According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP), vehicle crashes are the number one cause of death for people between the ages of one and 54 in this country. Another 2 million people are injured in car accidents. However, study after study has proven that seat belts save lives.

When used correctly, seat belts cut down the number of car accident fatalities by 60 to 70 percent. Additionally, seat belts reduce how serious sustained injuries can be for car crash survivors.

Many injuries are caused when a person slams into parts of a vehicle’s interior during a crash, such as the steering wheel, dashboard, windshield, and doors upon crash impact. Moreover, fatal injuries can occur when victims are thrown from a vehicle in a crash because they were not wearing a seat belt. Wearing a seat belt, however, helps keep car occupants in place and may stop individuals from being ejected.

Yet, despite these studies, there are drivers and passengers who continue to refuse to buckle up. In 2012, more than half of the teenagers killed in crashes were not wearing seat belts.

The people most likely to not wear seat belts include the following:

• Adult males between the ages of 18 and 34 — Males are 10 percent more likely not to wear a seat belt than females;
• Adults who live in rural areas — Approximately 85 percent of adults who live in urban areas wear seat belts, compared to 78 percent of adults living in rural areas; and
• States which have secondary or no enforcement laws — States which have primary enforcement laws have a higher rate of citizens who use seat belts than those which have secondary or no enforcement laws.

The state of Connecticut has a primary seat law—all drivers, front seat passengers, and back seat passengers between the ages of 4 and 16 must wear a seat belt. An adult, 18 years or older, who fails to buckle up can be fined $92.00 for a first offense. For drivers and passengers under the age of 18, the fine is $120.00.

Although it is important for all individuals to wear a seat belt while in a vehicle, unfortunately, seat belt use will not prevent all injuries from occurring. As long as there are negligent and unsafe drivers on the roads, vehicle occupants are all at risk. However, wearing a seat belt can make all the difference in whether or not a person survives a crash or becomes a statistic.

Speak with an Experienced Connecticut Car Accident Injury Attorney Today

If you or a loved one sustained serious injuries in a motor vehicle accident, please contact an experienced Westport personal injury attorney to see what legal compensation you may be entitled to for your pain and loss.

On June 7, 2014, actor and comedian Tracy Morgan was severely injured in a devastating accident while traveling with friends in a limousine bus along the New Jersey Turnpike. One man was killed and several other passengers were injured. Morgan suffered multiple injuries, with the most critical being a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Morgan sued for damages and recently settled his case.

Aside from being physically devastating, TBIs typically result in exorbitant medical bills, including extensive rehabilitation treatments. Moreover, in cases where people have been seriously injured, a financial payout is the only option available to best serve as a form of compensation for the injuries suffered.

Morgan’s case is just one high-profile example of an unfortunate and life altering accident and injury that can happen to anyone. Several types of accidents can result in head injuries, some severe enough to cause traumatic brain injury. Advances in medical technology have opened more doors for recovery, but this process comes with a hefty price tag that is not always covered by health insurance.

The costs are greatest with injuries that require long-term treatment and a rehabilitation period. Because more doctors are regarding the body and mind as fundamentally integrated, victims of TBI may require a large team of health care workers, including specialists. Specialized care can include physical, occupational, and recreational therapists, as well as speech pathologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, vocational counselors, and social workers.

For each specialist involved, the cost for care continues to rise. Depending on the severity, an individual could potentially spend one million dollars over the course of his or her rehabilitation. This amount comes in addition to medical costs for immediate treatment following an accident such as hospitalization and surgery.

If you or a family member has suffered a traumatic brain injury or other catastrophic injury, you may be entitled to compensation. Please contact Richard H. Raphael, Attorney at Law, an experienced Westport personal injury attorney, to discuss your case today.

The summer weather has finally arrived—friends and families will now begin to plan and go on vacations and trips. Planes, trains, and automobiles are several methods of transportation chosen to get to and from a destination. An additional method of transportation, often selected because it is cost efficient, is a bus.

However, a recent accident involving a bus company has raised questions regarding just how safe these low-cost carriers are—especially because one eight year old company has had multiple accidents nationwide, resulting in hundreds of injuries and at least eight deaths. Moreover, there have been reports of bus drivers being stopped by law enforcement and arrested for drunk driving.

The Megabus fleet operates from Boston to California and includes stops in Connecticut. The latest crash occurred in Indiana, on Interstate 65, when a double-decker bus traveling from Chicago to Atlanta slammed into the back of a tractor trailer. According to law enforcement, the accident took place in a construction zone where the truck had stopped, along with the rest of the traffic. The impact of the crash sent the truck into an SUV that was stopped in front of it. Nineteen people were transported to local hospitals with injuries. This was the fourth crash by the carrier since October in the state of Indiana alone.

In 2012, a Megabus traveling through Illinois carrying 70 passengers skidded and slammed into a concrete pillar of an overpass. At least five people needed to be extricated from the bus. One victim, a 25-year-old medical student, was killed. In a New York Megabus crash which occurred in 2011, the bus smashed into a bridge. Four people on board the bus were killed. The driver of the bus was later indicted on four counts of criminally negligent homicide and one count of failing to obey a traffic control device.

The Megabus is not the only carrier to come under fire for its accident record. Fung Wah, which transported passengers between Manhattan and Boston, recently announced it will most likely be going out of business. In 2013, the company lost its federal license for numerous safety violations. Last year, however, the US Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reissued that license. However, Boston officials have taken away the carrier’s two gates located at South Station, which leaves Fung Wah without a Boston stop and nowhere to operate from.

Consult with a Connecticut Personal Injury Attorney

If you have been injured in a bus accident, please contact an aggressive Westport personal injury attorney to find out what legal compensation you may be entitled to for your pain and loss.