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News

Car Accidents

• Single car accident stops 707 traffic
  May 25, 2010

  
  A car crash involving a single vehicle caused major traffic delays on Highway 707 in Horry County, South Carolina late Tuesday morning.
  
  The cause of the accident remains under investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol. What is known is that a single car, indentified as an Oldsmoble Alero, ran off the road on Highway 707 near the Socastee Post Office in Socastee around 11 am.
  
  The vehicle and its driver landed in a ditch. The driver then had to be cut from the vehicle following the crash. The emergency vehicles caused traffic to be stalled on Highway 707 as they assisted the driver. The driver, yet to be identified, was treated for minor bumps and bruises.
  
  More information will be released as it becomes available. Highway Patrol does not yet know what caused the vehicle to veer off the road in the first place.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Anti-texting bans should carry heavier penalties for violators
  May 24, 2010

  
  A texting ban in California has proven ineffective, leading many to believe that the penalties need to be tougher against those who violate the law.
  
  The ban was enacted just over a year ago and at that time officials saw a 70 percent drop in the number of incidents of texting while driving. That percentage today has more than doubled, bringing it almost back to the level it was before the ban.
  
  These numbers have discouraged safety advocates and law enforcement. Texting while driving is a dangerous activity to engage in. Studies estimate that if you text while you drive, you increase your change of becoming involved in accident by 24 times. States across the country have hoped that a texting ban would encourage safer driving habits.
  
  Researchers believe that additional efforts must taken on. One approach is for law enforcement to issue more citations to drivers who text. However, these drivers are often difficult to spot because they more often than not hold their phones in their laps while they drive, which is out of view for patrol cars. Most texting while driving citations are given out by police officers on motorcycles who can better detect drivers' activities.
  
  In New Jersey, law enforcement uses standing officers on street corners to locate drivers violating the texting ban. Other places have increased the cost of penalties and the weight they carry. A bill in Southern California proposes that a point should be added to the license of a driver caught texting while operating a motor vehicle. Officials believe that if the bans carry real consequences, drivers will be more likely to obey the law.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• 45 million Americans don't buckle up
  May 24, 2010

  
  While seat belt use is at an all time national high, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that 45 million Americans still don't buckle up.
  
  Monday starts this year's Click it or Ticket, a national seat belt enforcement campaign run by the government agency and local law enforcement across the country. Drivers not wearing seat belts over the next few days run a higher risk of being ticketed.
  
  The U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says that the increased nationwide seat belt use is an accomplishment, but there is still work to do in encouraging safe driving habits.
  
  It is estimated that 38 people die each day in automobile crashes because they were not wearing a seat belt. In 2008, 14,000 people died who were not wearing seat belts. Half of them could have been saved if they had been belted.
  
  Teenagers, young adults, males, those riding at night and on rural roads and in pick-up trucks are the least likely to be wearing seatbelts according to NHTSA statistics.  The Click it or Ticket campaign will be targeting individuals not wearing seat belts from May 24 to June 6. The campaign involves more than 10,000 police agencies across the nation.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Fatal accident kills 1 in Florence County
  May 24, 2010

  
  An early morning traffic accident left one person dead in Florence County and two others injured.
  
  The accident occurred when a man's SUV broke down on Claussen Road shortly after midnight. The man was struck and killed by a 1998 Chevrolet pick-up truck while he attempted to move his car out of the road. The truck hit the man after passing another vehicle legally.
  
  The victim died at the scene from his injuries. Both the driver and the passenger of the pick-up truck were taken to a local hospital for treatment.
  
  The incident is still under investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol. The names of the victim and others involved have not yet been released.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Congress and automakers discuss black boxes in cars
  May 21, 2010

  
  

  It appears as though Congress, automakers and safety groups are closer to putting black boxes in all newly manufactured cars within the next few years. However, much debate has been sparked between the three groups over how much and what type of data should be recorded.
  
  Congress and safety regulators insist that black boxes must be extremely durable. If the event data recorders do not survive the crash, they are rendered useless. Automakers are concerned over the cost of proposed instruments. A proposal in Congress suggests that black boxes should be able to withstand a rollover crash, fire and water immersion. Similar highly durable recorders that exist in all airplanes cost between $5,000 to $25,000.
  
  Regulators also suggest that black boxes should record the 60 seconds before and the 15 seconds after a crash. Current National Highway Traffic Safety Administration standards for recorders only document 5 seconds of pre-crash data, which does not give an accurate depiction of incidents like those involving unintended acceleration. The devices in place now survive around 95 percent of all crashes and increasing their durability would be expensive.
  
