Pages On: Road Traffic Accidents
Road traffic accidents are one of the most common causes of personal injury in the UK. Injuries sustained whilst driving cars, riding bicycles and motorcycles, being on public transport, or even just as a pedestrian are a regular occurrence on our roads. When these happen due to another road user failing in their duty of care to you, they are liable, and you are entitled to claim compensation.
New Statistics Available on Motorbike Accidents and Injuries
Posted: 11 July 2017
Posted in: Motorcycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
The Government has recently released some up to date and new statistics on motorbike accidents. It makes for sobering reading, and highlights the fact that motorcyclists are in one of the highest risk categories of road user. You can see a synopsis of the report below. The Statistics Motorbike riders are nearly 40 times as likely to be killed in a road traffic accident when compared to those in a car or lorry.Over 300 riders were involved in a fatality in the year 2013 with nearly 5,000 suffering from a…
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Leeds couple win compensation following honeymoon road traffic accident
Posted: 22 April 2016
Posted in: Accidents and Sickness Abroad, Bus Accidents, Hand Injuries, Leg Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents, Wrongful & Accidental Death
A couple from Leeds have been awarded compensation following a head-on collision whilst on tour in Italy. The couple, Angela and Simon Howland, were on the holiday of a lifetime, cruising the Mediterranean when the collision occurred. Their tour bus was travelling between Sorrento and Pompeii and was travelling through a tunnel when it was forced to swerve to avoid a head on collision with another vehicle. The bus, which was transporting tourists from the cruise, then crashed into the tunnel wall, causing substantial personal injury to the driver and many…
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Woman killed in wrong-side-of-the-road accident
Posted: 1 March 2016
Posted in: Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents, Wrongful & Accidental Death
Cumbrian woman, Kathleen Bellas, 54, from Shap was killed outright on 12 January by a foreign driver driving on the wrong side of the road. Carlisle Crown Court heard how Ms Bellas’ Ford Focus collided with a lorry in an early morning road crash, and 52-year-old Adam Rybicki admits that he was in the wrong. The collision took place on the A6. Mr Rybicki, who was uninjured by the collision, will face sentencing in March and has been remanded on bail on the condition that he stays at a Luton…
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Councils pay out £2.4m in highways defects claims
Posted: 8 November 2015
Posted in: Pedestrian Injuries, Pothole Injuries, Public Place Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
Recently released figures have revealed that councils have paid out millions of pounds in injury and compensation claims as a result of poor road and pavement conditions in Herts and Essex. In the last few years alone, thousands of drivers and pedestrians have reported injuries sustained as a result of road defects. Herts County Council (HCC) paid out a total of £1m in three years, where Essex County Council (ECC) paid out £1.4m, with hundreds of claims still unresolved. “we are continuing to invest heavily” Hert’s authority’s opposition leader, Liberal…
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Brain damage victim wins damages after car accident
Posted: 14 October 2015
Posted in: Car Accidents, Head and Brain Injuries, Leg Injuries
A 24-year-old man from East London has been awarded damages after a car accident left him with life-changing injuries. Jack Mitchell had been studying to become an electrician when he was injured in a crash six years ago. It was heard that Mr Mitchell had been a front seat passenger when the driver, his friend, swerved to avoid a fox in March 2009. His lawyer described the crash as a “horrific collision”. Severe behavioural and personality difficulties The accident left Mr Mitchell with a number of injuries, including multiple fractures…
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Grieving mother suing Italian waterpark
Posted: 15 August 2015
Posted in: Accidents and Sickness Abroad, Car Accidents, Public Place Accidents, Spine & Back Injuries
A mother is suing an Italian water park after breaking her back on a waterslide while on holiday to grieve her dead son. 45-year-old Karen Mitchener went on holiday with her family to Italy after losing her son five years ago in a car accident, aged 18. During their time in east Italy, they visited the Acquaparco Verde Azzurro water park in Marche, but the day ended when Ms Mitchener broke her back on one of the slides. Almost five years since the accident happened, Ms Mitchener says that she…
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Pensioner wins right to compensation for life-changing injuries after bicycle accident
Posted: 10 July 2015
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Head and Brain Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents, Spine & Back Injuries
A 62-year-old woman from Tunbridge Wells has been granted compensation after suffering life-changing injuries in a cycling accident. Fenella Sinclair had been cycling in her local area when a 4×4 passed her on a country lane, grazing the rear wheel of her bicycle. Mrs Sinclair was left with severe brain damage, several skull fractures and damage to her spine and ribs. Four years after the accident, she remains in a minimally conscious state. After police refused to bring a criminal trail in 2011, Mrs Sinclair’s daughter decided to launch a…
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Woman in legal dispute with BT after car accident
Posted: 28 May 2015
