At Nordean Law, we strive to keep our community safe. We pursue justice for the injured and we share critical information on how to keep you and your family safe.
Follow the link below for the best tips to prevent accidents of all kinds. If you have a specific question, or if you were injured in an accident, reach out to one of our attorneys today.
Unsafe lane changes cause nearly 4,000 traffic deaths in the United States yearly, plus countless injuries. Changing lanes at high speed requires attentiveness and caution. Too often, drivers throw caution to the wind and change lanes erratically, causing horrific crashes.
Unsafe lane change accidents occur when a motorist makes an ill-advised decision to change lanes that causes a collision. Failing to see a vehicle approaching the intended lane, not using a turn signal, and changing lanes too abruptly are examples of unsafe lane changes that cause crashes.
Not surprisingly, lane change accidents result in a high proportion of catastrophic and fatal auto accident injuries. Many lane change collisions occur at high speeds on freeways, two-lane country highways, and urban thoroughfares. According to the Insurance Information Institute, lane change accidents kill 3,700 people annually across the United States, accounting for 7.2% of fatalities.
As with other accidents, unsafe lane change collisions occur because of negligence, recklessness, intentional actions, or all three. Negligence accidents are the most common. They occur because of lapses in attention, not realizing another vehicle is there, or other mistakes that even careful drivers sometimes make.
Reckless accidents present a new category. Reckless drivers intentionally disregard the safety of others. Though a collision may not have been their goal, their decision to drive in a way any reasonable person would conclude endangers others constitutes reckless driving.
Intentional collisions, of course, are not accidents and merit serious felony charges. These occur when a person, such as an individual with road rage, pulls into another lane to strike the vehicle of the driver that angered him.
The following represent common situations that result in lane change accidents:
Poor visibility and hazardous road conditions make drivers prone to lane change accidents. For instance, the dense fog may hide another vehicle’s approach, resulting in a lane change collision. Also, wet roadways may cause a vehicle to slide while changing lanes, causing a crash.
You never want to be distracted while changing lanes–or near anybody who is. It’s easy to miss another vehicle in your blind spot, even when you are paying attention. Being distracted while changing lanes makes you a hazard to anyone who happens to be close.
Southern California roads are hazardous enough when overcrowded with sane drivers. Reckless drivers vastly increase the chances of lane change accidents because they weave in and out of traffic, usually without turn signals, pay little attention to their blind spot, and exceed the speed limit by ridiculous degrees.
Drunk drivers have a particular propensity to change lanes improperly and may not intend to change lanes at all but cannot keep their vehicle between the yellow lines.
When drivers pass from the right, they increase their chances of a collision with a vehicle changing into their lane. The proper flow of traffic requires faster vehicles to move into the left-hand lanes to pass. When drivers ignore this principle, they subject themselves to danger because they expect traffic on the right to be slower.
As a result, they more easily miss a fast-approaching vehicle on the right and complete their turn despite the speedier vehicle’s rapid approach.
Passing from the right is particularly dangerous when the faster driver is weaving between lanes. A slower driver may already be in the process of changing lanes by the time the speedier driver swerves into the lane, leaving scant time for either driver to take evasive action.
High-speed lane change accidents leave many victims with severe, debilitating, or fatal injuries. As with all accidents, speed predominates in the ultimate consequences. Common injuries include the following:
Even a relatively minor accident can cause expensive and debilitating injuries. Serious ones can cost victims in the six- or seven figures while severely reducing life quality. Therefore, obtaining skillful legal counsel is essential for the total compensation owed.
Auto accident lawyers see unsafe lane change accidents regularly. They have detailed knowledge of how courts rule in similar cases and can gauge the likely result of litigation. At the initial consultation, your lawyer can apprise you of the strength of your claim and lay out the likely trajectory of your case.
Your unsafe lane change lawyer also collects evidence to bolster your claim. Personal injury law firms review official reports, medical records, and other evidence to gather proof of your claim. In addition, they conduct interviews with witnesses and may contract expert witnesses to testify on your behalf.
Personal injury lawyers also build cases proving their client’s damages. Courts require plaintiffs to demonstrate their losses through documentation, witness testimony, and other proof that the losses claimed resulted from the incident.
California law allows plaintiffs to seek economic, general, and punitive damages.
Punitive damages rarely apply to improper lane change cases. Courts award punitive damages to punish bad behavior and deter others. Most accidents are unintentional and occur because of honest mistakes.
However, some accidents result from outrageous conduct, such as an extreme DUI accident where the defendant drove at twice the speed limit while weaving dangerously from lane to lane.
An improper lane change accident can leave you in pain, disabled, and facing a pile of medical bills. No one should be forced to suffer these harms without due compensation. If you have been injured in an improper lane change accident, contact Nordean Law for a free consultation on your legal rights.
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