Articles Tagged with Auto Accident

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A man tragically lost his life early on Friday morning. He was on the city’s far West Side when this single-vehicle accident occurred. According to initial reports, the fatal incident occurred at roughly 1:30 a.m. in the 1200 block of SW Loop 410 on the access road headed southbound, nearby Loop 410 and Marbach Road. After driving over a puddle on the street, the driver lost control, and the 2004 Mustang crashed into a utility pole, a fire hydrant, a tree, and a drainage culverts metal railing. The Mustang flew over the metal railing and landed on its roof. The driver, unfortunately, did not come out unscathed from this accident. He received fatal injuries, and officials declared him dead at the scene. Reports say a passenger in the Mustang suffered minor injuries. 

In accidents such as this one, the manufacturer of the car may be held liable. The reason is that in the car’s production process, the parts used can sometimes be dangerously poor in quality. At Carabin Shaw, we’ve seen time and time again defective product lawsuits overlooked in an auto accident due to ignorance of knowing how to determine a potential claim or potential defect in the product. It’s often the case that unless an experienced injury attorney, qualified investigators, and product experts are involved early on in the process after a car accident, those claims go unnoticed. Instead, driver error is commonly determined to be the cause of the incident. Product liability claims are, in some cases, never even investigated. In our experience, a highway collision involving death or severe injury needs investigating and reviewing as a potential crashworthiness claim or product defect claim. 

There are a vast number of product liability cases involving automobiles. In instances where the possibility of a product defect in an accident could be, an investigation into the matter should go underway. Here are some instances: 

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In San Antonio, a woman was hospitalized overnight after crashing on UTSA Boulevard. Police stated she was intoxicated and driving at high speeds. The crash occurred on Friday at roughly 1:45 a.m. in the 6500 block of UTSA Boulevard, between Valero Way and Babcock Road. Police stated the 20-year-old woman was driving a green 2006 Ford Focus westbound at high speeds and unsuccessfully attempted a turn. 

The woman rolled her car over several times when she overcorrected and collided with a utility pole. Police stated that the car spun around the utility pole and landed on its roof. She had to get taken out of the car because she was stuck inside. Her injuries were considered not critical after being taken to University Hospital. Police stated that after evaluating her, she was intoxicated. The accident is currently under investigation.

An individual in Texas is considered legally intoxicated and can be arrested and charged with Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) with a BAC (blood or breath alcohol concentration) of .08. However, an individual is also intoxicated if impaired because of alcohol or other drugs regardless of BAC.

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On Saturday night, an individual driving a Dodge Ram was drinking and driving on the road. This individual’s actions led to an accident on the Northwest side that ended in the tragic loss of a woman’s life and severely injured four individuals. This event happened at around 6 p.m. on Saturday at the intersection of Culebra Road and Zarzamora Street. The individual driving a Dodge Ram was heading east on Culebra when he ran a red light and collided with a Chevrolet Silverado heading south through the intersection. The force of the collision sent the Chevrolet Silverado through the intersection and into a Jeep Patriot that was stopped in the right northbound lane of Zarazomora. The drunk driver was charged with manslaughter and intoxication assault.

The 53-year-old woman who tragically lost her life was seated in the rear of the Chevrolet Silverado. The police stated that she was not wearing a seatbelt. She was pronounced dead at the scene by the San Antonio Fire Department. There were three other passengers in the Chevrolet Silverado that were transported to University Hospital because they sustained severe injuries. In addition, an occupant in the Jeep was taken to Brooke Amy Medical Center due to severe injuries. 

Police stated, the individual driving the Dodge Ram was transported to University Hospital after sustaining minor injuries. The police determined that the Dodge Ram driver, who was not identified, was intoxicated.

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Recently, one person was killed in a Texas truck accident in Smith County. While details about the accident are still sparse, according to a local news report, the accident occurred on FM 346. The driver of the truck survived the accident with serious injuries. However, an unidentified person was pronounced dead at the scene. The accident is still under investigation, and there is no indication whether criminal charges will be pursued.

Motor vehicle collisions are one of the leading causes of preventable injury in Texas. In fact, according to the most recent data from the Texas Department of Transportation, there are more than 15,800 people injured and another 3,600 killed in Texas car accidents each year. Truck accidents are responsible for a significant portion of these collisions.

Although Texas does not have the highest population of all U.S. states, it does see the highest number of trucking accidents. In part, this is because of the large number of interstate highways spanning the state. However, there also seems to be a certain disregard of the state’s traffic laws and regulations among many Texas truck drivers. For example, the majority of Texas truck accidents are the result of entirely preventable driving behavior, such as distracted driving, drunk driving, and aggressive driving. There is also a portion of truck accidents caused by vehicle and equipment defects.

https://www.carabinshaw.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Screen-Shot-2021-08-25-at-6.25.40-PM.pngRecently, a Texas car accident claimed at least one person’s life and injured several others. According to a recent news report, the accident occurred in the westbound Interstate 30 lanes over Lake Ray Hubbard at around 7 p.m. While details about the accident are sparse, authorities noted that the accident involved multiple vehicles.

