Car Accident After Running A Stop Sign
Running stop signs is a hazard that unnecessarily places the driver and other motorists at a high risk of collisions, leading to severe bodily harm and property damage. Proving fault is not always as straightforward as you would think, however. Winning a civil claim involves providing evidence that the driver’s thoughtless and negligent actions were the primary cause of the accident and therefore, they are liable for the damages. Strong cases will require gathering evidence that the other driver broke traffic laws by running a stop sign. Additional proof of their actions leading up to the incident, such as showing they were driving while impaired or with distractions like texting, could help you collect compensation successfully.
Running Stop Signs Is a Top Cause of Auto Accidents
Stop signs are essential for traffic management and safety in intersections. Failing to come to a complete stop, as the universal language of traffic signs requires, is a significant cause of life-threatening and fatal accidents throughout the country. Police departments nationwide report nearly 700,000 car crashes each year resulting from negligent motorists running stop signs. Based on multiple stop sign collision studies conducted by the United States Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, close to half of these collisions result in bodily harm, and a fourth of the fatal crashes nationwide occur in intersections yearly.
Car Accidents Caused by Running Stop Signs
Drivers commonly fail to come to a complete stop, often called a rolling stop, or cease to stop and yield altogether for many reasons. Some of the typical causes include driver distractions, inattentiveness, impatience, and intoxication. Speeding and reckless operation of motor vehicles are also frequent elements leading to deadly traffic incidents. Regardless of why motorists run stop signs, the action is negligent and puts themselves and other drivers at risk of collisions with life-altering and devastating consequences.
Common Stop Sign Car Accident Injuries
Running a stop sign is a standard cause of side-impact, head-on, and rear-end automobile collisions, all of which are often severe. Some of the common injuries individuals suffer include:
- Concussions and traumatic brain injuries
- Severe whiplash and other neck or back problems
- Spinal cord damage leading to paralysis
- Internal organ damage or bleeding
- Herniated discs, pinched nerves, and fractured vertebrae
- Broken bones and traumatic amputations
- Facial or dental damage
- Death
Everyone has a legal obligation to exercise caution while behind the wheel by following traffic and safety rules and regulations to avoid causing harm to others.
Who Is at Fault in Stop Sign Accidents?
The at-fault party in stop sign crashes is the person who failed to adhere to the traffic laws. Evidence of the other driver’s failure to comply with the traffic regulations and resulting damage could establish the case and allow the plaintiff to recover a settlement. The at-fault party in stop sign crashes is the person who failed to adhere to the traffic laws. Proving liability can be challenging, but some of the potential evidence options include:
- Eyewitness statements
- Police officer accident reports
- Pictures of the accident scene and location of damages on each vehicle
- Surveillance cameras
- Accident scene recreation through graphs, charts, and illustrations
- Documentation and medical records of the plaintiff’s bodily injuries
Evidence that the careless party neglected to comply with traffic regulations could establish liability and allow the plaintiff to recover a settlement for their damages and losses.
Failure To Stop at a Stop Sign
Running stop signs is reckless, and when accidents occur, they are entirely avoidable. Therefore, failing to comply with the traffic signs can often result in criminal charges in Georgia. According to the guidance of the Official Code of Georgia § 40-6-72, motorists must stop at the line when approaching stop signs. Everyone must stop before the crosswalk or intersecting roadway when there is no line to yield the right-of-way to oncoming traffic from another intersecting street. Evidence of drivers failing to stop and yield the right-of-way at intersections when crashes with other vehicles occur may satisfy the components necessary to establish negligence in civil court.
Speak With a Knowledgeable Car Crash Attorney To Learn More
You have the right to pursue legal action if you sustained bodily harm and property damages because another driver failed to come to a complete stop and yield the right-of-way at a stop sign. State laws provide that everyone must use caution and adhere to traffic and safety laws to prevent causing avoidable crashes and harm to other drivers. Call an experienced car crash injury lawyer in Atlanta, Georgia, for help with a case because of another driver running a stop sign.
Chris has successfully represented numerous clients in catastrophic personal injury, employment law matters, class action, consumer protection, business tort, and legislative matters involving multi-million-dollar damages.