Articles Posted in Car Accidents

Driver negligence is the cause of a significant number of head-on New Hampshire accidents. Every year thousands of people suffer life-altering injuries and death because of these types of collisions. For instance, a recent news report described a harrowing New Hampshire head-on accident. Hooksett firefighters and police received calls reporting a box truck and car collision. An initial investigation revealed that while making a sharp curve, the sedan crossed into the lane that the truck was traveling in. The collision required two ambulances to transport all of the victims to a local hospital for emergency treatment.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for children, teens, and young adults. Head-on collisions account for a significant number of these accidents. These accidents typically result in serious injuries that require lengthy and extensive medical treatment.

After a New Hampshire accident, injury victims and their families may recover compensation for their damages. These lawsuits require the claimant to establish that the negligent driver owed the victim a duty, they breached that duty by acting negligently, and that negligence conduct caused the plaintiff’s injuries. Although the claims seem straightforward, there are various defenses that insurance companies and defendants will purport to avoid compensating the victim. In addition to the substantive defenses, plaintiffs often face complex and daunting procedural barriers that make pursuing a claim difficult.

When our loved ones are taken from us too soon because of an accident, it can be one of the most painful things that we experience in life. From a practical standpoint, the loss of a family member could mean that a family’s primary source of income or financial support is also significantly impacted. Thus, when an accident in New Hampshire takes place and was caused by the wrongful act of another and results in death, those who are responsible must be held accountable for their actions.

According to a recent news report, a three-car collision left two killed and one injured in Lee on Route 125. Lee police reported that one of the drivers was driving north on Route 125 when he veered into the southbound lane and hit another car head-on. The driver then crashed into another southbound car that swerved out of the way to avoid the initial accident but was not injured. The at-fault driver was transported to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries. The driver of the car that the at-fault vehicle crashed into head-on was pronounced dead at the scene, and his passenger was taken to the hospital to be treated for her injuries.

In New Hampshire, wrongful death claims can be brought by the administrator of the deceased’s estate against the at-fault party. A number of different kinds of compensatory damages are available, including payment for medical bills and expenses and pain and suffering.

New Hampshire car accidents can happen for a wide variety of reasons. Whether it’s poor weather conditions, reduced visibility, negligent or reckless driving by another party, or mechanical failure, the possibilities are endless. One of the most dangerous and potentially fatal accidents, however, are wrong-way accidents. When these collisions take place, there is a high likelihood of serious injury or death because of the nature of the accident.

According to a recent news article, two people were injured following a wrong-way car accident. Evidently, a driver entered the freeway southbound at an exit to a northbound freeway and crashed head-on into a Toyota Camry that was traveling northbound in the correct direction. When local authorities arrived on the scene, both vehicles had heavy front-end damage, with the at-fault party’s car facing south in the northbound lane. Following the collision, both drivers were transported to local hospitals and their injuries were reportedly not considered life-threatening. Both vehicles were towed from the scene, and for a short period of time, all northbound traffic was closed. The collision remains under investigation by local authorities.

Based on data from the Department of Transportation, wrong-way driving accidents account for between 300 to 400 deaths in the United States each year, with many more injured from these collisions. Although they may be less common compared to other types of accidents, they are often fatal, and more than 60 percent occur because of drunk driving or operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs.

New Hampshire car accidents happen for all kinds of reasons every year—negligence, distracted driving, illicit substances, and bad weather conditions, are only a few examples. An unexpectedly dangerous and common cause of car accidents, however, has also claimed hundreds of lives: drowsy driving has consistently been a significant cause of car accidents and is more common than you think—and could also affect anyone behind the wheel.

According to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), drowsy driving has claimed 795 lives in 2017 alone. Between 2013 and 2017, 4,111 fatalities were recorded that were associated with drowsy driving. When evaluating general motor vehicle crashes involving drowsy driving, 91,000 collisions were recorded in 2017.

Fatigue, which often results in drowsy driving, affects millions of Americans on a daily basis. Whether it is caused by a poor night of sleep, a late shift, or just pure exhaustion, fatigue can be costly and result in negative outcomes. When you operate a vehicle and become drowsy or were drowsy when you got in the car, the consequences can be disastrous. According to NHTSA, fatigue most frequently results in impaired cognition, car crashes, and other significant health-related consequences.

Sometimes, car accidents only involve two parties—an at-fault party, and the party who was harmed as the result of the accident. Not all accidents, however, are this simple. When an initial collision leads to accidents that take place after it, it is often referred to as a chain reaction accident. Chain reaction accidents often involve three or more cars and are usually complex cases because multiple parties and their negligence may have caused you to suffer property damage or injuries.

These chain reaction accidents often occur more frequently than you may expect. According to a recent news article, local authorities found a vehicle rolled over on its roof with a woman trapped inside after she crashed into a guardrail and her car slid into the travel portion of the highway. Shortly after the initial accident, there was a two-vehicle crash just south of the initial collision. No one was injured in the second accident, but the woman involved in the first was transported to a local hospital to be treated.

In New Hampshire, in a case like this one, the dispute will primarily be over who should assume more responsibility in causing the second accident—the original initial accident where the woman crashed into the guardrail, or the primary at-fault party in the second accident. For example, the responsible party in the second accident could argue that the crash would not have occurred if the initial accident did not take place ahead and resulted in an increase in traffic. Because of the initial driver’s negligence, the second driver could argue that the initial driver should bear some level of responsibility in the second accident coming to fruition.

Whether you’ve stayed home for the majority of the COVID-19 global pandemic or ventured out safely, the world has changed significantly in New Hampshire since social distancing and stay at home orders were put into place in early 2020. A particularly interesting change, however, has been in traffic safety and car accidents during the pandemic. Although it may make sense to assume that fewer people on the roads means safer roads for everyone, some risky behaviors have actually increased as the pandemic has continued.

Based on a special report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) covering traffic safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, significant changes took place in traffic patterns over the course of 2020. Although driving patterns appeared to slow down in terms of congestion and traffic in the first part of the year because of the initial onset of the pandemic, things seemed to pick back up during the second and latter parts of the year.

During the second quarter of the year, for example, the report noted an increase in sales and consumption of alcohol and other drugs. Compared to 2019 data, retail sales were 19.5 percent higher in July, 21.5 percent higher in August, and 20.6 percent higher in September in 2020. Similarly, in addition to alcohol, cannabinoid, and opioid type drugs all increased in prevalence during the second quarter of the year as compared to the months before the emergence of the public health emergency. In the third quarter of the year, the prevalence of all of these substances remained high compared to the months before COVID-19.

Although any accident can result in serious physical and emotional injuries, New Hampshire hit and run accidents tend to have worse outcomes. In the same vein, motorists who leave the scene of an accident may face significant criminal and civil penalties. Victims of a hit and run should contact an attorney to discuss how they can pursue a claim for financial compensation, as these claims are often complex.

The law imposes specific duties on drivers involved in a traffic accident. Under New Hampshire RSA 264:25, a driver of a vehicle who knows or should have known that they were involved in an accident which resulted in property damage, personal injury or death, must stop their vehicle at the scene. At a minimum, drivers must contact emergency services and provide the victim and law enforcement with their identifying information.

A hit and run accident occurs when a driver leaves an accident scene before law enforcement can respond. Hit and runs often occur because of driver distraction, fatigue, or impairment. Although rare, drivers can claim that they did not know they were involved in a hit and run accident. However, in many situations, a driver flees the accident scene for fear of repercussions. Drivers often flee because:

1. They have an outstanding criminal warrant,
2. They are driving without a valid license, or
3. They are driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

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