Common Summer Accidents
Summer is here and that means big changes for the flow of traffic with more teenagers and families on the roads. Increased traffic is a risk factor for car accidents on its own but when you add in additional teenage drivers who are at the highest risk for being in a car accident, summer becomes a much more dangerous time to be on the road. The fatality rate for drivers aged 16 to 19 is four times higher than that of drivers aged 25 to 69 years. Other common types of summer accidents are motorcycle accidents, swimming accidents, boating accidents, playground accidents and amusement park accidents.
Common summer accidents
Motorcycle accidents
Approximately 50 percent of motorcycle accidents not involving another vehicle occur due to drug or alcohol impairment, sleep deprivation or reckless driving such as excessive speeding. Although these are common causes of other types of motor vehicles accidents as well, motorcyclists are 35 times more vulnerable to serious injury or death than occupants of vehicles who are in a car accident.
Seventy-eight percent of crashes between motorcycles and cars are head-on collisions (only five percent are rear-end collisions) and they account for 56 percent of motorcyclist deaths.
Cars making left hand turns account for 42 percent of all motorcycle accidents involving a car. Cars are most likely to hit a motorcycle when the motorcycle is driving straight through the intersection or when the motorcyclist is passing or trying to overtake the car.
If a car or truck crashes with a motorcycle each party will be held responsible for their fault in the collision. In Washington State, damages are awarded based on contributory fault law which says that you may only be awarded damages proportionate to the percentage of fault contributed by the defendant and nothing for the amount of fault that you contributed.
Swimming accidents
Between oceans, lakes and pools there are thousands of swimming personal injuries across the U.S. every year. Always supervise children when they are playing near or swimming in water. Young children should wear life vests while swimming or playing near water until they are strong swimmers.
Private pools should have a locked fence all the way around the pool to prevent small children from falling into the water while adults are not present.
Boating accidents
Boating accidents are almost always caused by driver errors such as drinking and boating, distracted boating, inexperience and excessive speeds. Approximately 5,000 boating accidents occur every year in the U.S. and almost 1,000 people die from boating accident injuries annually. Adults and kids should wear life jackets while boating and avoid boating during stormy weather.
Playground accidents
The increased use of playgrounds in the summer time – both private and public equipment – brings a higher risk of playground accidents. Always supervise your children while they use playground equipment and steer them away from equipment that this above their age, size or skill level.
Amusement park accidents
According to the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there were approximately 8,800 people who sought treatment for amusement park injuries in emergency rooms in 2006. It is estimated that 4,400 children are hurt each year on amusement park rides. Between 1990 and 2000, approximately 93,000 children under the age of 18 were treated in emergency rooms for injuries incurred at amusement parks or traveling carnivals.
When an amusement park injury occurs because of defective or poorly maintained equipment or poorly trained ride operators, the managers or owners of the amusement park may be found negligent.
If you or a loved one is dealing with an accident or injury, you have enough on your plate. Let an experienced accident attorney fight for the full compensation that you deserve. It is not uncommon to receive a settlement from the insurance company that is five to ten times bigger with the help of a lawyer. Call the caring accident attorneys at Tario & Associates, P.S. in Bellingham, WA today for a FREE consultation! We have been representing residents of Whatcom County, Skagit County, Island County and Snohomish County since 1979. You will pay nothing up front and no attorney fees at all unless we recover damages for you!
