Boston Car Accident Lawyer Blog
Everybody tries to find the best car insurance rate. That is why it is common for people to shop around for the best quote. This is why we see so many commercials for car insurance companies. Some people have a lot of assets to protect and want to purchase a policy that will cover the full extent of any damages they do if they cause a serious or even fatal car accident. Others may have a bad driving history and want to only get the minimum coverage as required by law.
Regardless of which type of policy you may be interested in purchasing, the cost of that policy is likely to go up, according to a recent news article from the Boston Globe. The reason for that impending rate hike has to do with an increase in distracted driving, if the car insurance companies are to be believed. However, it should be noted that car insurance companies are for-profit businesses and are often far more concerned with their respective bottom lines than they are about people paying affordable rates and accident victims getting the financial compensation they rightfully deserve.
While distracted driving could be caused by any number of distractions, these days, as our Boston car accident lawyers have seen in far too many cases, we are often dealing with a driver using a smartphone while traveling down the road. Even taking your eyes off the road for a fraction of second can be enough to cause an accident.While this may come as no surprise, it does not stop the countless people who choose to look down and text while driving only to quickly swerve back into their proper lane and hopefully not crash into another car or pedestrian.
There have been many studies done of the increase in the frequency in distracted driving and distracted driving accidents in Boston and across the United States. The author of the article even discusses the increase in business as a result of distracted driving with local body shops who are seeing many more fender benders and serious car accidents all related to the use of electronic devices while driving.
However, it should be noted that, despite that fact that it seems like “everyone is doing it,” using a cell phone to text or surf the web is extremely dangerous and is a valid basis for filing a personal injury lawsuit, should that distracted driving cause a serious car accident. In a car accident lawsuit, the basis for filing that suit is the negligence cause of action.
While negligence has four distinct elements, the main crux of the tort is failing to act like a reasonable and prudent person and that this failure results in a predictable accident to a predictable victim. This reasonable and prudent person is not going to be someone who is driving down the street and looking at his or her cell phone while crashing into a pedestrian, regardless of how common it has become to text while driving.
If you are injured in an accident in Massachusetts, call Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential appointment — (617) 777-7777.
Additional Resources:
Here’s why your car insurance might be skyrocketing, March 14, 2017, By Deirdre Fernandes, Boston Globe
More Blog Entries:
Report: Residents Witness Bizarre Car Accident, Feb. 10, 2017, Boston Motorcycle Accident Attorney Blog