Posted in: Car Accidents, Neck Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents, Shoulder Injuries
A woman is currently battling BT for personal injury compensation after her car became tangled in cables and pulled down a telegraph pole. 56-year-old Yvonne Battie had been driving home from her sister’s house when the accident happened in December 2012. It was heard that cables from a telegraph pole had snapped and become caught on the underside of Ms Battie’s car, pulling her car off the road and causing the pole to come down on top of her. The pole smashed her windscreen, missing her face by inches. Following…
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Coach owner found guilty following serious injury of young rugby player
Posted: 27 May 2015
Posted in: Arm Injury, Bus Accidents, Public Transport, Road Traffic Accidents
The owner of a coach company has been found guilty of dangerous driving offences after a young boy fell out of a vehicle onto the motorway. The coach had been taking a youth rugby team to a game on 16 May 2014 when one of the passengers, a 13-year-old boy, leaned on a “defective” emergency door and fell out of the vehicle. It was heard in the Bristol Crown Court that the emergency exit door on Keith Jones’s coach was highly unsafe, and recorder Malcolm Gibney warned Mr Jones that…
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Pedestrian Accident Claims Bristol
Posted in: Pedestrian Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents
Contact us today if you would like guidance from our Bristol pedestrian accident claims solicitors**. We can offer free guidance over the telephone if we feel that you have a compensation claim that we believe can be brought to the legal system. Because we work on a no win, no fee* arrangement, there’s no financial risk involved for you. With over a decade of experience, our claim team can give you professional, qualified, and quick guidance on what your pedestrian injury claim could be worth. Other than cyclists, pedestrians –…
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Road Traffic Accident Compensation Claim Solicitors for Bristol
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents
Call now for a free consultation about your circumstances. Those who have been in a road traffic accident can be left with a range of different injuries. From minor bruising, concussion, and whiplash, all the way up to head and spinal injuries, permanent disability, or even death. The victims of vehicle collisions will have to deal with life-changing circumstances. This is why we recommend you call our compassionate and trusted Bristol solicitors** to make a road traffic accident claim. Those involved in incidents on Bristol’s roads where there was an injury involved…
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Pensioner wins over £80,000 for injuries sustained in bus accident
Posted: 16 May 2015
Posted in: Bus Accidents, Public Transport, Road Traffic Accidents, Spine & Back Injuries
A pensioner has been awarded compensation for her serious injuries after being thrown 15ft down a bus during an accident in Nuneaton. The woman in her 80s, who requests to remain anonymous, received over £80,000 in damages after suffering severe injuries in the accident, including a broken spine and several broken ribs. She had been onboard a Stagecoach bus when the accident happened in Collycroft in November 2012. The bus that the woman had been travelling in was forced to break suddenly when a car pulled out in front of…
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Bus Accident Claims in Bristol – No Win No Fee Compensation
Posted in: Bus Accidents, Public Transport, Road Traffic Accidents
We can help people claim compensation who have been injured in a bus accident in Bristol when: You were working as the driver of the bus, and it wasn’t your faultYou were a passenger on a bus and were hurtYou were hit by a bus as a pedestrian, cyclist, or car driver In simple terms, we can help you to make a bus accident claim in Bristol if we can prove that the accident and injury was not your fault. Examples of Bus Accident Claims Helping bus drivers and passengers…
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4 years for dangerous driver who killed schoolgirl and injured several others
Posted: 2 May 2015
Posted in: Car Accidents, Leg Injuries, Pedestrian Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents, School Accidents, Wrongful & Accidental Death
Robert Blackwell, 19, from Hayway Lane, Bampton, Oxfordshire, has been given a 4-year jail sentence after admitting dangerous driving resulting in the death of schoolgirl, Liberty Baker, 14, on 30 June. Blackwell’s car mounted the pavement, killing Liberty and injuring 2 of her friends as they walked to school in Witney, Oxfordshire. Blackwell admitted causing death by dangerous driving and inflicting serious injury by dangerous driving, and admitted to having smoked cannabis on the day before taking to the road. The incident took place in Curbridge Road and also involved Paul Cracknell…
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Motorbike Accident Claims in Bristol: Injury Compensation
Posted in: Motorcycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
It’s a harsh fact that motorcyclists are amongst those users in the highest risk category for suffering an injury or accident whilst on the road. At Accident Claims Bristol, we are specialists in helping riders claim for motorbike accident compensation in Bristol. Working on a no win no fee* agreement, we can ensure that if you have suffered an injury, then you can get access to justice despite any financial circumstances. To get started, simply call our phone number on 01174 534 375^ for a free consultation about how we manage motorbike accident claims…
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We Support and Advocate the THINK! Cyclist Campaign
