Highland Injury Lawyers Urge Better Driving in 2013

This New Years, you could make the same old resolutions you always do: to be nicer to your family, to lose weight, to go to the gym, arrive on time, to stop procrastinating… all of these are top resolutions that many people make and then forget about a few weeks into January. You also have another option though. You could make a very important resolution and one that could potentially save your life or the lives of others.You could resolve to become a better, safer and more cautious driver in 2013. This is a resolution that our personal injury attorneys urge every driver to make.

Why Resolve to Become a Safer Driver?
There are hundreds of reasons why every single driver in Indiana should resolve to do better in 2013. In fact, to be exact, there are 674 reasons why Indiana drivers should resolve to make safer driving decisions. Because there were 674 fatal accidents in Indiana in 2011 according to the 2012 Indiana Traffic Safety Facts.

These 674 fatal Indiana accidents caused 749 deaths in the state. There were also 188,132 traffic accidents in 2011 that caused either injury or property damage. A good portion of these crashes did not have to happen, but they did because people made bad driving choices.

How Can You Become a Safer Driver in 2013?
Resolving to become a safer driver isn’t just an abstract or vague resolution. There are some very specific driving behaviors that you can resolve to put an end to, and some very specific things that you can resolve to do during the New Year. For example, you should resolve:

Never to speed under any circumstances. 19.4 percent of fatal accidents (131 total) were related to speeding and 9.3 percent of all crashes in the state were attributed to drivers going too fast.
To always drive sober, every time. In 2011, 133 fatal accidents and 140 deaths in Indiana were attributed to drunk drivers. This means that intoxicated drivers were involved in 20 percent of the fatal accidents in the state.
To wear your seat belt for every trip, even short trips. Only 48 percent of those who were killed in auto accidents were known to be wearing their seat belt at the time of the crash.
To talk to your teenager about safe driving if you are a parent. Drivers ages 16-17 had the highest rate of crash involvement.

Yielding at intersections, refraining from tailgating, watching out for bicycle riders and pedestrians, and showing appropriate respect to other drivers on the road are also some things that you can do in 2013 in order to keep your safe driving resolution.

As you resolve to become a better driver in 2013, you should also encourage everyone you know to make the same promise. All drivers have a responsibility to be reasonably careful on the road. Someone else’s failure to follow the driving rules or to exercise the appropriate care could still result in a crash no matter how careful you are behind the wheel. In that case, speaking to an experienced personal injury or wrongful death law firm can help ensure your rights are protected.

Attorney Burton A. Padove represents personal injury victims. If you or someone you love has been injured in an accident, call (219) 836-2200 for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your rights.

Additional Resources
Highland Injury Attorneys & Your Risks of an Autumn Traffic Accident, Indiana Injury and Family Lawyer Blog, October 30, 2012