Initially, law enforcement indicated that no one died in the accident, but several people sustained serious injuries. However, later, they issued a follow-up press release stating that at least one person died in the accident. It is unclear at this point what caused the accident or how many people were involved.

The Challenges of Multi-Vehicle Accidents

https://www.carabinshaw.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-08-04-at-2.43.24-PM-1024x566.pngEven attentive drivers can be caught off guard by an unexpected hazard on the road. One common type of unanticipated event is a car accident involving other vehicles on the road. Drivers naturally assume that everyone around them is driving safely and will not get involved in an accident. However, once an accident occurs, it puts everyone else on the road, and chain-reaction car accidents are quite common, especially on Texas highways.

A chain-reaction car accident occurs when one accident sets in motion a series of events that leads to several other collisions. Recently, a 13-year-old boy was killed in a chain-reaction car accident in Bell County, TX. According to a recent news report, the boy was a passenger in one of several cars involved in the collision.

Evidently, a driver was heading northbound on I-35, approaching Shanklin Road, when they approached a construction zone. At this portion of I-35, the highway was restricted to one lane, resulting in a significant traffic back-up. The driver failed to notice that traffic was stopped due to the construction and crashed full-speed into the rear-most vehicle.

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Rear-end accidents are some of the most common motor vehicle collisions on Texas roads. In part, this is because vehicles travel quickly, and an unexpected slow-down ahead may not leave motorists with enough time to stop. For this reason, it is incredibly important to leave sufficient room between vehicles, especially on crowded roads.

While it’s commonly known that the rear driver in a rear-end accident is generally the party responsible for the collisions, that isn’t always the case. In some situations, the driver that is hit may either share the responsibility or be completely at fault. For example, if the driver up front suddenly slams on their brakes for no reason or slows down to turn without signaling, a subsequent rear-end collision may be all but unavoidable for a driver behind them.

A recent example of a situation where the lead driver may share responsibility comes from an accident out of Houston. According to a recent news report, it was around 8 p.m. on Highway 249, near the Greens Road exit, when a man driving a white car pulled in front of a van before applying the brakes. The driver of the van was unable to stop in time and crashed into the back of the car. Sadly, the car’s driver was taken to the hospital and did not survive the injuries he sustained in the accident.

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April 27, 2021, Houston, TX On the evening of Friday April 16th a Tesla Model S crashed and burst into flames after hitting a tree in the Carlton Woods subdivision in the Woodlands.  The Tesla, traveling at high speed, failed to negotiate a bend and came off the road on Hammock Dunes Place, a residential street in the upscale Houston suburb. 

Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman said that the investigation showed “no one was driving” the fully electric 2019 Tesla Model S when the accident happened. There was a person in the passenger seat of the front of the car and in the rear passenger seat of the car. One of the men was identified as Dr. William Varner, a member of the Memorial Hermann medical system. The second victim of the Tesla crash was named as 69-year-old engineer Everett Talbot.  The accident has made national headlines because local officials investigating the incident say there was no one driving the vehicle. 

Federal investigators with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are among those now looking into the deadly accident that killed both men.

pexels-pixabay-263402-300x199Saturday, March 27, 2021, Mineloa, TX:  Two people died after the back tire separated from a vehicle and caused a rollover crash on Saturday in Wood County.  The driver of an SUV, Robert Guy Marino of Tyler, was pronounced deceased Monday morning.  The passenger, Cathy Marks, 64 also of Tyler died at the scene Saturday.

According to DPS, the driver of a Ford Explorer was traveling north on US 69 at around 1:20 p.m. Saturday when a back left tire came off the vehicle, causing the driver to loose control.   The Explorer traveled off the road into the eastbound ditch where is rolled over.  The driver, Marino, was not wearing a seatbelt and was transported to UT Health Tyler in serious condition where he later died.

DPS said the crash is still under investigation.

https://www.texasinjurylawyersblog.com/files/2021/02/Screen-Shot-2021-02-11-at-5.41.11-PM.pngIn the United States, wrong-way accidents can kill hundreds of people every year. These accidents can be particularly deadly when compared to other types of collisions, and account for as many as 54 percent of traffic accident-related deaths in previous years. In the event of one of these devastating accidents, if someone you love is killed because of the neglect and carelessness of another driver, you may have grounds for a personal injury or wrongful death suit for monetary damages.

According to a local news report, two San Antonio residents and four others were killed after a wrong-way accident. Evidently, two vehicles crashed into each other head-on, resulting in one driver being pronounced dead on the scene and his passenger succumbing to her injuries after being transported to a local hospital for treatment. The other victims who died were between 18 and 24 years old, and three other unidentified passengers were taken to the hospital for medical care. Following the accident, local authorities are still investigating the accident’s details.

In Texas, you may be eligible for filing a wrongful death claim on behalf of a loved one if that individual died due to a wrongful act, neglect, carelessness, or unskillfulness from the at-fault party. Car accidents that result in a wrongful death are a common claim in Texas, but not everyone is eligible to bring a claim on behalf of the deceased. If you decide to file a wrongful death lawsuit, you must either be the deceased’s surviving spouse, child, or parent. Children who are legally adopted, surviving adoptive parents, and personal representatives of the deceased’s estate can also file a wrongful death claim.

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