Posted: 10 March 2015
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
At Accident Claims Bristol we always have our client’s welfare at the forefront of everything that we do. Despite being accident claims solicitors** we’d rather nobody in the city was injured, but are pleased to say that we are here to help should that happen to you. Recently we launched our new page highlighting how we work in terms of cycling accident compensation and detailed the whole Bristol no win no fee* process from start to finish. This means we are your number one choice when it comes to seeking bicycle accident…
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Cycling Accident Compensation Claim Solicitors of Bristol
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
Cyclists are amongst the highest risk road users. They are especially susceptible to serious injuries whilst cycling on Bristol’s roads. If you have been injured whilst on your bicycle and would like to make a cycling accident claim, then please call us today for a free telephone consultation. Some of our solicitors** are keen cyclists themselves and understand the risks that can occur on the city’s roads. If the accident wasn’t your fault, then it’s very likely that you will be able to submit a cycling accident claim in Bristol. The…
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Car Accident Claims in Bristol – Get Injury Compensation
Posted in: Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
We don’t believe that people in Bristol should be prohibited from having access to justice because they don’t have the available funds to pay for a car crash solicitor**. Car accidents can leave people very vulnerable, and often out of work. That’s why we work on a no win, no fee* agreement, with our road traffic accident solicitors**, who are amongst the most friendly and understanding in the local area. If you are looking to make a car accident claim, our team can help you. In line with FCA Regulations,…
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London cyclists involved in 23,000 accidents
Posted: 25 February 2015
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
Recently released figures have uncovered that cyclists in London have been involved in just under 23,000 accidents in the last five years. The figures, gathered by the Department for Transport (DfT), found that cyclists had been involved in 22,988 accidents, with 80 resulting in deaths. The information highlighted that the most common accident spot was the Elephant and Castle roundabout in south London, with 80 accidents involving cyclists having occurred there between 2009 and 2013. A spokesperson from Transport for London said that every accident was considered to be “one too many”.…
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Whiplash Claims in Bristol – Get Compensation
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents, Whiplash Injuries
If you have been involved in a car accident and suffered from whiplash in the Bristol area, or are experiencing similar symptoms from another accident, then please contact us today for a free consultation. We work on a no win, no fee* basis, and have experienced Bristol whiplash solicitors who are experts in making compensation claims of this type. Call now on 01174 534 375^ for a free consultation and discuss your compensation claim. In line with FCA Regulations, you are entitled – if you fulfil the necessary criteria – to make…
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Family seek answers following spleen rupture death
Posted: 25 January 2015
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Medical Negligence, Wrongful & Accidental Death
The family of a man who died of an undiagnosed ruptured spleen has described the fact that nobody has been held accountable for their son’s death as “shameful”. John Moore-Robinson, aged 20, died after being sent home from Stafford Hospital with a ruptured spleen that doctors had failed to recognise. His parents, Frank and Janet Robinson, feel that someone should be held accountable. Mr Moore-Robinson died in his Leicestershire home in 2006. He had been admitted to hospital following a bike accident on Cannock Chase, but was sent home diagnosed…
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Standards not met by duck boat tour operators
Posted: 18 December 2014
Posted in: Public Place Accidents, Public Transport
Incidents involving duck boat tours in Liverpool and London have highlighted serious failings. A recent report found that the incidents were caused by both poor maintenance and a general failure to meet standards. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said that the company behind the amphibious duck vehicles is “extremely fortunate” that no one was hurt in either of the incidents. One incident happened in June 2013 when the craft sank in Liverpool. 31 people, including children, had been on board the vehicle at the time, and 27 people required hospital…
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Drive Safely This Christmas in Bristol to Avoid Accidents and Personal Injury
Posted: 5 December 2014
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents
With Christmas fast approaching we wanted to firstly wish all our customers and clients a very happy Christmas, but also warn about the dangers present over the Christmas period. As personal injury solicitors** and lawyers** we often see a spike in people reporting accident claims in Bristol over the festive period, and whilst we are always here to help with any personal injury claims, we would rather the residents of Bristol remain safe and injury free. This is particularly pertinent with the release of a new road safety video that…
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Whiplash Injury Claims in Bristol: Don’t Suffer Twice!
