The Story: Researchers at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute have discovered that fatigued driving is the cause of twenty percent of all car accidents, a much higher number than the 2-3 percent previously estimated, according to claimsjournal.com. The team of scientists used “naturalist research,” wherein the subject is studied in a natural setting without interference, and worked with over 200 subjects in order to determine the number. It was determined that exhaustion leaves drivers four times as likely to crash or almost crash while driving. The study also found that younger drivers are at much greater risk for crashes resulting from fatigue.
The Virginia Injury Lawyer’s Perspective: A fatigued driver can be a terribly dangerous presence on the road; an exhausted person behind the wheel can cause devastating accidents and death. Driving while fatigued is incredibly irresponsible, and our deepest sympathies go out to anyone who has been injured, or lost a loved one, due to such negligence on the part of another driver. If you or a family member have suffered injuries from such circumstances, you should consider speaking to a personal injury attorney to determine your rights for legal redress.
Potentially Helpful Info: Our Virginia personal injury lawyers know how dangerous it is to drive while fatigued. In particular, we have seen how many drivers in the trucking industry often operate their vehicles while exhausted. The attorneys working for our law firm have written an article explaining how we determine driver fatigue involving trucker accidents; click here to read it.
As personal injury attorneys, we have witnessed cases where multiple deaths could have been avoided had the driver of the vehicle simply taken care to not drive while fatigued. The injury lawyers with our firm have published a list of safety tips to take to avoid fatigued driving; you can read them here.
Have Questions? Check Out Our FAQs: