If you or a loved one are injured or perish due to another driver’s lack of due care (negligence), you need the assistance of a savvy NJ personal injury attorney.  The attorneys at Schibell Law, LLC are here to help you obtain the compensation necessary to account for your physical and emotional pain.

The Many Different Causes of Auto Accidents

Auto accidents typically have preventable causes.  However, it is often challenging to pinpoint the true cause of auto accidents right away.  Driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol is one of the top causes of auto accidents.  Accidents resulting from alcohol/drug use tend to be particularly devastating.  When all the deadly auto accidents in New Jersey are analyzed, it is determined nearly 30% of the drivers downed at least some alcohol prior to driving.  All in all, drunk driving has cost Garden State taxpayers in excess of $1 billion.  Add on the unquantifiable costs of emotional pain and suffering and the true cost of auto accidents is significantly more. 

The consumption of alcohol, even in diminutive amounts, ultimately reduces driver reaction time, alters judgment, weakens the senses and compromises vision.  If you operate a motor vehicle with a BAC (blood alcohol concentration) of 0.08% or higher, there is grounds for an arrest for drunk driving.  It must be noted the consumption of any amount of alcohol that negatively affects one’s driving ability has the potential to lead to a drunk driving conviction.  More than one million drivers are arrested each year alone for driving under the influence of either alcohol or drugs.  One-third of drunk drivers are repeat offenders.  However, merely one arrest takes place for every 700-800 drunk drivers on the road.

Distracted driving is another significant problem on the roads.  Though it is hard to believe, nine people are killed and more than 1,000 individuals are injured each day as a result of auto crashes caused by distracted driving.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports 10% of auto accidents are crashes resulting from distractions.  Distracted driving causes more than 3,000 auto accident fatalities each year along with about 400,000 injuries.  Of these injury accidents, about 20,000 resulted from smartphone use.  Sadly, distractions caused by phones lead to more than 400 deaths each year.  Regardless of whether the distraction is a phone, the radio or someone else in the vehicle, the bottom line is distracted rivers are a serious hazard on roads in New Jersey and beyond.

Texting while behind the wheel is an especially disturbing type of distracted driving.  It is awfully concerning to learn more than 600,000 people use smartphones or other electronic devices when driving.  Simply reaching for one’s phone, dialing a number or attempting to send a text makes an auto accident three times as likely.  Texting forces drivers to take their eyes off the road for five seconds on average.  When traveling 55-60 mph, this five second period equates to traveling the length of an entire football field while wearing a blindfold.

Additional causes of auto accidents include but are not limited to the following:

• Speeding
• Red light accidents
• Unsafe roads
• Defective vehicle parts
• Rear-end collisions
• Injuries resulting from deployed airbags
• Careless driving
• The failure to obey traffic rules/signals
• Unsafe lane changes
• Inclement weather
• Tire blowouts
• Driving in snowy conditions

 The Different Types of Auto Accidents 

Some auto accidents are more likely than others to lead to significant injury or even death.  Schibell Law, LLC have years of experience fiercely representing those who have been victimized by: 

• Hit-and-run collisions
• Rear-end collisions
• Pedestrian accidents
• Drunk driving
• High-speed collisions
• Head-on collisions
• Side impact collisions
• Accidents that are not-at-fault
• Vehicle rollovers
• Uninsured motorist accidents
• Truck Accidents

Potential Injuries Resulting From Auto Accidents

The type of accident as well as its severity ultimately determines the resulting injuries.  Certain injuries prove temporary while others prove long-lasting or even plague victims until their final days.  Auto accidents often result in brain and head injuries.  The trauma of an auto accidents puts the brain at an especially high risk for sliding.  Contact to the head or contact between the head and another object can easily cause a TBI or traumatic brain injury.  Auto accident victims are also subjected to risk for additional head injuries such as concussions even if there are not clear signs of trauma. 

Auto accidents also commonly result in neck injuries.  Such injuries can cause significant, long-lasting pain.  Examples of mild neck injuries stemming from auto accidents include neck strain and whiplash.  Auto accident victims often endure neck sprains, herniated disks and/or pinched nerves also referred to as cervical radiculopathy.

Back injuries stemming from the trauma of auto accidents have the potential to prove debilitating.  The violence of an auto accident can lead to fractures, strains, sprains, disc injuries, thoracic spine injuries, lumbar radiculopathy and other lumbar injuries.  Though back injuries might not manifest right away, they can lead to lifelong pain. 

Spinal cord injuries occur when bone fragments, ligaments or parts of the disc are displaced and bruise/tear the tissue of the spinal cord.  If there is significant damage to nerve cells, communication between the victim’s brain and other parts of the body can be compromised, causing the loss of function/feeling.

Internal injuries often occur after a significant collision.  Examples of the most common internal injuries range from damage to the kidneys to a compromised spleen, a damaged liver, harm to the heart and even a compromised aorta.  If the ribs are fractured, the lungs can be punctured and damage can be caused to other organs. 

It is even possible for psychological injuries to manifest after an auto accident.  From emotional distress to depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and beyond, all sorts of psychological maladies can set in.  Some such psychological injuries have the potential to last an entire lifetime, negatively impacting the victim’s ability to work, study, form relationships and enjoy a high-quality of life.

The Statute of Limitations in Auto Accident Lawsuits 

The statute of limitations in auto accident cases in the state of New Jersey stretches to two years.  This means you have two years from the point in time at which the auto accident occurred to file a lawsuit against the other driver.  Fail to file the lawsuit in this period of time and New Jersey courts might not be willing to hear your case.  If your case is not heard, you will forfeit your chance to obtain compensation.

Obtain Assistance From a Personal Injury Attorney

If you or a family member are injured or perish in an auto accident and even slightly suspect it is the fault of another driver, reach out to our attorneys right away.  The attorneys at Schibell Law, LLC, led by Richard Schibell, have the experience necessary to pursue justice on your behalf with reasonable hope for compensation.  We have won more than our fair share of major auto accident lawsuits in recent years.  You can contact our law firm by dialing 732-774-1000.  Consultations are completely confidential and free.  There is absolutely no fee unless we emerge victorious in your case.