Personal Injury

T-Bone Accidents are Extremely Dangerous

March 5, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

People talk about head-on collisions as being the worst – and with good reason – but head-on crashes are by no means the only kind of car collision that carries with it a high risk of injury or death. Another type of collision that ranks among the most dangers is what is commonly referred to as a “T-bone” accident – the side-impact crash. Named for the popular steak, a T-bone crash is when one vehicle is struck in the side by a second vehicle at a perpendicular angle. Picture a car moving through an intersection when another vehicle enters the intersection on the crossing roadway, entering the intersection from one side or the other of the first car and striking the first vehicle full in the side. Most common at intersections, T-bone crashes can be deadly.

T-Bone Accidents are a Leading Cause of Traffic Fatalities

Traffic accidents can be deadly affairs – they cost more than 36,000 Americans their lives in 2019. More than half of traffic deaths involving passenger vehicle occupants happen in head-on collisions – full frontal impacts, nose to nose. However, more than a quarter of all traffic fatalities in crashes involving passenger vehicles occur in side-impact collisions – in other words, the classic T-bone accident. When a vehicle hits another vehicle from the side, the struck vehicle does not have the crumple zone that provides protection in frontal collisions. Cars are designed to absorb impacts from the front and from the rear, using the trunk for rear-end accidents and the engine compartment, among other features, for front-end accidents to help absorb the force of the collision. When it comes to side-impact collisions, no such crumple zone exists to prevent the exterior of the vehicle from being pushed into the passenger compartment by the force of the collision. One study contends that vehicles struck from the front have five times the energy absorption as vehicles provide in a side impact. The lack of crumple zones on the side of vehicles simply adds to the lethality of side-impact collisions.

Uninsured Motorist Coverage

February 28, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

Almost every state in the U.S. requires drivers to carry some kind of insurance. New Hampshire and Virginia do not require drivers to have insurance, but still hold them responsible for damages in accidents in which they are at fault. Most states require liability insurance to cover damages inflicted when the insured driver is at fault, while other states are “no-fault” insurance states and require that drivers carry “personal injury protection” insurance policies to cover injuries to themselves and their passengers. Even in the 48 states that require drivers to have some kind of insurance, an astounding number of drivers choose to ignore those requirements and carry no insurance at all. This can lead to some interesting liability questions.

Georgia Does Not Require Uninsured Motorist Coverage

Georgia state law does not require motorists to carry uninsured motorist insurance, or UMI. The state requires insurers to offer the coverage and sets forth allowable deductibles, minimum policy coverages, and the like, but allows drivers to refuse the coverage so long as they do so in writing. If accepted, UMI covers all of the damages the at-fault driver’s insurance would have covered if the driver had carried insurance, depending upon the coverage limits of the policy. UMI can come in handy, as one in eight drivers nationwide do not have any insurance, required or not. In Georgia, 12% of drivers have no insurance, ranking the state 25th for the highest percentage of uninsured motorists – right in the middle.

The Construction Industry is Extremely Hazardous

February 26, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

Nobody goes into the construction industry thinking it is going to be a walk in the park. Everybody who ever worked construction knew before their first day on the job that construction work is dirty, difficult, and above all, dangerous. Injuries are commonplace, and fatal injuries on the construction site happen far more often than in any other kind of workplace. Construction work sites are loaded with hazards most employees in other occupations will never see, and many of those hazards are potentially fatal.

No Industry Compares to Construction for Deaths, Injuries

In 2019, federal statistics indicate that on-the-job deaths of construction workers accounted for 20% of all workplace fatalities, a trend that has held for decades even though the construction industry accounts for only 4% of total employment in the United States. In addition to fatalities, more than 70,000 construction injuries are reported each year, with probably that many more going unreported. The injury rate for construction workers was 9.7 per 100,000 employees in 2019, nearly triple the rate of 3.5 per 100,000 employees for all other private sector employment. The non-fatal injury rate for construction workers is 71% higher than any other industry.

