll stop there, but given that this is the description of a new anti-texting public service announcement, it will be no surprise that texting while driving leads to some horrible consequences.

What may surprise you about the short video, created by the Gwent Police Department in Wales and making the rounds of the Internet right now, is just how graphic the consequences are depicted as being.

You can view the anti-texting video on YouTube, but you must verify that you are age 18 or older. It is horrifying, but not gratuitously, I believe.

What this video does is show, unflinchingly, the repercussions for a whole group of people because a single driver wasn’t paying attention. I urge everyone to watch it – and if you are a parent of a teenager old enough to drive, but under age 18, you might want to consider watching it with them.

I can’t imagine this video not sticking with anyone for a long time. Once you see it, it’s impossible to believe that texting while driving is worth the risk to yourself, your passengers, or anyone on the road.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
New York Car Crash Lawyer & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

New York Gov. David Paterson recently signed off on legislation banning texting or the use of a keypad on any electronic device while driving. The ban starts November 1.

Research, informed communities and an unfortunate number of accidents, particularly involving teenagers, have led to this important law.

The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute recently released the results of a study about distracted driving. Their research found that “dialing a cell phone or merely reaching for an electronic device boosted the risk of an accident about six times in cars and trucks.”

The study also found that truckers who sent a text message were 23 times more likely to have an accident.

Some critics argue that the law will be difficult to enforce and lacks bite. The maximum penalty for breaking the new statewide law is a $150 fine that can only be applied if the driver also committed another infraction.

Advocates contend that the legislation is better late than never. New York made the hand-held use of cellphones while driving illegal eight years ago. The ban does send the message that distracted driving is dangerous. Including New York, 18 states and the District of Columbia have banned texting.

Pennsylvania is also looking at a texting ban, as the federal government becomes more likely to link highway funding to states’ willingness to apply the law. There are sure to be more states joining the movement as the year passes.

“The risks associated with texting while driving are well documented,” Paterson said in an announcement about the law. “As we learn more and more about just how dangerous this practice can be, I urge all New Yorkers to drive with caution and get in the habit of putting their cell phones away while driving to protect their own lives and the lives of others.”

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
New York Car Accident Lawyer & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

Many thanks to Attorney Jim Carroll of Athen, PA, a good friend and confidante of the Ziff Law Firm, for bringing to everyone’s attention a sad, sad situation which occurred in Nicholson Township, Wyoming County, Pennsylvania on Monday, August 24, 2009. Jim’s blog post can be found here.

As reported by the Towanda Daily Review, this single motorcycle crash resulted in the death of Randall Maxwell and Susan Homet Monday evening when the 2006 Yamaha Road Star motorcycle operated by Maxwell failed to negotiate a right hand turn while traveling southbound on State Route 107 in Nicholson. The motorcycle left the roadway and contacted a guard rail. Both Maxwell and Homet, who was a passenger on the motorcycle, were pronounced dead at the scene.

Sadly, the story does not end there. Pennsylvania State Police report that both Maxwell and Homet were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash. Additionally, neither Maxwell nor Homet were wearing a helmet.

As I have written many times, motorcycles and alcohol NEVER mix. The margin for error on a motorcycle is so small that anything that blunts an operator’s senses should be avoided at all costs. I am not preaching against alcohol, but if you are going to ride, drink soda. If you are going to drink, call a cab. As we see too often, mixing alcohol and motorcycles ends in tragedies like this one.

As the story relates, neither Maxwell nor Homet was wearing a helmet at the time of the collision. In Pennsylvania, state law does not currently require bikers to wear helmets as New York does. It is unknown whether helmets would have saved their lives, but it is undoubtedly safer to ride with a helmet than without. I have handled many, many motorcycle cases, and it is a rare case where there is no damage to the helmet. The vast majority of the time, the helmet is scratched and scraped from contact with the road, or outright crushed by contact with another vehicle or other hard object. This is damage which would have been borne by the biker’s head if not protected by a helmet. Your brain is the one thing no doctor can put back together. It should be protected accordingly.

The increase in bikes on the road, spurred by increased gas prices as well as the general popularity of motorcycles, has resulted in a significant increase in the number of motorcycle accident cases I see. Unfortunately, the biking community holds a lot of misconceptions about motorcycles, and the rules that pertain to them. To combat this misinformation, I wrote a book entitled “Would You Ride Your Motorcycle Naked” which dispels many of the myths I hear about motorcycle, and informs bikers about the kinds and amounts of insurance bikers need to make sure they and their families are properly protected in the event of a crash. You can request a free copy of my book by clicking here.

Don’t be caught riding your motorcycle naked! Get my free book to find out about the most important insurance coverage you can have, and why your insurance agent won’t sell it to you!

Thanks for reading!
_______________________________
Adam M. Gee, Esq.
NY and PA Motorcycle Attorney
The Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William Street
Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: (607)733-8866
Fax: (607)732-6062
Email: agee@zifflaw.com
www.zifflaw.com

For all of us who have teenage drivers in the house, I just read a great post by NY Insurance coverage expert Roy Mura entitled: Suing the Kid for Crashing the Car Into the Garage. I strongly urge you to read Roy’s full post but the highlights are below:

Roy was asked: Can an unemancipated child be held “legally responsible” to a parent for crashing mom’s car into the garage?

He answered: In New York, the answer is yes. In 1969, in the case of Gelbman v. Gelbman, the New York Court of Appeals abolished the intrafamily immunity doctrine and permitted a mother to sue her unemancipated minor son for injuries she had sustained in an auto accident while riding as a passenger in a car her son was driving. Gelbman remains “good law” in New York.

But then Roy went on to ask the really relevant and practical question: Is there insurance coverage for the kid crashing the car into the garage?

