It is back to school season throughout the United States. Drivers are slowly starting to readjust their commute to make time for slowing in school zones, and are working to remember school bus laws. Also, drivers need to remember that it is dangerous to drive while distracted by texting or another application or feature on a smart phone. With small children walking home from school or travelling to the bus stop, there will be more and more pedestrians out on the road. These little pedestrians may be hard to see unless a driver is fully focused on the activities up ahead on the road.
Many pedestrian accidents happen close to home in residential neighborhoods where drivers ignore the speed limits, move past stop signs, and drive while checking an e-mail, scrolling through a social media site, or texting a friend. Children may assume that a car will stop at a stop sign, and begin to cross the street without even looking to see if the child is distracted.
In the state of Florida, the Department of Transportation has decided that they will enact a texting ban in order to work towards minimizing distracted driving in the state. Only three states in America do not have no texting while driving bans put in place. These are Arizona, South Carolina, and Montana. The fines for texting while driving in Florida are not strict at this time. A first offense will only result in a $30.00 fine. Yet a second offense that is committed within a five-year period is considered a moving violation and this can go on a driver's record. This will in turn notify insurance companies that the driver is "high risk" and will result in costly insurance premiums.
In Florida, drivers can get points on their driving record and when points hit a certain limit it can trigger consequences. Texting while driving in a school zone is considered a two-point violation, while passing a school bus while it is stopped is a four-point violation. It is a six-point violation to cause an accident. With so many children traveling the sidewalks and crossing the street during the school year, police may choose to send officers to popular school crossing intersections to watch for reckless or distracted drivers.
Some police forces hope that by stationing authorities near busy roadways, they will be able to keep drivers accountable and avoid distracted driving accidents. If your loved one was injured in a pedestrian accident as a result of a distracted driver, then you certainly have the right to seek compensation. You can talk to a local personal injury attorney or car accident attorney to discuss your options. You may be able to receive full compensation for all medical bills and recovery time as well as punitive damages for the pain and suffering that you experienced as a result of the accident.
In addition to seeking damages through a personal injury lawsuit, you have the right to press charges against a reckless, negligent, or distracted driver so that he or she can serve time or pay fines as penalty for violating traffic laws in the state. Millions of children walk to school every day, and you will want to hold drivers accountable by pressing charges against them when they violate the law.
In 2011, 23% of all auto collisions involved cell phones. This means that 1.3 million crashes involved cell phone use in that year alone. Normally, looking at or typing a text message takes about five seconds. If a driver is travelling at 55 mph then the time that the driver is looking out will be equivalent to travelling an entire football field. Learn more about texting and driving lawsuits today by contacting a local car accident attorney!