Failure to yield accident results in serious injury

An accident in Campbell County, Va., which occurred on Route 24 on Friday evening, left four people injured, according to WSET-TV.

Police have reported that a driver in a pick-up truck traveling eastbound was attempting to make a left turn at an intersection when an oncoming van struck her. The driver of the pick-up truck and her teenage passenger suffered serious injuries while the driver and passenger in the van suffered only minor injuries.

While charges are still pending against the pick-up truck driver, investigators say she may face a failure to yield charge.

We are glad that all of the people involved in this accident are currently in stable condition. Too often, failure to yield accidents result in more than just minor or serious injuries. According to the National Safety Council, approximately 14 percent of car accident fatalities were the result of failure to yield accidents.

Failure to yield accidents, while a very preventable type of accident, are quite common and are the second most frequent driving violation that results in fatality. While these types of accidents can be easily avoided by simply letting the traffic that has the right of way pass before attempting to make a turn, it seems that they are still a major problem.

Part of the reason these accidents occur are because many drivers are unsure of who has the right of way. If you are waiting to make a turn at an intersection, and are unsure of who has the right of way, a good rule of thumb is to simply wait until the traffic is clear before turning. Trying to beat the oncoming traffic can result in serious injury, as in this case, or other injury such as brain trauma. If you have been injured in an accident as the result of a driver who failed to yield, please contact our law firm for a free consultation.

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