Halloween Driving can be Dangerous....

The Claims Journal has reported that kids have a greater chance of being fatally injured by a car on Halloween than any other day of the year, including the Fourth of July and New Year’s Day, according to State Farm and research expert, Bert Sperling of Sperling’s BestPlaces, two companies that teamed up to better understand the risk kids face as they take to the streets in search of treats.

Sperling’s BestPlaces analyzed more than four million records in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) from 1990 – 2010 for children 0-18 years of age on October 31. That detailed analysis revealed the following:

·         One hundred and fifteen child pedestrian fatalities occurred on Halloween over the 21 years of our analysis. That is an average of 5.5 fatalities each year on October 31, which is more than double the average number of 2.6 fatalities for other days.

·         Nearly one-fourth (26 out of 115) of accidents occurred from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Over 60 percent of the accidents occurred in the 4-hour period from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m.

·         Over 70 percent of the accidents occurred away from an intersection or crosswalk.

·         Most of the fatalities occurred with children ages 12-15 (32 percent of all child fatalities), followed by children ages 5-8 (23 percent).

·         Young drivers ages 15-25 accounted for nearly one-third of all fatal accidents involving child pedestrians on Halloween.

·         Drivers ages 36-40 and 61-65 were involved in the fewest child pedestrian fatalities on Halloween. Together, these age groups accounted for nine child pedestrian fatalities (8 percent) in the 21 years of the study.

·         Each of the last six years of the study (2005 – 2010) has seen Halloween child fatalities below the 21 year average of 5.5.

Bettina Altizer- Attorney at Law

Altizer Law P.C

324 Washington Avenue

Roanoke, Virginia, 24016

540-345-2000

 

Traffic Fatalities Drop

Traffic fatalities going down in Virginia

State figures show the number of traffic fatalities dropped from 1,026 in 2007 to 740 in 2010

Associated Press

10:47 PM EDT, October 22, 2012

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) --

Traffic fatalities and severe injuries in Virginia are declining.

State figures show the number of traffic fatalities dropped from 1,026 in 2007 to 740 in 2010.

During the same period, severe injuries fell from 19,796 to 11,664.

As of Friday, there have been 608 traffic-related deaths so far this year.

Safety advocates attribute the declines to several factors, including DUI laws, increased seat belt use and stricter licensing for young drivers.

Despite the improvements, Connie Sorrell with the Virginia Department of Transportation tells The Virginian-Pilot that the state's numbers are still too high.

Sorrell says a new initiative aims to reduce secondary crashes at wreck scenes. Representatives of local law enforcement agencies are being trained to clear crash scenes faster.

Bettina Altizer

Altizer Law P.C.

324 Washington Avenue

Roanoke, Virginia, 24016

540-345-2000

Counterfeit air bags

WASHINGTON (AP) — Car owners whose air bags have been replaced in the past three years may have had dangerous counterfeit bags installed, the Obama administration warned Wednesday.

Only 0.1 percent of the U.S. vehicle fleet is believed to be affected, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a statement. But industry officials briefed by the government said tens of thousands of car owners may be driving vehicles with counterfeit air bags. NHTSA testing has shown most of the counterfeit bags don't inflate or fail to inflate properly. In at least one case, a counterfeit bag fired shards of metal shrapnel on impact, the agency said.

NHTSA is asking car owners to check a government website, www.Safercar.gov, for information on how to contact a call center established by auto manufacturers to learn if their vehicle model is among those for which counterfeit air bags are known to have been made.

 By JOAN LOWY, Associated Press

Bettina Altizer Attorney at Law

Altizer Law P. C.

324 Washington Avenue

Roanoke, Virginia, 24016

540-345-2000