In California, a man has been charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter after his car left the freeway at a high rate of speed, ran a red-light and struck another vehicle killing two people. After the accident, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) confirmed that Autopilot was in use in the Tesla at the time of the crash. The NHTSA has categorized these types of crashes as “automation complacency”. This raises the questions of: why are drivers being complacent and who is to blame? Continue reading
Breaking News: Speed Kills (and Injures)
On this day in 1904, Henry Ford set a land-speed record of 91.37 miles per hour in Michigan. A lot has changed since then. Ninety-one miles per hour is hardly a record. In Nashville, you can find folks doing that speed during rush hour on Interstate 65. But like so many of our decisions and actions, drivers that speed are not just placing themselves at risk but others on the road as well. Do you know how many accidents were caused by speeding last year? More importantly, how do you keep you and your loved ones safe on the roadway? Continue reading
Bad Accidents and Good Fortune
Last week, author Seth Godin wrote a blog post about good and bad accidents and, to be honest, we keep thinking about it. Perhaps Seth’s article has stuck with us because at the Law Offices of John Day, our award-winning lawyers see bad accidents and their lasting aftermath every single day. Quite frankly, it can get you down. Needless injuries and deaths caused by carelessness can be hard to stomach day in and day out. So what keeps us going? Good fortune. Or as Seth put it, good accidents. In follow-up to Thanksgiving, we thought we would share some with you. Continue reading
Deadly Car Accidents Increase Significantly in First Six Months of 2021
Two weeks ago, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released the statistics for fatal traffic accidents for January through June of 2021, and the numbers are depressing. More than 20,000 people lost their lives in the first half of 2021, an increase of 18.4%. Of course, 2020 saw major changes in driving behaviors, but the jump can’t simply be chalked up to the decrease in driving in 2020. Why? Because the first half of 2021 is the largest number of fatalities from January to June since 2006. The NHTSA has also reached some conclusions as to what is causing so many car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle and pedestrian accidents and what drivers can do to protect themselves and others on the road. Continue reading
National Use Your Common Sense Day
November 4, 2021 is National Use Your Common Sense Day. Yes, we are serious. Our only problem with this particular national observance is that it is limited to only a day. Quite frankly, and I think most of you will agree, it should be Use Your Common Sense Day every single day. At the Law Offices of John Day, we see the results of failing to use common sense so we have some suggestions on where people might want to concentrate their efforts. We encourage you to join us in our little rant and add your lack-of-common-sense pet peeve in the comments. So here we go, this is our list: Continue reading
October is National Pedestrian Safety Month
Whether you live in downtown Nashville or out in the country, we are all pedestrians. For example, when you drive to the grocery store or to the football game and you get out of your car to walk into the store or to the stadium, you are a pedestrian. So pedestrian safety impacts each one of us. Nationwide, a pedestrian is killed every hour and a half. In Tennessee, crashes involving pedestrians are increasing. And more locally, last year, Nashville alone had its worst year of pedestrian deaths with 39 and is on pace to surpass that horrible mark this year. Do you know Tennessee law with respect to pedestrians? Read on for a refresher and for tips on staying safe. Continue reading
Another Reason Not to Drive Distracted: Voided Insurance Coverage
An insurance policy is a contract between you and the insurance company. At its most basic, you agree to pay the premium and the insurance company agrees to pay certain claims. For instance, in an Accidental Death policy, the insurance company agrees to pay benefits to the designated beneficiary in the event the insured dies in an accidental manner such as a car accident. Again, that seems relatively straight-forward. And if that were the only sentence in the policy it would be very simple. But anyone who has ever purchased insurance knows, insurance contracts are long, complex and filled with exceptions or exclusions. And texting and driving may be an exclusion that could void the insurance coverage for which you have been paying, maybe for years or decades. Let us explain. Continue reading
A Safe Ride Home from The Law Offices of John Day and MTSU
The first person ever arrested for drunk driving was a man named George Smith. According to the History Channel, on September 10, 1897, Mr. Smith, a young taxi driver, got drunk and then drove his taxi into a building. 124 years and 6 days later, drunk driving continues to be a problem on roadways. That is why The Law Offices of John Day continues to offer safe ride homes, and we are excited about our current free rideshare program with Middle Tennessee State University. Continue reading
Labor Day: A Dangerous Time To Be On The Road
Labor Day is typically viewed as summer’s last hurrah. To celebrate the holiday weekend this year, 42.9 million people are expected to take a road trip. So maybe it is not surprising that Labor Day is the second deadliest holiday weekend in the United States. Read on to find out what day and time-period of the holiday weekend is the most dangerous to drive and tips on how to stay safe. Continue reading
Best Lawyers, Indeed
Since 1983, Best Lawyers has recognized the top 6% of private practicing attorneys as decided by other lawyers in a peer-review process. Permit us to toot our horn for a moment and then explain why injury victims should care about whether their lawyer is listed in The Best Lawyers in America.
This year, the attorneys at The Law Offices of John Day garnered the following recognition from Best Lawyers: Continue reading