Roy answered by saying that there probably is coverage for damage to the garage (but not its contents) under a homeowner’s policy and “there would also be liability coverage favoring the child under a personal auto policy that provides coverage for “damages for … ‘property damage’ for which any ‘insured’ becomes legally responsible because of an auto accident.”

Roy’s parting tongue-in-cheek comment is that while you might be able to successfully sue your kid for wrecking your car and your garage, and even though there might be insurance coverage to cover it, you might face non-renewal of your insurance coverage when your policy is up for renewal. That certainly is food for thought…

Thanks for reading, Jim
______________________________

James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14901
Tel: (607) 733-8866
Fax: (607) 732-6062
Toll Free: 1-800-943-3529
Email: jreed@zifflaw.com
Web: http://www.zifflaw.com

Please visit the New York Injury Law Blog at: http://www.NYInjuryLawBlog.com

Email me at FreeReports@zifflaw.com for two free books:
NY Car Accidents and NY Car Insurance Secrets YOU Need to Know.

WETM-TV has reported that three people were hospitalized following a motorcycle vs. car collision in Odessa.

The news story, “Car vs. Motorcycle Crash Injures Three” explained that an accident happened Wednesday about 9 p.m. at the intersection of State Route 224 and Speedway in the Schuyler County village of Odessa.

The extent of the accident victims’ injuries isn’t reported yet, but it must have been serious – the motorcycle driver and passenger had to be flown by helicopter to Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre. The driver, perhaps not injured as seriously, was taken by ambulance to Schuyler Hospital in Montour Falls.

Deputies from the Schuyler County Sheriff’s Office had to redirect traffic on Wednesday night because of the accident, not an easy job as the nearby village of Watkins Glen gears up for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend.

The accident is under investigation.

Twin Tiers roads draw motorcyclists

I’ve been practicing personal injury and medical malpractice law in the Twin Tiers for more than 20 years. This a beautiful area to enjoy a motorcycle ride – and thousands of people come to the area each summer to do just that. Until we know more, I’m hoping the two motorcycle riders from this accident – most likely injured much more severely that the car driver – are going to be OK in health and finances.

This spring, Ziff Law Firm attorney Adam Gee released his book about insurance coverage for motorcycle drivers – there is a lot that insurance agents will avoid telling customers in order to keep a wider profit margin. “Would You Ride Your Motorcycle Naked?” explains that that’s the equivalent of what most riders do – without the proper insurance coverage, they are “exposed” to liability. New York and Pennsylvania accident victims can contact us for a free copy of the book.

Adam also covered the 10 most important safety tips for motorcyclists here on the NY Injury Law Blog. It’s valuable advice for anyone who owns a motorcycle.

I know I’ll be checking WETM frequently to look for updates on this accident. I’m hoping for a good outcome for everyone involved, but that’s a rare ending to a serious accident. I also want to know what caused the crash – with so many on the roads for these big event weekends, people need to the least details that can prevent something like this from happening to anyone else.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com

Late last month, WETM-TV reported on a car crash that injured three people in Chemung County (Driver Falls Asleep: 3 Car Crash, 5/24/09). New York State Police said that the driver fell asleep at the wheel.

It’s seems simple, just reading about it: if you are drowsy, pull over and take a nap before you kill someone (or yourself!). Since I routinely handle NY and PA auto accident cases, I thought I would share what I found out about this type of auto accident.

The National Center on Sleep Disorders and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did a study about drowsy driving and its key issues. They convened an Expert Panel on Driver Fatigue and Sleepiness. I wanted to share some of the study’s findings in a very concise synopsis. You can read the whole Executive Summary of the study here.

Who’s most at risk to fall asleep at the wheel?

• Someone who missed an entire night of sleep the night before. This can lead to an acute need to sleep.
• Someone who misses just an hour or two of sleep a night, but on the long term. This can lead to a chronic sleepiness.
• People who must drive between midnight and 6 a.m. – it’s the body’s natural time to be asleep.
• Drivers who put in many miles a year, who drive for a number of hours a day and who put off taking breaks.
• People using sedating medications (this can be prescribed anxiolytic hypnotics, tricyclic antidepressants, and some antihistamines, according to the study).
• Drivers with untreated or unrecognized sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea or narcolepsy.
• A driver who’s had a drink. Alcohol can contribute to sleepiness, in addition to detracting from your reaction time and critical thinking.

What does a “sleeping driver” accident look like?

There are a number of factors that commonly turn up in accidents caused by a drowsy driver at the wheel.

• It’s a serious crash. The driver didn’t even try to react to minimize the crash.
• A lone car left the road.
• The driver was alone in the car.
• The crash happened late at night, early in the morning, or in the middle of the afternoon.

So what do you do to prevent falling asleep at the wheel?

The NHTSA has a these “countermeasures” to suggest to help you keep alert on the road. This is information on preventative techiques – none is an instant cure to end this problem.

Long-term solutions

• Get enough sleep – and to do this, plan on it. Make sleep a part of your schedule like a meeting or being in the office.
• Don’t drink even small amounts of alcohol if you’re feeling at all sleepy. Make it a zero-tolerance policy.
• Try not to drive between midnight and 6 a.m. That’s when most of these accidents occur.

Quick solutions

The only two techniques that the government found to be effective were:

• A 15- to 20-minute nap.

• 2 cups of coffee (or caffeine equivalent).

There’s no scientific proof that opening the window or blasting the radio has any invigorating result.

Thanks for reading,
Jim
_________________________________________
James B. Reed, Esq.
Personal Injury & Malpractice Attorney
Ziff Law Firm, LLP
303 William St., Elmira, NY 14902
Tel. (607) 733-8866 Fax. (607) 732-6062
Toll Free 1-800-943-3529
mailto:jreed@zifflaw.com http://www.zifflaw.com