Motorcycle Accidents

June 8, 2015

New Technology To Prevent Drunk Driving

Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) will prevent a car from moving if the driver has a blood alcohol concentration at or in excess of .08, which is the legal limit in all 50 states. The technology is available in two forms: breath analysis and touch analysis. With breath analysis, the driver simply exhales normally into the device for an instantaneous measurement. And for those with a germ phobia, you do not have to actually touch your mouth to anything. The system is contact- free. The touch system measures BAC under the skin’s surface via the use of an infrared light at the fingertip. So when will it be available and where? Continue reading

June 4, 2015

100 Deadliest Days of Driving for Teens

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Car crashes are the number one cause of death for teenagers. And according to AAA, the deadliest days of driving for teens are the 100 days between Memorial Day and Labor Day. With teens out of school, they are on the roads much more and often have other passengers in their vehicles with them. Below are some statistics for teen drivers in Tennessee and some tips on how to keep your teenager safe during this peak accident time.

First, let’s look at teen driving statistics for some Tennessee counties. Listed below are the counties with the highest young driver (ages 15-24) crash rate rank for 2014 and the number of crashes for each county: Continue reading

May 29, 2015

Whipped Cream: Bad for the Hips and Your Criminal Record

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Last week, a Franklin woman drove her Lexus SUV into a ditch. After she managed to get her vehicle out of the ditch, she proceeded along Battle Avenue until she crashed into a brick mailbox. When police arrived on the scene, they found the driver disoriented. Upon searching her vehicle, they found 13 cans of nearly empty whipped cream. According to reports, the driver had been huffing the aerosol in the whipped cream cans in order to get high.

Of course, a natural reaction upon hearing this story is to titter and then crack all sorts of wise comments. But, we need to remember that impaired driving is impaired driving. It really does not matter whether you impairment stems from alcohol, prescription drugs, street drugs, whipped cream or something else. If you are impaired, you should not be driving. Fortunately, for this woman, she did not hurt anyone else or herself. So how common is this problem? Continue reading

May 18, 2015

Preventing Wrong-Way Accidents

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Wrong-way accidents are just as the name implies: an accident caused by another driver going the wrong way on a street, highway or interstate. Wrong-way accidents are not terribly common but when they occur they typically involve a fatality because the impacts are usually head-on and severe. In fact, more than 350 people are killed each year in wrong-way accidents.

By and large, wrong-way accidents involve a driver who is impaired by alcohol. So then, it will probably not surprise you to know that you are more likely to be the victim in a wrong-way accident at night and on weekends. You are also more likely to be involved in a wrong-way accident if you are driving in the lane closest to the median. Why? Because the wrong-way driver will typically move to the far right lane thinking it is the slow lane. Since they have been drinking, they choose this lane so they do not get pulled over for speeding. Finally, older drivers are over-represented in wrong-way accidents. Aside from cracking down on drunk driving, what can be done to prevent wrong-way accidents? Continue reading

April 23, 2015

New State Legislation for Uber, Lyft and Other Ride-Sharing Companies

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

SB 0907/HB 0992 seeks to establish requirements for transportation network companies (TNC). The bill defines a TNC as a business that operates suing a digital network to connect drivers and customers/passengers for prearranged rides. Taxi services, shuttle services, limousine services and other private passenger services are not subject to the bill.

The bill has several positive features for Tennessee consumers. Below is a summary of some of the key provisions:

April 17, 2015

Distracted Driving: You Shouldn’t Walk and Chew Gum at the Same Time

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. While texting and driving gets a lot of attention (and for good reason), there are many forms of distracted driving, just as many laws that relate to it and, the good news, plenty of strategies for preventing it. Let’s review, shall we?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categorize distracted driving into three forms: visual (taking your eyes off the road), cognitive (letting your mind wander from the task of driving) and manual (taking your hands off the steering wheel). Some of the more common forms of distracted driving are texting while driving, eating while driving, using a navigation system, putting on make-up and daydreaming.

August 7, 2014

Visibility and Motorcycles

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The most common type of motorcycle accident is a car turning left in front of the motorcycle. Generally, this type of accident happens because the driver of the car is simply not looking carefully and fails to see the motorcycle. The more visible a motorcycle is the better.

