If you have been involved in an accident involving a disabled vehicle in the Los Angeles or Southern California area, contact us today for a free consultation. Most accidents can be avoided. In most cases, insurers are going to attempt to minimize their losses. We can help you obtain the maximum amount of compensation for your injuries.

Accidents Involving Disabled Vehicles in Los Angeles

Serious or catastrophic injuries leading to death can result from an operator or owner of a motor vehicle who fails to pay attention to its mechanical condition or gas gauge. When a motor vehicle breaks down or runs out of gas in the middle of a highway, the owner or operator of that vehicle must pull it over to the side of the road in a safe area outside of the lanes of moving traffic as soon as it’s safe to do so. If the sun is down, the disabled vehicle might not even have its lights on. That’s when it becomes even more of a hazard.Many trucks are even required to set out flares or specified warning devices to caution oncoming drivers of the hazard ahead.
California Vehicle code 22500 states:

“No person shall stop, park, or leave standing any vehicle whether attended or unattended, except when necessary to avoid conflict with other traffic or in compliance with the directions of a peace officer or official traffic control device…”  See the rest of 22500 here.

Speed kills

Whether it’s the stranded driver, the towing guy, a police officer or just somebody who stopped to help, there’s a significant risk when standing next to a lane of traffic that’s flying by at 70 mph. We’ve all heard or read about these accidents when people on the side of the road are hit and catastrophically injured or killed. With nearly 400,000 miles of total lane miles in California, these types of accidents aren’t at all unusual. Speed and distraction are usually the key factors. Drivers in vehicles that are approaching disabled vehicles at high speeds can be suddenly surprised, especially they’re driving too fast for traffic conditions, and their field of vision is blocked by a large vehicle in front of them. Drivers are also taken by surprise when they’re distracted. Distractions might involve:

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  • Using a mobile or navigational device
  • Personal grooming
  • Eating
  • Changing CDs or radio stations

If you must stop on the side of the road due to a flat tire, blowout, accident or other problem with your vehicle, follow the guidelines in the California Driver Handbook.

Pedestrian accidents

Sometimes you must stop on the shoulder due to events beyond your control and are injured due to someone’s negligence. As per the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, 4,884 pedestrians died in accidents in 2014. That came out to a pedestrian being killed every two hours in the United States. About 65,000 pedestrians were injured. That’s one pedestrian every two minutes.

Manufacturer liability

In a minority of cases, a vehicle becomes disabled as a result of a dangerous defect that came from the factory. For example, General Motors has been involved in litigation involving dangerously defective ignition switches that can turn off while a vehicle is being driven. That affects the ability of a driver to even get off of the road. Once the ignition switch is in the off position, a car’s power steering is disabled. Whether the car comes to rest in a lane of traffic or in the road’s emergency stopping lane, it presents an extremely dangerous hazard to the driver of that vehicle and others who are using the roadway. The law of product liability applies in that situation. Both an injured driver and the family of a driver who was killed as a result of a faulty ignition switch can seek compensation for damages from any number of parties. Those would include the car’s manufacturer and the driver who crashed into it.

Contact a Los Angeles Car Accident Lawyer

Our law firm represents individuals who are victims of any type of motor vehicle crash. Whether they’re roadside accidents, trucking crashes, motorcycle, bicycle or pedestrian accidents anywhere in California, all you need to do is contact us for a free consultation and case evaluation. If you’re hurt too seriously to come to us, we’ll arrange to meet you at your home, hospital or rehabilitation center. Don’t hesitate to contact us right after any accident.

For more information on accidents in LA visit our page: Los Angeles Car Accident Lawyer.