Posted: 5 December 2014
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents, Whiplash Injuries
Whiplash is one of the most common injuries from a motor vehicle accident, but you could be suffering twice by accepting the insurance company’s settlement. As whiplash personal injury solicitors in Bristol we are experts at getting the top compensation payments for our clients so please contact us today to start a personal injury claim in Bristol. What is Whiplash? Our whiplash personal injury solicitors can help you. Whiplash is generally caused by abrupt accidents, such as a car crash. Many times it’s not even your…
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Woman injured after being hit by police car
Posted: 30 November 2014
Posted in: Car Accidents, Head and Brain Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents
A woman that was hit by a police car that was responding to a 999 call has been left with “possibly life-threatening injuries”. The 33-year-old woman, who remains unnamed, was hit crossing a junction just outside the centre of Bristol city centre last night (Saturday 29 November). Police were responding to urgent reports concerning a man making threats with a knife when the accident happened. The accident happened around 10pm at the junction of Gloucester Road and Ninetree Hill. The woman is currently being treated at the Southmead Hospital in Bristol. A spokesperson from…
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Council paid out £70,000 for pothole damage
Posted: 14 November 2014
Posted in: Pothole Injuries, Public Place Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
Suffolk County Council has paid out £70,000 to claimants for pothole damage over the last two years. The figures were released under a Freedom of Information request, which uncovered the sum to be made up of personal injury compensation, vehicle damage, legal fees and other costs. The council received 173 claims in the financial year 2012/13, which rose to 353 last year. Of these claims, a total of 78 were successful. Where the number of claims increased, the amount paid out by the council decreased. In 2012/13 they paid out a…
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Woman breaks spine abroad
Posted: 19 September 2014
Posted in: Accidents and Sickness Abroad, Road Traffic Accidents, Spine & Back Injuries
38-year-old Joanna Rose was left with life-changing injuries after a car hit her during her honeymoon in Torrevieja on the Costa Blanca. She suffered a broken spine, five broken ribs, internal bleeding and serious bruising. The accident happened when her and her husband were walking along the side of the road and a car hit her from behind. Mrs Rose is now seeking compensation for the rehabilitative treatment she will require. Following the accident, Mrs Rose was rushed immediately to hospital in Torrevieja where she spent two weeks. Then she was transferred to Pinderfields…
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Dangers of sloping train station platforms identified
Posted: 20 August 2014
Posted in: Hip Injuries, Public Place Accidents, Public Transport
It has recently been identified by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) that the platforms of many train stations slope towards the tracks. A spokesperson from the branch said that the rail industry has not identified this as a problem, despite it having caused numerous accidents. With reports ranging from a child in a pushchair to a wheelchair user rolling onto the tracks, the majority of the reports laid the blame on the passengers involved. In September 2013 a baby in a pushchair had been left parallel to the track on…
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Families of injured children take legal action
Posted: 5 August 2014
Posted in: Bus Accidents, Leg Injuries, Neck Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents, School Accidents
The families of 28 injured schoolchildren have launched legal action just over a month after two buses collided during their school runs. The accident happened in County Durham on the 3rd of June when one bus, taking children to Tanfield School, crashed into another bus that had been taking children to St Bede’s School. The two buses crashed head-on in Lanchester, with two drivers and 28 children taken to hospital as a result. The accident happened in Shield Row Lane, near the junction of the A693. One law firm is due to…
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Bus technology to prevent accidents
Posted: 1 August 2014
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Bus Accidents, Pedestrian Injuries, Public Transport, Road Traffic Accidents
New detection software has been fitted to four London buses for a trial period of six weeks. The technology will detect pedestrians and cyclists, with the hope that accidents will be greatly reduced on the roads. The software alerts bus drivers when pedestrians and cyclists are close to the vehicle, making drivers more aware of their spatial surroundings. The selected trial buses run on the route 25 and 73, with two different trial systems due to start on the 15th of August. Transport for London plans to trial two different…
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Police officers receive £3m in compensation
Posted: 24 July 2014
Posted in: Animal Attacks, Bicycle Accidents, Faulty Work Equipment, Workplace Injuries
New figures have revealed that Police officers receive an estimated £3million in compensation for minor injures every year. Injuries in the last year ranged from officers falling off bikes to being bitten by dogs. According to legislation, however, Police forces are only supposed to pay damages if more could have been done to prevent the accident from happening in the first place. This would involve ensuring that the work environment was safe and that protective clothing suited the nature of the work. The biggest compensation sum received was £138,000 by an…
