Accident & Injury Law in Texas

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Scary.  Very Scary.

Tractor trailer and bus drivers in the United States have suffered seizures, hear attacks or unconscious spells behind the wheel that led to deadly crashes on highways.  Hundreds of thousands of drivers carry commercial licenses even though they also qualify for full federal disability payments, according to a new U.S. safety study.

The problems threatening highway travelers persist despite years of government warnings and hundreds of deaths and injuries blamed on commercial truck and bus drivers who blacked out, collapsed or suffered major health problems behind the wheel of vehicles that can weith 40 tons or more!

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the agency responsible for cracking down on unfit truckers, acknowledges that it hasn’t completed any of eight recommendations U.S. safety regulators have proposed since 2001 including minimum standards for officials who determine whether truckers are medically safe to drive and preventing truckers from “doctor shopping” to find a physician who might overlook risky health.

The Transportation Department said 5,300 people died in crashes involving large commercial trucks or buses in 2006 and about 126,000 were injured while truckers violating federal medical rules have been caught in every state.

A federal safety study last summer found that drivers falling asleep, suffering heart attacks or seizures or otherwise being physically impaired were a leading cause of serious crashes involving large trucks.

Scary.  Very Scary.

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To reduce the number of drivers without auto insurance, the state of Texas has launched a database that allows law enforcement officials to tell which drivers have insurance and which don’t.

The program, known as TexasSure, began in the Austin area on June 2, and is being tested for about 60 days before it is expected to go statewide.

Texas drivers are required by law to have auto insurance, but one in five is uninsured, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.

Drivers will still be required to carry proof of insurance, but the database was created to counter those who purchase an, insurance policy, get an insurance card and then cancel their policy.

The $7 million program is a joint effort among DPS, the Transportation Department, the Texas Department of Insurance and the insurance industry. It is being financed by vehicle registration fees. TexasSure requires all Texas insurance providers to supply a list of customers with up-to-date policies. The state then matches those policies to a driver’s license number, license plate number and vehicle identification number.

Under current law, drivers pulled over fora traffic violation who are found to be uninsured are ticketed $350 for the first offense, plus fees. Repeat offenders face fines of up to $1,000 and a two-year license suspension.

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In the market for a new auto?

Here’s a good car buying tip?

Extended warranties sell costly peace of ming for repair nightmares that probably won’t occur, according to a survey of more than 8,000 readers conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center.  Consumer reports has long advised that extended warranties are a poor deal for almost every product.  Here is some of the data published in their April 2008 issue:

• 65% of those surveyed said they spent significantly more for the contract than they got back in repair-cost savings.  The average cost of the warranty was $1,000 with an average benefit of $700 meaning that the average loss was $300.
• 20% said they had a net savings and those were usually for people who bought troublesome cars which scored low on the Consumer Reports reliability ratings.
• Only 38% of buyers said there were highly satisfied with their warranty purchase putting extended warranties near the bottom of dozens of services rated by Consumer Reports.
• 12% of buyers reported trouble getting repairs when they used their extended warranty because of contract terms or disputes with the claim administrator.
• 37% didn’t use their extended service contract to cover repair costs because the problem was covered by the factory warranty.

Extended warranties are not insurance in most states and are not warranties as defined under Federal law.  They are more akin to prepaid repair contracts or extended service contracts.

Since extended warranty pricing is not regulated like insurance, dealers charge what the market will bear and a very small portion of the price you will pay actually goes to repairs after intermediaries (like the dealership) get their cut.

More car buying tips …

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Several midsize cars have made improvements in protecting motorists in side crashes because of improvements in design and adding side airbags, the insurance industry reports.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crash test results gave top scores in front-end and side-impact crashes to the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu, Saturn Aura, Dodge Avenger, Nissan Altima, Infiniti G35, and Mitsubishi Galant.  The 2008 Kia Optima received the highest score in front-end tests and the second highest score in the side test.

Frontal crash tests simulate a 40 mph crash and its effect on the driver.  Side crash simulations show what would happen if the vehicle was struck in the side by a sport-utility vehicle at 31 mph.

10 similar vehicles tested in 2004 without side air bags received the lowest rating of “poor” in the side tests.  Only past generations of the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Chevrolet Malibu received the top score in 2004 when they were tested with side air bags.  The air bags were largely optional in 2004 but are standard in all seven of the 2008 vehicles the institute reviewed.

In rear end testing in which a 20 mph crash and its effect on the driver are simulated, the results were mixed. The Optima was the only vehicle tested to receive a top rating, followed by the Avenger, which received the second highest score of “acceptable.”

The G35, Altima, Malibu, and Aura received the second-lowest score of “marginal” while the Galant received the lowest rating of “poor.”

Rear crashes can lead to neck injuries in which there are about 2 million insurance claims a year, costing at least $8.5 billion.

Visit our car buying tips section for more information.

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