If you or a loved one has been injured in a California car accident, odds are extremely likely that another party’s legal wrongdoing contributed to the accident. Indeed, Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society has found that it is reasonable to conclude around 90 percent of motor vehicle crashes are at least partially caused by human driving errors.
That said, some driver errors are far more common than others. According to California accident statistics over the past few decades, here are the three leading causes of California car accidents.
Speeding
Let’s face it, most drivers have had a lead foot and exceeded the legal speed limit at some point as a driver. The fact remains, however, that exceeding the speed limit amounts to legal wrongdoing when it causes an accident.
As such, accident victims who are injured by a speeding driver can pursue legal compensation from a driver whose speeding contributed to the crash. After a decade of traffic data compiled from 2003 to 2012, the federal National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that just under 33% of all traffic fatalities are relate to speeding.
Since speeding is known to reduce driver reaction time as well as driver control over a vehicle, it is little wonder that speeding continues to endanger the safety of drivers in California and across the country.
Driver Impairment
When drivers get behind the wheel after having more drinks than is legally permissible, innocent drivers suffer. The same holds true if a driver is impaired by drugs when driving as well.
One trend of California accidents that has been true for years is that alcohol-related accidents alone account for more than 25% of California’s accident fatalities.
From 2003 to 2012, a sobering 10,327 people were killed in California accidents that involved a drunk driver. Needless to say, any California accident victim who is injured by a drunk driver is entitled to legal compensation.
Distracted Driving
Thanks to modern technology like the smartphone, distracted driving has become an increasingly common problem that jeopardizes the safety of California drivers.
According to California’s Office of Traffic Safety, 80 percent of California crashes involve driver inattention of some kind. From texting to talking on a phone and not paying attention to the road, these types of seemingly innocuous behaviors can and do cause car accidents with alarming frequency.
If you or a loved one has been injured by a driver who engaged in these or any other unlawful driver behaviors, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries.
The Ledger Law Firm is a nationally recognized law firm that will help you pursue the justice you deserve as well as the legal compensation to which you are entitled. Headed by nationally recognized injury attorney Emery Ledger, Ledger Law has a proven track record of helping accident victims receive the legal compensation that is needed to heal and recover after a serious accident.
Contact us online today to discuss the facts of your California accident case with a Ledger Law attorney.