Overwork Often Leads to Workplace Injuries

February 19, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a world of contradictions in the workplace. People in some occupations have found themselves working exclusively from home for nearly the last year. Others have found themselves unemployed, while still others have found themselves working at a frenzied pace. There is increased pressure on the supply chain as well as the means of delivery, meaning that employees at production facilities for food and other essential supplies, distribution warehouses, and retail outlets often have had to increase their work pace and hours to keep up with demand despite many fellow employees being out sick with COVID-19. Further, first responders, emergency workers, and many health care workers also have faced long hours at work as they strive to provide many of the services people rely upon, pandemic or not. These efforts have often been complicated by many coworkers being sidelined by COVID-19, leaving remaining employees to pick up the slack with longer shifts.

Risks of Fatigue for Employee Safety are Well-Documented

For quite some time, federal health officials have known that employee fatigue is a significant threat to workplace safety. When employees have to work long shifts, extra shifts, overtime, and evening or overnight shifts, they become fatigued. Often the extra work hours are at times that disrupt normal sleep patterns, which in addition to extra work hours just contributes to employee fatigue. Even employees working 40 hours are at heightened risk of fatigue when working longer shifts, evening or overnight shifts, rotating shifts, or irregular shifts. These irregular hours can result in physical and mental stress for employees, as does working extra hours. This all can contribute to workplace fatigue, making employees less alert and impairing decision-making, concentration, and memory.

Dogs are a Beloved Part of Many American Homes

February 12, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

There are more than 78 million dogs living in American households as pets. These dogs often are considered by their owners to be a part of the family and are treated accordingly. For the most part they receive loving attention and respond with loyalty to their owners, providing welcome companionship. The vast majority never show any significant aggression to anyone.

That is not always the case, however. Every year 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs, and about 800,000 of those bites require medical treatment. In 2019, there were 59 deaths as a result of dog bites. In 2019, there were two deaths in Georgia from dog bites, while in 2020, there were three dog bite fatalities in Georgia. None were in the Marietta area, although one was in Gwinnett County.

Fatalities are Rare, but Dog Bites are Costly

Bicycle Commuting is Down: Will it Rebound?

February 5, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

After years of rising steadily, the latest data indicates that the number of commuters opting to ride a bicycle to work is down slightly in recent years. While bicycle commuting rose slightly in popularity in 2016 over 2015, it declined slightly in 2017, the last year for which reliable data is available.

Of course, all of that historical data is B.C. – Before COVID-19. It remains to be seen what the pandemic has done to the number of bicycle commuters. Millions of Americans found themselves out of work as a result of lockdowns and layoffs in response to COVID-19 as many occupations were deemed “nonessential.” Many millions more found themselves working from home. Either way, for many months now, far fewer people are commuting to work by any means of transportation at all. It remains to be seen what happens with the number of bicycle commuters when life returns to normal – whenever that might be, and whatever a post-COVID “normal” looks like. It seems likely, though, that people on bicycles, whether commuting, exercising, or just enjoying a little recreation, will be back on the roads at some point. That means that bicyclists involved in traffic accidents are likely to become a more prominent issue once again.

Riding Bicycles is Popular and Dangerous

Workers’ Compensation Covers Most Workplace Injuries

January 29, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

While some jobs are extremely dangerous, and others are less so, all jobs come with the risk of workplace injuries. Sometimes the injuries arise from the dangerous nature of the job, others come from safety violations, while still others happen on jobs that do not seem particularly dangerous at first glance. Construction workers, commercial fishermen, firefighters – you would expect on-the-job injuries in those and other professions. Office workers and other more seemingly mundane occupations, not so much. But repetitive motion injuries from typing and back injuries from lifting heavy boxes of office supplies are work-related injuries, too. They are covered by workers’ compensation just as much as injuries suffered while performing more inherently dangerous jobs.

Workplace Injuries Come in Many Forms

Many people think of workplace injuries as strictly resulting from actions performed during the course of performing the duties of your job. This is largely true. However, the causes of some workplace injuries could surprise you. Among the leading causes of injuries in the workplace are:

Workplace Accidents Can Result in Devastating Amputations

January 22, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

People who work around heavy machinery in certain industries – like printing presses, conveyors, food presses, milling machines, food slicers, meat grinders, and other similar hazardous machines – are at high risk of workplace amputations. Those machines do not present the only workplace risk of amputations, either. Construction work is among the most dangerous jobs in the country, and it, too, carries the risk of on-the-job amputations. Federal government reports have referred to workplace amputations as “widespread.” They can occur not just during machinery operation, but also during set-up, cleaning, lubricating, adjusting, clearing jams, and maintenance.

