Common causes of car accidents in Cherry Hill include the use of cell phones while driving, teen driving and drunk driving. If any of these factors have contributed to your accident, it is important to understand how the law defines these car accidents and whether you may be eligible for financial recovery. To learn more or discuss the various legal options that you may be entitled to, consult with an experienced Cherry Hill car accident lawyer today.
Distracted Driving
One common cause of car accidents is distracted driving, which is prohibited under Cherry Hill law. People cannot use their cell phone, text, email, snapchat, or any other social media while driving. Their focus should be on the roadway only. Someone driving in Cherry Hill is only allowed to use a cell phone if it is a hands-free device, such as one through Bluetooth so that the individual is not physically holding the phone to their ear while driving.
In order to prevent common car accidents in Cherry Hill caused by cell phone usage, hands-free is the only way that an individual will be allowed to use a cell phone while driving under New Jersey law. With that said, if a plaintiff was using their cell phone at the time of the car accident, that fact may put some of the responsibility or all the responsibility on that plaintiff for their injuries.
If a person is able to prove a defendant was using a cell phone at the time of the car accident, it could be used to hold the defendant more responsible for the car accident. An argument can be made that the driver was driving distracted and maybe even subjected that other driver to punitive damages to punish them for egregious conduct.
Evidence for Claims
In any Cherry Hill car accident case, evidence must be preserved for even the most common cases. However, when there is a Cherry Hill car accident involving cell phone use, cell phone records can be obtained with the appropriately assigned authorization to determine whether or not a driver was using their cell phone at the time of the accident.
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Drunk Driving
Anytime a drunk driver is involved in an accident that is a particularly egregious type of case, because somebody has chosen to put everybody else at risk on the roadway. Common Cherry Hill drunk driving cases often involve impaired drivers, drunk drivers, running stop signs, driving at high rates of speed, and showing a reckless disregard for the safety of everyone else. Typically, these types of car accident cases caused when alcohol consumption is mixed with driving, involve significant injuries and punitive damages to punish the individual involved.
On route 70 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, there are many restaurants and bars. It is common for drivers are over-served, leave these establishments intoxicated, and get on roadways. Because of the amount of establishments that serve alcohol as well as the number of people that roadways in Cherry Hill, anytime somebody is behind the wheel impaired or intoxicated puts everybody at significant risk.
Drunk Driver Injuries
Despite its commonality in Cherry Hill, under New Jersey law, somebody driving drunk could be precluded from making any claim for personal injury and could also be precluded from getting their medical bills paid. Anybody driving drunk under the laws in New Jersey, injured or not, will be severely penalized for egregious conduct.
Pressing Charges
Typically, if somebody has been injured by a drunk driver that individual will be arrested at the scene by a police officer and be charged by the police officer for driving under the influence. The state would undertake the prosecution of that individual criminally and with the opportunity for the injured person to retain their own lawyer to pursue any civil damages and a civil case against that drunk driver. A common civil case for drunk driving car accidents would include seeking damages for economic losses, non-economic losses, and potentially punitive damages to punish the drunk driver.
Somebody who has been injured by a drunk driver has the right to compensatory damages similar to other common cause car accident cases in Cherry Hill. This includes economic damages like lost wages or lost income as well as the cost of medical bills and future medical care. They are also entitled to non-economic damages for suffering, pain disability, impairment, and loss of enjoyment of life. If the case involves a drunk driver, then that injured person would be entitled to punitive damages against that driver, which are damages meant to punish that driver for egregious conduct.
Partially Responsibility
Anytime there is an accident caused by drunk driving in Cherry Hill, all the parties’ respect of negligence is compared. Even if the person is in an accident with a drunk driver, if the person has been driving at an excessive speed, or if the person failed to yield in that accident, those facts would be taken into account.
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Teen and Inexperienced Drivers
Teenagers are not as much a common cause of a car accident in Cherry Hill, as they are more susceptible to common accident causes. Texting and driving and distracted driving are the biggest risks for teenagers. Teens are more likely to be involved in car accidents in Cherry Hill because they lack the experience on the roadway and cell phone use has become such a big part of their lives that they are more likely to drive distracted. Additionally, many of these teens drive with too many kids in the car and can be distracted by their friends while driving.
Defining Novice Driver
Under the law of any state, a novice driver is somebody who has limited time on the roadway. In Cherry Hill, a person is able to obtain a driver’s license at 17 years old. However, permits can be issued at 16 years old and new drivers at 17 have restrictions on the times of day and the amount of passengers they are allowed to have in their car, depending on the time and their age.
To obtain a learner’s permit, which typically lasts about a year, they have to take a driving course at their high school or another sanctioned driving course and obtain a certain amount of hours on the road as well as a certain amount of time with a licensed driver in the passenger seat to have their permit.
Parent’s of Teen Drivers
The most important thing a parent can do is to make sure their child understands the significant risks of driving while distracted, especially while using their cellphone. Teens can be made to understand that there are some injuries that cannot be fixed and are permanent, whether it is an injury or death to themselves if their driving distracted or they could ruin somebody else’s life and some other family’s life.
Teen Insurance Claims
Anytime somebody is in an accident, the insurance company will look at the claim and determine the facts of the accident. The experience of a teen driver is something that would be weighed in when determining responsibility for an accident.
The only difference of how an accident plays out for teen driving accidents is that a jury factors in all the facts of the case, including the experience of the drivers involved. A younger driver has less experience and that would be a factor considered by a jury.
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Looking for a Lawyer
Parents should prepare their kids, if they are involved in a car accident, to make sure they understand that they need to immediately call 911 that they need, if they are able, to take pictures, and get names of witnesses at the accident scene. The individual should be careful what they say to the other driver involved in the accident before speaking to an experienced lawyer.
Anybody looking for a lawyer should find an attorney who has experience and resources to obtain the maximum recovery for their injuries. The biggest things that families should find is lawyers committed to open an honest communication, that return phone calls, that respond to emails, and that make themselves available for face-to-face meetings.
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