Georgia Personal Injury Law Blog

Over-the-counter drugs, prescriptions and legalized recreational drugs can all affect your ability to drive, but each one influences you differently. That is the deadly problem with driving while drugged. Each drug can affect people differently. Maybe pain killers result in hallucinations. Or maybe the prescription leaves you feeling sleepy. Regardless, drugged driving is a growing problem that states are tackling in a haphazard manner. This article will go over some of these risks and how they may affect you. The problem with drugged driving is that people are doing it with a combination of legal and illegal drugs, sometimes at the same time. Furthermore, driving while on drugs does not carry the same social stigma and barometer as drunk driving. There is no clear "0.08 percent" line that shows when it is safe and unsafe to drive. Due to the variable nature of drug use, it is difficult to collect data…

At Dozier Law Firm, LLC, with offices throughout Georgia, we have years of experience representing injured victims of truck accidents. This experience has allowed us to build a reputation as a leading personal injury law firm in Georgia, which brings countless clients to our firm every year. If you suffered injuries in a truck accident, you, too, may benefit from the assistance of our experienced attorneys. Truck accidents can result from a number of different causes. Common causes are driver fatigue, reckless driving, speeding, lack of maintenance, and inadequate safety equipment. Regardless of the cause, we are prepared to help you pursue personal injury compensation, but first, we have to determine which party acted negligently. In an accident involving a tractor-trailer or other commercial vehicle, the fault can lie with either the driver or the company for which the driver works. When the cause of an accident is reckless driving…

Unlike many states across the U.S., Georgia does not subscribe to no-fault insurance coverage. Drivers who are found to be at fault for causing the accident may be sued by any injured party, including passengers in their own car, under most conditions. This blog post will explain how "comparative fault" insurance works in Georgia and the ways to file a personal injury liability insurance claim for compensation. How Georgia's modified comparative fault laws work The first insurance matter to be settled in any motor vehicle accident on a Georgia road will be to determine which driver was at fault and whether both drivers may have shared some percentage of responsibility. If one driver is held 100 percent liable for causing the accident, then his or her insurance will be responsible for covering all liability damages paid to injured parties, including passengers in their own vehicle. However, if the other driver is determined to share some of the fault, 20 percent for example, then…

Drunk driving accidents are always preventable. This fact is one reason those who lose loved ones in these types of accidents are so frustrated. Fortunately, the number of drunk driving accidents in Georgia is statistically decreasing, but, as in all states, the annual number of DUI-related accidents is still much too high. According to statistics for 2005 through 2011 released by the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety, the peak years for alcohol-related fatalities were 2006 through 2008. During those years, drunk drivers caused 27 percent of all accident-related fatalities statewide. The percentage of alcohol-related deaths began decreasing in 2009, and, by 2011, the percentage was at a six-year low at 23 percent. While the statistics show a definite improvement, those who suffered because of drunk drivers will tell you that the state still has a long way to go toward preventing all alcohol-related deaths. For those individuals and families who lost…

Immediately after car accidents, many victims are so focused on their injuries and recovery that they give little thought to the financial consequences of the accidents. However, once the initial shock subsides, many start wondering about their post-accident legal options. If you suffered injuries in a Georgia car accident, you, too, maybe wondering how you pursue compensation for those injuries. The first step in pursuing compensation is taking stock of your situation. You will need to gather evidence of all of the expenses associated with your injuries. This evidence should include all related medical bills, prescription costs, and the amount of pay you lost from being out of work. The second step is gathering evidence that shows your accident was caused by another driver's negligence. The documents you should gather include the police report, witness statements, and photographs of the accident scene. The third step is contacting a personal injury attorney.…

Are millennials really to blame for the poor condition of our roads and highways, leading to thousands of motor vehicle accidents, injuries, and deaths across the U.S. every year? It's not that simple, but a recent report by Standard's & Poor's, a national financial services and information company, finds that older teens and young adults are partially at fault...in a round-about way. This blog post will explain how the report comes to that conclusion, from the perspective of financing highway projects. It's all about tax revenue Federal and state gasoline and vehicle registration taxes are the primary sources of funding for road repairs, paid primarily through the Federal Highway Trust fund. But since 1993, there has been no increase above the 18.4 cents/gallon federal gasoline tax, and states like Georgia are often slow to raise state gas taxes or vehicle registration fees needed for state-funded projects. In the eight years of records…

Fatal accidents are always tragic, leaving families without their treasured loved ones. Unfortunately, fatal accidents often leave families with more than emotional damages; they leave them with financial uncertainties. If your family has suffered a loss because of another person's negligence, you may find relief from your unexpected financial burdens in the form of wrongful death compensation. Families who lose a loved one to an accident face unexpected end-of-life expenses. Between a loved one's medical bills and funeral expenses, many families find themselves totally unprepared financially. Unfortunately, even when families can pay these expenses, the financial losses tied to the death of a loved one are not over. Many families suffer financially for years from the loss of a loved one. In many cases, this suffering is due to lost income, especially when the deceased victim was the breadwinner. In these cases, wrongful death compensation can be extremely important as…

A motorcycle accident is often tragic, as a motorcyclist has little protection from his or her environment. One recent motorcycle accident in North Georgia has resulted in tragedy for one family that lost its loved one in late January. As the man's loved ones deal with the emotional turmoil stemming from their loss, they may also find themselves facing financial turmoil. The accident occurred Jan. 31 in Fort Oglethorpe, near Georgia's northern border, at an intersection on U.S. Highway 27. According to the report, the motorcyclist was in the northbound lane and a pickup truck, driven by a 74-year-old man, was in the southbound lane. The accident occurred when the truck's driver attempted a left-hand turn, causing the two vehicles to collide. Local law enforcement officials were still unsure of who was at fault in the accident when the report was written. They were continuing to investigate in hopes of…

The front page WSB-TV website on Tuesday, February 9, 2016, displayed two prominent stories that are connected, although unintentionally. The lead banner headline relayed details of a winter weather advisory for the Atlanta area, including probable accumulation of snow. In another story, a video covered the story of I-75 closing due to a tragic motorcycle crash involving a head-on collision with a tractor-trailer truck. This blog post discusses the increased dangers of riding motorcycles in winter in Georgia. Increased Number Of Accidents In The Winter Months There is no question that all drivers and passengers face increased dangers during the winter months. The federal Department of Transporation (DOT) Highway Safety Administration reports that during a typical winter driving season across the United States, nearly 7,400 drivers and passengers lose their lives, and nearly 675,000 more are injured in crashes. Many can be directly related to adverse weather and road conditions. Although…

Anyone who has driven through Georgia has doubtlessly passed hundreds of tractor-trailers on the state's interstate highways. The large number of trucks on the roads makes the chance of truck accidents increase even when conditions are perfect and drivers are alert. When driver fatigue becomes a factor, the chance of a truck accident increases exponentially. Drivers of semi trucks and other large commercial vehicles have the lives of the people with whom they share the roads in their hands. The size and weight of these trucks make them more hazardous to others than commuter vehicles, such as cars and pickup trucks, should they be involved in accidents. This knowledge alone should make drivers take special care; however, this is not always the case. Some drivers, pushed to the limit by deadlines and management, overextend themselves. Some even drive many more hours in a row than the federal guidelines allow, which…