Car accident fatalities on the rise

On behalf of Aiken and Aiken P.C. Personal Injury Attorneys posted in Car Accidents, Wrongful Death, on Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Each year, many people are killed or injured in motor vehicle accidents in Massachusetts. While the number of fatalities in general around the country had been decreasing for some time, statistics shows that the number of deaths caused by motor vehicle accidents has been continually increasing. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 35,092 people were killed in car accidents in the U.S. this year. This was an increase of 7.2 percent over the number of people who were killed in the previous year. The U.S. Transportation Secretary issued a press release calling for researchers to analyze the fatality data in order to come up with some possible ways to reduce the number of people killed. The agency attributes the increase in fatalities to several factors. In 30 percent of the crashes, the accidents were caused by people who were either speeding or driving drunk. Ten percent of the cases involved distracted drivers, and a little more than half of the fatal accidents involved passengers who were unrestrained by seat belts. According to officials, more people are driving individually instead of carpooling or taking mass transit. For commuters locally on Cape Cod, there’s even less modes of mass transit to navigate the immediate region but bus and train transport have increased access from the Sagamore Bridge park and ride allowing more access to mass transportation to the South Shore and up to Boston. All factors combined lead to a greater potential for auto, truck and even pedestrian accidents.

When a person is killed in an accident, the surviving family members often face severe financial consequences in addition to the grief over the sudden loss of a loved one. Funeral and burial expenses have to be met, and if the decedent was a breadwinner, the contributions to household finances have to be replaced. If it can be determined that the accident was caused by the negligence of another motorist, an attorney representing the survivors could find it appropriate to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the at-fault driver seeking compensation for these and other losses.

In any personal injury accident, it is wise to contact a local and experienced Personal Injury Lawyer immediately. At the firm of Aiken and Aiken, P.C., Paul and Steven Aiken have been on both sides of injury defense, whether it’s representing the person injured or the insurance company of the at-fault driver. They understand the nuances in complex and lengthy legal battles and urge clients to call soon than later to discuss the details of the accident and decide whether or not there’s a case.