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Cyclist wins compensation after hit-and-run
Posted: 10 June 2014
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
A cyclist has been awarded a six-figure payout after he was left disabled following a hit-and-run accident. Graham Andrews faced life-threatening injuries following his accident in 2008. The force of the driver threw him eight feet into the air and he was left on the grass verge, while the driver sped off. Mr Andrews is now wheelchair-bound and plans to use the compensation money to buy specialist equipment to assist his rehabilitation. The father-of-three from East Preston was forced to leave his job as an engineer due to his disability. Following numerous unsuccessful…
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Injured teachers receive record £26m in compensation
Posted: 20 April 2014
Posted in: Arm Injury, Foot Injuries, Head and Brain Injuries, Neck Injuries, Pedestrian Injuries, Pothole Injuries, School Accidents, Shoulder Injuries, Workplace Injuries
Newly released figures have revealed that school staff have been awarded a record of £26 million in compensation. One teacher received £110,000 after tripping on a pothole in the driveway of the school she worked at. She is just one of the hundreds of school staff who have claimed for a work-related injury. The NASUWT teaching union assisted many of its members in claiming compensation, winning teaching staff more than £20 million in 2013. This figure was up a third on the previous year, with the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)…
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£10m payout to brain damaged young footballer
Posted: 10 April 2014
Posted in: Car Accidents, Head and Brain Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents
A footballer with a promising future has been awarded £10million in compensation following a road traffic accident. 17-year-old Jack Farrugia had been a front seat passenger of a car when the driver lost control and collided with a stationary van. He had been wearing a seatbelt when the accident happened in November 2008, but was left with serious brain injuries and was in a coma for a month. Mr Farrugia had been studying for a diploma in sports performance and excellence at the time of the accident. It was said by…
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Family seek compensation for cyclist son
Posted: 25 March 2014
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Head and Brain Injuries, Pothole Injuries, Public Place Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents, Shoulder Injuries
A Gloucestershire family is currently seeking compensation for their 15-year-old son after he suffered severe injuries when his bike went into a pothole during a charity ride. Ollie Pike, from Malmesbury in Wiltshire, smashed his head and broke his collarbone in the accident on the 9th of March. He said that he swerved to avoid one set of potholes, but as a result went crashing into another. He was then thrown to the ground after being propelled over his handlebars. He had been riding on the roads near Cirencester when the…
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Call for improved safety for rail workers
Posted: 19 February 2014
Posted in: Public Transport, Workplace Injuries, Wrongful & Accidental Death
Ten years after an accident that took the lives of four men working on a railway line, a rail union has called for the safety measures of workers to be improved. The Rail, Maritime & Transport (RMT) said that not enough improvements have been made to protect workers following the accident that happened a decade ago, and that action must be taken now to prevent the accident from repeating itself. The men were killed by a runaway 16-tonne wagon on the West Coast Main Line at Tebay. A memorial service…
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Injured biker takes part in fundraiser for air ambulance service
Posted: 20 October 2013
Posted in: Motorcycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
42-year-old John Crockford is taking part in a 500-mile fundraising race this weekend after having survived a crash on his superbike in 2011. The former superbike rider suffered 30 fractures when he collided with another rider at 130mph at a race on the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent. The father of one has returned to the track to raise money for the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance service after having made a full recovery. The 30-hour race is taking place on static cycles, which Mr Crockford is competing on alongside three…
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Worst street in country for potholes identified
Posted: 13 October 2013
Posted in: Pedestrian Injuries, Pothole Injuries, Road Traffic Accidents
A street in Leeds has been labeled the worst stretch of road for potholes in the country after more than £500,000 in compensation has gone out to those that have sustained injuries on it. Kings Lane was found to be the worst street after a YEP, Yorkshire Evening Post, investigation uncovered the fact that Leeds City Council bosses have had to payout a total of £526,449 to personal injury claimants over the last four financial years. Also during these four years, Leeds City Council, (which is already strapped for cash) received…
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Cyclists fight for their safety on the roads
Posted: 11 August 2013
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
The beginning of the week saw yet another cyclist killed on a London road where no space is dedicated for cycling. Only a week ago, the day before the accident, tens of thousands participated in the traffic-free RideLondon event to protest the lack of cycle paths in the UK. 67-year-old retired GP Clive Richards died in Archway on Monday – the fourth bike-accident victim in the last few weeks in London. Each of these fatal collisions occurred in places were cyclists had to share the road with fast-moving motor traffic:…
