If a speeding driver struck you in Macon, Georgia, you may be left with severe injuries and property damage for which you need compensation. When seeking this compensation through an auto insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit, it’s crucial that you present evidence of the at-fault driver’s speeding. This evidence can significantly impact the compensation you recover, which can ease the financial burden of your injuries on you and your family.
Contact Joshua E. Palmer Law Firm for a free consultation with an experienced Georgia speeding car accident lawyer. We’ll review the accident, walk you through your options for seeking compensation, and help you determine the best ways to prove the other driver was speeding to maximize your compensation.
Speeding Crash Statistics
According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), speeding is one of the most significant contributors to accidents resulting in injuries and fatalities. In a recent year, over 300,000 people were injured in crashes caused by speeding. Speeding was also a contributing factor in 29 percent of all traffic fatalities, resulting in over 12,000 deaths.
How Speeding Causes Car Accidents
Speeding leads to an increased rate of car accidents in several ways, including increasing the odds of a driver losing control, decreasing the time they have to react to hazards, and increasing the distance their vehicle needs to stop.
A driver’s chances of losing control of a vehicle increase with their speed. When drivers speed, even minor steering inputs can cause drastic changes in the direction and stability of their vehicle. This is why drivers who weave through traffic at high speeds frequently end up colliding with other vehicles and stationary objects.
In addition to drivers having a harder time controlling their vehicles at higher speeds, they have less time to react to hazards on the road. For example, a speeding driver who goes around a blind turn will have less time to respond to stopped traffic ahead. They also have less time to react to vehicles ahead of them hitting the brakes.
Finally, when a speeding driver needs to stop, such as when a hazard is ahead of them on the road, they may not be able to do so in time. The faster a vehicle travels, the more distance it requires to come to a complete stop.
How Speeding Leads to More Severe Accidents
Not only does speeding cause car accidents, but it leads to more severe accidents, as well. For example, the higher the rate of speed at which a vehicle travels, the higher the force involved when it collides with another object. These higher forces cause more severe injuries, such as broken bones, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and soft tissue injuries.
Higher speeds also reduce the effectiveness of vehicle safety features, like seatbelts, airbags, and crumple zones. This is once again because of the higher forces involved due to speeding.
If you are the victim of a speeding car accident caused by someone else, it’s crucial that you work with an experienced lawyer to maximize your compensation. Severe injuries frequently lead to more expensive medical treatment and longer time off work, which can affect your income. In particularly serious cases, your injuries may be so severe that they prevent you from returning to work at all.
Speeding and Comparative Fault
Georgia’s modified comparative fault law can be found in GA Code Section 51-12-33. This law states that injury victims cannot receive compensation through a personal injury lawsuit if they were 50 percent or more at fault for the accident that harmed them. Additionally, a victim’s compensation will be reduced by a percentage equal to their degree of fault.
While this law specifically applies to personal injury lawsuits, auto insurance providers also use it when calculating the value of your claim. If the insurance company knows you will only be able to get a certain amount of money through a lawsuit, it won’t offer more than that when settling your case.
Insurance companies also often try to reduce their liability by blaming accident victims for the crashes that caused their injuries. One way victims can fight back against this practice is to prove the motorist who struck them was speeding. If the other driver was speeding, the insurance company will have a harder time arguing that you are to blame for the crash.
However, you also have to watch out for the insurance company claiming that you were speeding. If the insurance company provides evidence that you were speeding, it could decrease the compensation you receive through your claim or lawsuit.
Proving Speeding in a Car Accident Case
A car accident lawyer can use various types of evidence to prove the other vehicle was speeding. Lawyers have extensive experience gathering robust evidence and can acquire evidence that may be challenging for a layperson to obtain on their own. Some of the most common types of evidence for proving speeding include:
- Eyewitness statements mentioning the apparent speed of the vehicle
- Accident scene photographs depicting skid marks on the road surface caused by the speeding driver slamming on the brakes
- Traffic, security, or dashboard camera footage showing the speed of the vehicle
- If the vehicle is a newer model, data from its onboard computer system showing the speed right before the crash
- Testimony from a crash reconstruction specialist about the probable cause of the accident
- Your medical records detailing the extent and severity of your injuries
- Testimony from your treating doctor or another medical professional about the causes of your injuries
Contact Our Macon, Georgia, Speeding Car Accident Attorney
If you were in an accident with a speeding driver in Macon, Georgia, contact Joshua E. Palmer Law Firm for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney. During your initial consultation, we’ll review the accident details, explain your options for seeking compensation, including auto insurance claims and personal injury lawsuits, and answer any remaining questions you have about your case.
