New York City Personal Injury Blog

For people in New York, truck accidents may be particularly devastating. Every year, thousands of people lose their lives or are seriously injured in crashes involving large semi-trucks. Car accidents can already be complex as there are a number of parties involved, and victims may face a fight for justice. However, the landscape can be even more complicated when a truck accident is involved.

There are a number of reasons why truck crashes can be more severe, beginning with the greater size and mass of the vehicles involved. Large trucks can do devastating damage; in addition, truck accidents may involve more cars and other vehicles. A truck accident may shut down a highway, leak cargo or block traffic, leading to a cascade of collisions. The more parties are involved, the more complex a case can become.

Distracted driving can be deadly. Nevertheless, many drivers in New York engage in it on a regular basis. Cellphone use is becoming especially widespread behind the wheel. Wakefield Research has recently conducted an online study regarding distracted driving that involved 2,000 U.S. respondents. Root Insurance, a company offering insurance incentives to motorists who avoid cellphone use, recently shared the results.

Overall, participants used their cellphones while driving for an average of 13 minutes a day. Almost two in five said they do not bother to put down their cellphones when they see law enforcement around. In spite of this, 89% were critical of Uber and Lyft drivers who text and drive, saying they would leave a bad rating on such operators. Another 90% considered themselves superior drivers to ride-hailing employees.

New York drivers who are intoxicated when they get behind the wheel may be prevented from causing crashes in some types of vehicles in the near future. Volvo announced on March 20 that starting in the early 2020s, its vehicles would come equipped with cameras and sensors that would detect signs of drunk driving and take action.

This comes on the heels of an earlier announcement by the company that starting next year, none of its vehicles would be able to exceed a speed limit of 112 miles per hour. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that in 2017, 10,874 people died in crashes related to drunk driving and that an average of nearly 30 fatalities per day can be attributed to being intoxicated while behind the wheel. Volvo says it wants to take steps to prevent these kinds of accidents altogether.

Just before 3 p.m. on March 25, a police chase ended with the suspect crashing into another vehicle in the Bronx. Six people were injured as a result and had to be rushed to NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln.

The accident took place near the intersection of East 163rd Street and Washington Avenue. Police were chasing a vehicle whose driver had committed a traffic violation when that vehicle carrying five passengers collided with another car. The suspect's vehicle crashed against another car, the only occupant of which was the driver, before coming to a stop.