Negligent Driving Car Accidents

The word “negligence” gets thrown out a lot. But when it comes to a specific situation, there’s a lot of confusion about whether a driver was driving negligently. This is important because if you were injured in a car accident, you need to prove that the other driver was negligent in order to recover compensation.

Negligent driving means that you’ve made a decision to drive in an unsafe way. That can mean a lot of different things in different circumstances. But, what it boils down to is that when a driver gets behind the wheel, he or she agrees to follow the rules of the road. At the same time, driving a car means that you have the mental and physical capacity to operate a car.

When we try to figure out whether a driver broke a rule of the road, some things seem obvious. However, when it comes to the details of a particular situation, we often look to the Massachusetts Driver’s Manual for guidance.

• Rear End Car Accidents: We’re often surprised by the many people who don’t know that it’s negligent to rear end another car, even if the driver is paying attention. That’s because the rules of the road require you to keep a safe distance around your car at all times. This means that if you’re too close where you can’t safely stop without hitting the car in front of you, you’ve been negligent.
• Distracted Driving: Drivers have an obligation to pay attention at all times. While most people think that “texting” is the only way to drive distracted and fail to pay attention, there are many ways this can happen. Whether it’s trying to get directions, looking for something you dropped, or even being distracted by a passenger, this is negligent conduct.
• Poor Conditions: If someone loses control because of snow, ice, or rain, many people look to the speed limit to see if someone was driving negligently. In reality, a speed limit is for when conditions are good. When conditions are bad, drivers need to take extra caution and drive at a safe speed, which is likely below the speed limit. If the driver doesn’t drive carefully, that’s negligent.

One sad situation that can lead to issues is when someone has a sudden medical emergency. For example, if someone has a heart attack or a stroke while driving, that driver will often lose control and causes a car accident. If someone is injured, they make a claim against the driver who had the medical emergency. Unfortunately, having an unexpected medical emergency is often not something that could be predicted or prevented. When a driver doesn’t do anything wrong, but has a heart attack anyway, the driver is not negligent.

At Marcotte Law Firm, we understand the Rules of the Road, and we understand how they apply to every situation. More importantly, we know how to describe the rules of the road to a jury so that they understand that the person who caused your injury was negligent, and that you deserve fair compensation for your injuries.

If you’ve been injured in a car accident by a driver who was driving negligently, call the Personal Injury Attorneys at Marcotte Law Firm for a free, no obligation, consultation.