North Carolina Law Updates
On Halloween, children roam neighborhoods, moving from house to house and block to block collecting candy and other treats. Children do not always know to cross at the corner and may surprise drivers by darting across streets. As a driver, you need to be alert on Halloween and every other day of the year. A child can enter the road in the brief second you have your eyes diverted from the road. Statistically, children are more likely to be struck by cars and killed on Halloween than any other day of the year.
It is important as a parent to discuss Halloween safety with your child before he or she goes out to trick or treat. There are many steps you and your child can take to minimize his or her chance of being injured in a car accident or on a neighbor’s property. Parents typically accompany younger children when they go trick-or-treating. Older children and adolescents can keep themselves safe without parental supervision by making sure they obey traffic laws and make themselves visible at all times.
No matter how well you prepare your child for Halloween night, there is always the chance that he or she can be involved in an accident. If your child is injured because of a distracted driver’s negligence, seek prompt medical attention for his or her injury. Getting immediate medical care is key to making a full, timely recovery. Once your child has received medical treatment, consult with a personal injury attorney to determine whether compensation may be available from the at-fault driver to cover the medical bills and other expenses. Work with an experienced car accident attorney to determine whether this is an appropriate course of action for your family. If so, your attorney can file your claim and work to get you the money you need to cover your expenses related to the injury.
Texting and Driving
When drivers stop focusing on the road ahead, they have slower reactions to changes in traffic conditions in front of them. Text messaging while driving is one of the most dangerous forms of distracted driving. North Carolina makes it illegal for drivers to send text messages from a moving vehicle. Studies have shown that distracted drivers are more dangerous than drunk drivers.
Distracted driving is not limited to text messaging, however. Using a cell phone to make phone calls, navigate, browse the internet, and use social media are all other ways a driver can put others at risk. Drivers can become distracted by eating or drinking behind the wheel, applying makeup, adjusting the car radio or on-board navigation system, or managing children or pets in the car.
Protect Yourself and Others
Protect yourself, your passengers, and those with whom you share the road by pledging not to use your phone while you are driving. If you need to use your smart phone to navigate, plug in your destination and start the navigation system before you begin to drive.
If you are driving with a passenger, have him or her handle navigation duties. Opt to use a hands-free headset for phone calls. This type of headset allows you to keep your hands on the steering wheel and your eyes on the road while you use your cell phone. If you do not have a headset, ignore all text messages and phone calls until you find a place where you can safely pull off the road and park.
If you can not trust yourself to ignore your phone while you are driving, turn its sound off before you leave home so you are not tempted to respond to its notifications. Another way you can prevent yourself from using your phone is making it inaccessible while you drive by storing it in the back seat or glove compartment.
Protect Children on Halloween
It can be easy for a child to be struck by a car if he or she is walking along the edge of the road at night wearing a dark Halloween costume. Make your child’s costume more visible by adding reflective tape to the outfit and candy bag or giving him or her a reflective pendant on a necklace to wear on Halloween night. Discourage black or dark-colored costumes that can be difficult to see. In addition, give your trick-or-treaters a flashlight or glow sticks to make them more visible in the darkness. If you are accompanying a young child, carry the flashlight and hold his or her hand at all times when crossing the street.
As a driver, be extra vigilant on the roads this Halloween. Drive more slowly than you normally would and stay alert for children crossing the street. Remember to have your headlights on 30 minutes before sundown and keep them on any time you drive at night. Do not keep your radio so loud that you miss the sound of footsteps approaching or people talking in vicinity of the car.
Elizabeth City Personal Injury Attorneys
If you or your child has been injured in a collision with a distracted driver on Halloween, you could be entitled to seek monetary compensation for your losses. These losses can include medical bills, lost wages due to time spent out of work (if you are the injury victim or your adolescent has a job), and the need for disability aids like a motorized scooter during recovery. Make the personal injury claim process easier by working with an experienced Elizabeth City accident lawyer. Glover Law Firm can help you get the money you need by providing quality legal advice and representation for your claim. We can explain every step of the personal injury claim process to you and determine the most effective way to handle your claim and get you the money you deserve. Do not wait to begin working on your claim with our firm – contact us today at 252-299-5300 to schedule your free legal consultation with us.