Personal Injury Blog | Vititoe Law Group | Westlake Village & Oxnard CA

How Can Airbags Injure When They Are Supposed to Save Lives?

Anyone who has access to the news is aware of the massive recall of vehicles due to defective Takata airbags. A report issued by the NY Times, in December of last year, indicated that 11 deaths and 184 injuries had occurred in just the US from exploding airbags that propelled shrapnel into the chests of vehicle occupants. Over 92 million vehicles from multiple auto makers were recalled. When considering those figures, it seems like a very small percentage of deaths and injuries compared to the number of installed airbags, but even one death is too many. In addition, there are many other airbag related injuries that [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T15:08:09-07:00May 8th, 2017|Car Accidents|Comments Off

Large Truck Crashes are Common but also Preventable

The results from truck accidents are far more devastating on average than other motor vehicle accidents. In the U.S. one person is killed or injured in a truck crash every 16 minutes. 98% of the fatalities are occupants in the smaller vehicles, as opposed to those riding in the trucks. Despite these numbers truck drivers, on the average, are patient and safe drivers. When truck accidents occur involving an automobile, it is at least partially the fault of the automobile driver in 75% of all cases. Only 16% of truck accidents can be attributed to the driver of the truck. Why do truck accidents happen and [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:06:42-07:00May 4th, 2017|Truck Accidents|Comments Off

Pedestrian Deaths Rise Sharply – Is Distraction the Cause?

Pedestrian traffic fatalities reached the highest total in more than two decades, according to recent data. A total of nearly 6000 people were killed, reaching the projected rise of 11% for 2016. The figures, released on March 23, 2017, are based on data from the first six months of the year, gathered from every state and the District of Colombia, then projected for the rest of the year. Pedestrian deaths during the first six months totaled 2,660 nationwide, compared to 2,486 deaths over the same period the year before. The figures which were prepared for the Governors Highway Safety Association represent the steepest year to year [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:07:33-07:00May 2nd, 2017|Car Accidents, Personal Injury|Comments Off

Children Who Suffer Mild Concussions Adversely Affected into Adulthood

Youths who suffer even mild traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are more likely to have serious issues later in life, including psychological disorders and premature mortality, according to a study published by PLOS online. Patients who had suffered from at least one concussion, or mild TBI, had long term data analyzed by Seena Favel, MD, professor of forensic psychiatry at the University of Oxford and her colleagues. The patients, who were all born between 1973 and 1985, were an average age of 13 years old when they were injured. They were tracked for an average of eight years after reaching age 26. The research team found that [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2020-08-17T20:07:51-07:00April 30th, 2017|Brain Injury|Comments Off

Study Shows Driving is Affected Even After Concussion Symptoms Are Gone

A concussion can impair a person’s driving ability after all the symptoms have resolved, according to a study conducted at the University of Georgia’s College of education. Participants in the study were tested using a driving simulator. Researchers found that many participants tended to drive erratically despite feeling that they were completely recovered from their concussions. In some cases, the participants drove as if they were under the influence of alcohol. Concussion Patients Should Refrain from Driving This is the first study to closely observe the way a concussion affects a person’s ability to drive. Published in the journal Neurotrauma, the study involved 14 participants, all [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2020-07-29T23:38:56-07:00April 28th, 2017|Car Accidents|Comments Off

Federal Safety Rules Aimed at Distracted Driving by Truckers

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the entity responsible for promoting the safe operation of commercial motor vehicles (CMV’s) and reducing the number and severity of crashes. In 2009 the FMCSA released crash data that showed that 4808 highway fatalities involved large trucks. These numbers, although lower than previous years, remain high due to the factor of distracted driving among CMV drivers. Restrictions were introduced jointly by the FMCSA and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in 2010. The new set of rules was designed specifically to prohibit the use of hand held mobile devices for talking and texting by interstate truck [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:17:34-07:00April 26th, 2017|Truck Accidents|Comments Off

Hands Free Devices as Distracting to Drivers as Hand Held Study Shows

The fact that distracted is a leading cause of traffic accidents is well known. The behaviors to receive most of the blame are texting or talking on cell phones and tablets. Recent lawsuits have brought attention to other forms of distraction such as Facetime, GPS navigation and even playing Pokémon Go. It has been proven many times that any handheld distractions impair a driver’s ability to focus on the task of safe driving. Lately however, research has shown that hands-free devices do not offer the safety over handheld devices as originally thought. A recent study by the University of Sussex has indicated that hands-free devices can [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:18:24-07:00April 24th, 2017|Car Accidents|Comments Off

Defective Products Injure Thousands of Children Each Year

This week 447,000 Lil Frog toys, from Little Live Pets, by Moose Toys were recalled due to exploding batteries that caused several injures to children. No matter how careful parents are when buying products for children that caution is not always enough to see the hidden dangers. It is not only toys that can be hazardous but even products designed for the safety of children. An average of 25 products per month are recalled per Kidsafe.org, a website that lists recalled, defective products every month. These are not only the obvious, like toys with removable parts that create a choking hazard, but safety products like car [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:19:29-07:00April 13th, 2017|Uncategorized|Comments Off

How Do FMCSR Violations Impact a California Truck Crash Lawsuit?

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR) can have an appreciable impact in a California truck crash case, involving injuries or fatalities, in regards to recovering damages. All commercial vehicles, weighing more than 10.000 lbs. or used to transport hazardous materials, and are used for interstate commerce are bound by the FMCSR. Both trucking companies and their employees are held to stringent safety standards under the FMCSR. An “employee” is defined as a full-time driver for the company or an independent contractor hired by the trip. A California truck crash attorney, equipped with the proper skills, will know exactly how to leverage FMCSR violations against the [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:20:13-07:00April 10th, 2017|Truck Accidents|Comments Off

Workplace Burn Injuries – Who is Responsible?

Injuries to four workers in an explosion were determined to be the result of failure to handle hazardous materials properly and failure to respond. The resulting inferno forced two of the workers to scale an 8-foot fence topped with barbed wire to escape certain death. An investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found that Arboris LLC, in Newark, Ohio, did not have an emergency shut down system in place and violated process safety management procedures for the handling of hazardous materials. The company was issued one willful safety violation as well as 35 serious and five other-than serious safety violations from OSHA on [...]

By Vititoe Law Group|2018-05-25T19:20:53-07:00April 6th, 2017|Personal Injury|Comments Off

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