  The black box proposal is one of many being reviewed by Congress at the present time that would improve auto safety. However, a number of concerns, including issues about privacy and how recorders would affect the design of all new vehicles hamper the approval process. It does appear, however, that auto safety is something both sides of the aisle can agree on.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Conway police focus on seatbelt safety
  May 20, 2010

  
  The Conway, South Carolina police department has announced that they will crackdown on seat belt violations during this upcoming Memorial Day weekend. With tourists coming to the area to visit the beach, traffic increases and the likelihood of getting involved in an accident goes up. Police will focus both on seat belt enforcement and on educating the public on the importance of wearing seat belts, which are lifesaving in crashes. Their message overall will be, "Buckle up, Conway."
  
  It is estimated that one person dies every hour in the United States because he or she was not wearing a seat belt. Law enforcement believes that many highway fatalities are preventable if drivers and passengers would simply buckle up.
  
  The Conway blitz is in line with the national campaign running from May 24-June 6 entitled "Click it or Ticket." The campaign has helped increase the national average seat belt use to 84 percent. The primary audience tends to be men ages 18-34, who are less likely than any other demographic to wear seat belts. The campaign is meant to encourage seat belt use "day and night" as law enforcement issues tickets to violators and promotes safe driving.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Accident closes down southbound 501 in Conway
  May 18, 2010

  
  A two-vehicle accident caused the southbound lanes of Highway 501 in Conway, South Carolina to be shut down this past weekend. The accident occurred Friday afternoon near El Bethel.
  
  A sports utility vehicle collided with a school bus causing the wreck. One person was cut out of the SUV and taken to Conway Medical Center for treatment. There were no injuries on the school bus. It is unclear whether any school children were on the bus at the time of the accident.
  
  Southbound motorists were forced to find an alternate route until the wreck was cleared. Already that afternoon, a collision had occurred on the northbound lanes of 501 that had stalled traffic. There were no injuries reported from that accident.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Texting while driving course shows teens dangers
  May 18, 2010

  
  

  Most teenagers are already aware that texting while driving is dangerous, but many individuals continue to try multitasking while operating a motor vehicle. To combat this, 25 states have already enacted a texting while driving ban. Many have established courses that are meant to show teenagers first hand the real dangers of texting while driving.
  
  In Vermont, schools hold obstacle courses in which teens must navigate sharp turns around orange traffic cones while driving a golf cart and texting. Teens first take the course while only concentrating on driving, and then repeat the action while a friend on the sideline texts them. The teens immediately are able to see how quickly their errors increase when they are distracted and how difficult it is to concentrate on turns and make them accurately.
  
  28 percent of crashes in the United States, amounting to 1.6 million a year, are caused by cell phone use. Drivers who talk on their cell phones are four times more likely to be involved in an accident. Drivers who text increase that risk anywhere from 8 to 23 times. Some states are seeing a 400 percent increase in driving errors due to distracted drivers who text.
  
  Motor vehicle departments and driver's education programs across the country are trying to instill the don't text and drive message early in teenagers. Courses such as the one described above are becoming more prevalent as an effective way to show teens the dangers of distracted driving.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Woman, 3 children injured in 2 car accident
  May 14, 2010

  
  A woman and three children were injured in a two car accident on S.C. 9 in Loris on Thursday.The woman, Veronica H. Garcia, 36, was heading southbound in the right lane of S.C. 9 in a Ford Explorer with another woman, three children, and a baby.
  
  A red Cadillac, also heading southbound in the left lane, was changing lanes and forced the Explorer off the road, causing it to overturn several times in a mud hole.
  
  Garcia, who was injured, was flown to New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, NC by helicopter. The three children, who were all ejected from the vehicle, were taken to an area hospital for treatment.
  
  The baby, who was in a carseat, and the other woman, who was wearing a seat belt, were not injured.
  
  A witness told police that the Cadillac had fled the scene after the accident.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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• Texting while driving campaign launches in South Carolina
  May 14, 2010

  
  The nation's first texting while driving campaign is to be launched this week in South Carolina. AAA Carolinas is targeting South Carolina for this safe driving initiative by showing a video that demonstrates the dangers of distracted driving.
  
  The video, which is said to be graphic in nature, is to be carried on 20 cable channels in central and northwest South Carolina starting this week.
  
  The motor club is using a video produced by a police department in Wales, United Kingdom for educational and Public Service Announcement use. AAA Carolinas is the first group in the United States to obtain permission to use the video.
  
  The video depicts graphically a three car accident that kills four people and is caused by a distracted driver who was texting while driving.
  
  In North Carolina, it is now against the law to text or email while operating a motor vehicle. The law, which gives offenders a $100 fine, went into effect December 1, 2009 and is among many texting bans in the nation.
  
  The Carolina Motor Club says that texting while driving is just as dangerous as drunk driving. A distracted driver is just as likely as an individual who is driving while intoxicated to be involved in a traffic accident. Distracted drivers are eight times more liked to be involved in a crash than drivers who keep their attention on the road, and approximately 80% of all crashes occur when drivers are distracted.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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Consumer Guides

The Truth About Your South Carolina Injury Claim

The Truth About Your Social Security Disability Claim

The Truth About Your South Carolina Workers' Compensation Claim

Guide to Buying Car Insurance in South Carolina

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