Loud pipes save lives. While some motorcyclists prefer loud pipes because of the increased “visibility” they believe they provide, there is certainly no legal requirement that a motorcycle be heard before it is seen. And some even believe that “loud pipes save lives” is a misconception. In Tennessee, by statute, your motorcycle must have a muffler. The law also prohibits the use of muffler cutouts. But unlike a number of states, Tennessee does not have a maximum decibel level for muffler noise. Regardless of the loudness of your muffler, other motorists have a responsibility to be on the lookout for motorcycles and give them equal access to the road. And, if you travel to another state, those loud pipes just might garner you a ticket for a noise regulation violation.

Continuing on with the issue of visibility, Tennessee law requires motorcycles to operate with headlights even in the daytime. And so that you can see other vehicles, your motorcycle must be equipped with a rearview mirror. Other things a motorcyclist might do to try an increase their visibility to other motorists are:

August 6, 2014

Traffic Control Signals and Motorcycles: Proceed at Your Own Risk

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

Under Tennessee law, a driver of a motorcycle can proceed through a red light under certain circumstances. T.C.A. § 55-8-110 (b) provides as follows:

(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the driver of a motorcycle approaching an intersection that is controlled by a traffic-control signal utilizing a vehicle detection device that is inoperative due to the size of the motorcycle shall come to a full and complete stop at the intersection and, after exercising due care as provided by law, may proceed with due caution when it is safe to do so. It is not a defense to a violation of § 55-8-109 that the driver of a motorcycle proceeded under the belief that a traffic-control signal utilized a vehicle detection device or was inoperative due to the size of the motorcycle when the signal did not utilize a vehicle detection device or that the device was not in fact inoperative due to the size of the motorcycle.

So what does all that mean? Well, if it is actually a traffic-controlled signal and you, as a motorcycle driver, proceed safely through the red light, then no problem. If it is a traffic-controlled light and you, as a motorcycle driver, proceed through the light but cause an accident because you failed to notice an oncoming vehicle or other issue, then you may be at fault. And if you proceed through the red light and it was not actually a traffic-controlled light, then you could still be ticketed for running a red light. So, all that to say, proceed at your own risk as a motorcycle driver when proceeding through a red light. Here is an article that may help motorcycle riders determine which red lights are actually traffic-actuated.

August 4, 2014

Lane Splitting Illegal for Tennessee Motorcyclists

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

John and Joy Day both love motorcycles. In fact, their first date was a 17-hour motorcycle ride and hiking expedition. Joy on a 100^th Anniversary Edition Harley Sportster and John on a BMW 1200CLC. So it is not surprising that at The Law Offices of John Day, P.C., we are profoundly interested in making sure motorcyclists practice safe and legal riding. And, of course, to the extent a motorcyclist is injured by the carelessness of another, our award-winning lawyers are here to help.

Over the next few days, we are going to cover some of the basics of Tennessee’s motorcycle laws. Today, we will start with lane splitting. Lane splitting is the practice of riding a motorcycle in between lanes when traffic is stopped or slowed. In some states such as California, lane splitting is a legal maneuver. But in Tennessee, motorcyclists are not allowed to split lanes.

Tennessee Code Annotated 55-8-182 provides the following rights and responsibilities for motorcycle riders and sections (b) and (c) specifically address lane splitting:

March 26, 2014

Should Tennessee Repeal Its Motorcycle Helmet Law?

by The Law Offices of John Day, P.C.

The answer is a resounding no. And here are just a few reasons why.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, helmets prevent roughly 37% of crash-related deaths for drivers and 41% of crash-related deaths for passengers. Not only have motorcycle-related deaths been on the rise since 2000, the costs associated with motorcycle crashes are tremendous. It is estimated that the medical care and productivity losses associated with motorcycle crashes are $12 billion dollars in just a single year.

Despite those sobering numbers, Senator Mike Bell of Riceville, the proponent of the legislation to repeal Tennessee’s motorcycle helmet law, argues Tennessee will enjoy an increase in tourism from motorcycle riders if we do away with the helmet law. He might be right, although I am not aware of any authority he cites for that proposition. But let’s just assume the State might see some additional tourism dollars by repealing the helmet law, it most likely would not be enough to offset the costs associated with repealing the law.