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Pilot scheme for motoring offences needs change
Posted: 30 May 2013
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents
Following a pilot scheme in nine areas, traffic courts are to be opened in England and Wales to allow effective prosecution for minor motoring offences. With 500,000 minor motoring offences going through the courts each year, it is clear that a new method of prosecution must be introduced in order to cut delays in the criminal justice system and free up magistrates time. Ministers say that the courts have become congested with minor cases, therefore limiting the time available for more serious offences. With trails running in Essex, Hampshire, Kent,…
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Firm fined after pedestrian is struck by falling masonry
Posted: 6 March 2013
Posted in: Pedestrian Injuries, Public Place Accidents, Shop Accidents, Shoulder Injuries, Workplace Injuries
A Portsmouth firm has been fined for safety failings after a member of the public was struck by masonry during unsafe overhead work in Surrey. The 29-year-old passer-by cut and bruised his shoulder and experienced muscle spasms as a result of the incident. Guildford Magistrates’ Court heard that the firm was undertaking work above shops to clean stonework and install pigeon spikes. A mobile elevating working platform (MEWP) was correctly being used for the task, but as it was being repositioned it struck a building and dislodged a chunk of…
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Network Rail found guilty following fatal accident
Posted: 26 February 2013
Posted in: Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents, Wrongful & Accidental Death
Network Rail and one of its employees have been found guilty of breaching Health and Safety at Work regulations following the death of a woman at a level crossing in Herefordshire. Jane Harding died after her car was struck by a train at Moreton-on-Lugg level crossing in January 2010. The accident happened after signalman Maund raised the crossing barriers too early after mistakenly thinking the train had already passed. It had not and struck the Hardings’ vehicle as it passed over the crossing. The prosecution told Birmingham Crown Court that…
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Action needed to deliver step-change in cycle safety
Posted: 12 February 2013
Posted in: Bicycle Accidents
An independent review has looked at how cycle safety is considered within the design and operation of construction vehicles within the construction industry. The review was commissioned by Transport for London, after a spate of serious incidents involving construction vehicles and cyclists over recent years. Between 2008 and 2011, 56% of the cycling fatalities in London have involved large commercial vehicles, including a disproportionate number of construction vehicles. The independent review has made 12 recommendations that will deliver a real step-change in road safety within the industry. These include: The…
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Young drivers at risk
Posted: 10 February 2013
Posted in: Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents
Much has been written about the dangers created by young drivers on the roads, both to themselves and to other road users. A new piece of research from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has highlighted that young drivers can be more likely to succumb to distractions while driving, and do not recognise the risks associated with driving at night or on country roads. ABI research The research found that 55% of young drivers are distracted while driving if they are carrying passengers, 45% of them find themselves distracted by…
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30 years of seatbelt safety
Posted: 6 February 2013
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents
The Government has marked three decades of compulsory seatbelt use, as the law requiring all drivers to wear their seatbelts came in to force celebrated its 30th anniversary on 31st January 2013. Car manufacturers have had to install seatbelts since 1965 but the law requiring drivers to wear them did not come in to force for another 18 years. In 1991 the law changed again making it a legal requirement for adults to wear seatbelts in the back of cars. Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond said: “Thousands of lives have…
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Drivers are more reckless in vans than other vehicles
Posted: 29 January 2013
Posted in: Road Traffic Accidents
A study by AXA Business Insurance has revealed that van drivers who drive both a van and another vehicle are more likely to commit traffic offences and have accidents in their van than their other vehicle. Research among several hundred van drivers found that they appear to become more irresponsible when behind the wheel of their van than when in charge of another vehicle, and are more likely to speed, drink drive or run a red light. In addition to this, the data showed that of those who drive both…
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At work drivers taking deadly risks on roads
Posted: 9 January 2013
Posted in: Car Accidents, Road Traffic Accidents, Workplace Injuries
Recently published research has found that many people who drive for work are risking their own lives, and those of others, by texting, speeding and grooming behind the wheel. The results from a survey carried out by Brake and Direct Line show that: Nearly a third (31%) text while driving, compared to 28% of non-work drivers.Nearly one in six (17%) admit grooming while driving, compared with 14% of non-work drivers.More than a third (37%) admit driving while talking on a hands-free phone, compared with 24% of non-work drivers.More than half…
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