While not all amputations are created equal – losing a joint on your pinkie finger is an amputation, just as is losing an arm or a leg – all amputations are traumatic injuries. Many amputations are life-altering. The federal government reports about two dozen fatal amputations and thousands of non-fatal workplace amputations every year. Federal statistics cite defective machinery and worker negligence as some of the main causes of workplace amputation injuries. Further, poorly or improperly maintained machinery, or even improperly manufactured machinery, can result in serious injuries to employees, including amputations. Inadequate training or supervision also increase the likelihood of severe accidental injuries. All of these elements – poor maintenance, insufficient training, and improper manufacturing of equipment, can factor into the amount an employee suffering an on-the-job amputation will receive in damages for a workers’ compensation claim.

Workers’ Comp Damages for Workplace Amputations Vary

Not All Truck Accidents Happen on Highways

January 8, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

Say the words “truck accident” and most people immediately get a mental picture of an 18-wheeled tractor-trailer rig barreling down an interstate highway and somehow being involved in an accident worthy of a Michael Bay movie. If that is your mental image of a truck accident, you might be overlooking a common type of truck accident that is likely to strike much closer to home — accidents involving delivery vehicles, garbage trucks, and recycling trucks. COVID-19 has resulted in a lot more people ordering items online, and pretty much every neighborhood in the country has residential garbage and recycling pickup. This has led to residential streets swarming with delivery and refuse collection trucks that are in a hurry to accomplish their rounds and that are a lot larger than most passenger vehicles. The drivers of these vehicles are not just driving – they are focused on staying on schedule while they are delivering packages or picking up trash or recycling. That does not mean every driver of these trucks is distracted and dangerous, but it does not make them safer drivers, either.

Delivery Trucks are a Lot Bigger Than Your Car

Size almost always comes out on top in a traffic accident. Bigger vehicles weigh more and pack more force in a collision. It is just physics. Larger vehicles almost always emerge from accidents with smaller vehicles with less damage, fewer injuries, and fewer fatalities. Delivery vans, such as those used by Amazon and other companies, often weigh 11,000 pounds or more. A garbage truck can range from 40,000 to 64,000 pounds. Either of those vehicles has a substantial size and weight advantage over your passenger vehicle, which weighs an average of 4,000 pounds and can weigh as little as 2,400 pounds.

America Has Fallen in Love With Ride-Share Services

January 1, 2021 | Benjamin S. Persons, IV

Just a few short years ago, ride-share services did not exist. It was less than a decade ago that the name “Uber” entered common usage, and the ride-share service became common in cities nationwide within a couple years. In the last six or seven years, ride-share services have proliferated, with Uber joined by Lyft, Sidecar, and who knows how many other services, some of them national, some regional, some serving only a few areas. No matter which service you use – and one in five Americans have used a ride-share service – the experience is largely the same. You use an app on your smartphone to ask for a ride, the car arrives quickly and gives you a ride to your destination, generally for less – often much less – than a traditional taxi cab would cost. Plus you can give the driver a bad rating if the service is not fast and courteous, an option simply not available with a taxi. What’s not to like?

Ride-Share Vehicles Get in Accidents, Too

The problem, of course, is that ride-shares, like the services offered by Uber and Lyft in Marietta and the surrounding area, are vehicles just like any others on the road. They can and do get into accidents. Ride-share drivers do not have special training, and no one really knows whether ride-share drivers get into accidents more or less frequently than the average driver on the road. A few years ago, a Chicago newspaper tried to find out, and learned instead that no government entity keeps statistics on ride-share accidents, and no ride-share service makes its accident statistics public. It is fair to assume, though, that ride-share drivers get into accidents at the same rate as pretty much every other driver on the road. So who pays if you get injured in a traffic accident while riding in an Uber, Lyft, or other rides-share service vehicle?