Jaime Jackson Law recently settled a case against a vehicle manufacturer for its failure to equip one of its vehicle with a collision mitigation system, including forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking. This manufacturer chose to include these safety technologies on some of its vehicles, but not the one involved in this case that rear-ended our client’s mother, ultimately resulting in her death.
Our client was stopped at a red light when her vehicle was struck from behind causing catastrophic spinal cord injuries. In this case, the driver of the vehicle behind was distracted and he did not see the stopped traffic in front.
Distracted driving is human nature
For as long as there have been cars and trucks on our roadways, there has been the safety hazard of distracted driving. Distracted driving is human nature and vehicle manufacturers have known this for decades. For this very reason, dating all the way back to the 1970s, vehicle manufacturers developed safety technologies such as forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking. In fact, distracted driving remains the leading cause of crashes in the U.S. today.
Forward collision warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts the driver to a potential collision. FCW systems use a camera and radar to scan the road ahead and warn the driver with a sound, lights, vibrations, or a combination of these. Automatic emergency braking (AEB) is a safety technology that can detect a potential car crash and automatically brake to avoid a collision or lessen the severity of impact.
Expert analysis
In this case, our accident reconstructionist ran extensive testing with a similar model vehicle equipped with forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking. His testing showed that this crash would have been avoided or significantly reduced to an impact of less than 10mph. Our human factors expert confirmed that had the driver of the vehicle which hit our client’s mother been given an alert before impact, the driver would have had time to avoid the crash. And our biomechanics expert opined that, even in the worst-case scenario, where the there is still a minor impact, our client’s mother would not have been significantly injured.
Safety is for everyone – not just those who can afford it
It is common practice for vehicle manufacturers to offer safety technologies such as forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking as standard on luxury level vehicles, or as an available option on lower-level vehicles at an additional cost. Jaime Jackson Law believes that safety should not just be for those who can afford it. Safety is for everyone on America’s roadways.
Any car or truck crash case where someone has been catastrophically injured or killed should be closely looked at to determine if a collision mitigation system, also called crash avoidance technology, such as forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, or blind spot detection could have prevented or mitigated the crash. If so, you could be missing out on a claim against the manufacturer of the vehicle for failing to include these key safety items that could have prevented or mitigated the crash.
The Jaime Jackson Law team was able to resolve this case and ensure that the family of our client’s mother achieved accountability and closure.
If you or a loved one have been seriously injured in a motor vehicle crash, contact Jaime Jackson Law on 717-519-7254 or through our website.
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