Are Ride Operators Liable for Accidents in Georgia?

Amusement Ride Operators Liable Personal Injury Attorney Georgia

Many amusement parks in recent years have been the location of high-profile accidents, several of which have ended in death. One question that arises is, could the victim of an accident or survivors sue the business for negligence if an accident occurred on the premises of their amusement park or ride?

Company Plans New Indoor Skydiving Attraction Near SunTrust Park

In what might lead to premises liability lawsuits, a new indoor skydiving facility near the new Braves stadium will allow visitors to simulate the experience of freefall without having to jump out of a plane, according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution. The technology, called iFly, uses a vertical wind tunnel to propel visitors up into the air for minutes at a time. The operators of the wind tunnel will allow visitors over the age of three to use the facility. The iFly indoor skydiving attraction is part of the overall development occurring new the new Braves stadium, which the club will name SunTrust stadium, and which is under construction in the Cumberland Mall area of Cobb County. Patch.com reports that the location of the entertainment facility will be close to the intersection of I-285 and Cobb Parkway.

Cobb County Zoning Officials Objected to iFly’s Construction Plans

Although the company has built over 50 indoor wind tunnels throughout the world going back to 1998, they had to make several modifications to their standard construction plans for this location. The reason was that Cobb County zoning and planning officials would not allow iFly to construct a building at the height that their standard plan required. Because iFly wanted to stay close to the planned SunTrust stadium location, they modified their plan to allow for a smaller building. It does not appear that safety concerns were part of the reason for the county’s objections to the planned construction.

Georgia Law Holds Business Owners Liable for Accidents on the Premises

Although iFly says that their facilities are extremely safe, visitors may want to be certain they are ready to take certain risks.  Could the victim of an accident or survivors sue the business for negligence if an accident occurred on the premises of their amusement park or ride?  In general, the answer is yes.  If the business fails to make their ride as safe as is reasonably possible (for example, failing to install restraints or make riders wear helmets), or if they fail to warn the visitors of the risks involved, then they may be liable for negligence. However, it’s common for amusement parks to make visitors sign waivers relieving the operator of any liability for accidents. In Georgia, these waivers of liability are usually valid, which means that you should think twice before signing away your right to sue.  A small exception is that waivers are not a bar to liability for gross negligence.

Could Accident Victims Sue iFly for Negligence Based on Premises Liability?

If a visitor to an entertainment attraction like iFly were to sustain an injury during their visit, would they be able to sue the operator? It depends on the situation. If iFly was able to make the ride safer for visitors by taking reasonable steps, but failed to do so, then they may be liable for negligence. For example, if they could have supplied helmets for the riders to wear, or limited the height at which the simulated skydive occurred to a known safe height, but didn’t, and this resulted in an injury, then they might be liable for negligence. Also, if iFly were aware of specific dangers that the ride posed, and could have warned visitors about the dangers, but failed to, this might also make them liable for negligence. However, if iFly has riders sign a waiver of liability before they ride, then this waiver will probably prevent accident victims from succeeding in a lawsuit against iFly.

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If you or someone you know has had an accident on someone else’s property, it is important to get in touch with an attorney today. Contact a premises liability lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today to begin working on your recovery.

Are Businesses Liable for Crimes in Parking Lots?

Property Owner Liable Negligent Security Parking Lot Personal Injury Attorney Georgia

Masked Assailant Pistol-Whips, Robs Woman in Shopping Center Parking Lot

In a possible case of negligent security, a masked assailant beat and robbed a woman outside of a shopping center in Cobb County on Saturday, August 19, according to Fox 5 Atlanta. The man pistol-whipped the woman and took her purse, according the victim. The woman has asked news sources not to identify her because police have yet to apprehend any suspects and the attacker remains at large. There are currently no reports that the woman required hospitalization or that her current medical condition is serious.

Catherine’s Surveillance Camera Didn’t Capture Crime

The attack occurred in the parking lot outside of a Catherine’s on the East-West Connector in Austell after 4 o’clock on Saturday. After the victim’s mother went inside the store to shop, the victim remained sitting in the car in the parking lot. A masked man opened the door to the car, got in, sat down, and ordered her to drive. The woman refused, at which point the masked man beat her on the head, shoulders, and arms with his pistol, before taking her purse and leaving the vehicle. The manager of the Catherine’s told reporters that while the store has a surveillance camera, the incident probably will not appear on camera.

Georgia Law Holds Businesses Responsible for Negligent Security

While The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that some local governments are installing security cameras, many businesses lack sufficient security surveillance. Georgia law holds property owners liable for taking reasonable care to prevent injuries to their tenants and customers. That includes taking steps to avoid criminal activity that might harm customers who visit a property. If property owners are aware of violent crimes happening on their property or on nearby properties, the property owner is responsible for taking reasonable steps to secure their property. A victim of such a crime could sue the property owner for negligent security. One of the standard steps for commercial businesses to take is to install surveillance cameras in areas where crimes are likely to occur, such as parking lots and alleyways. Other common security measures include installing lighting in poorly-lit areas and hiring security guards.

Is the Shopping Center Liable for Negligent Security?

Is the property owner liable for negligent security in a case like the one that occurred Saturday in Austell? This depends on several different factors. First, did the property owner know that such a crime might occur? The answer depends on whether there have been crimes in the area previously. If crimes have happened in the parking lot or the vicinity of the business in the recent past, then the property owner probably was aware that such a crime might occur. Second, did the property owner take reasonable steps to secure the property against crime? It’s not completely clear here whether Catherine’s or other businesses in the shopping center had properly secured the area. For example, it’s possible that the owner of the shopping center should have installed surveillance cameras facing the area of the shopping center parking lot where the crime occurred. It’s also possible that the presence of a private security guard would have prevented the crime have occurring. If so, and if the shopping center failed to take these measures, they might be liable for negligent security.

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If you or someone you know has been the victim of a crime on someone else’s property, you need legal assistance from a professional. Get in touch with an experienced negligent security attorney at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today to get the compensation you deserve.

Intersection Cameras Can Prove Accident Lawsuits

Intersection Cameras Provide Evidence for Car Accidents Personal Injury Attorney Georgia

Multiple Car Accident on Woodland Parkway Leaves Roswell Woman Dead

A car accident in Cobb County left a Roswell woman dead Sunday, according to Patch.com. The crash, which involved four vehicles, happened when a woman driving an SUV drove into an intersection against the red light and collided with several other vehicles. Emergency medical responders transported the driver of one of the vehicles to nearby Wellstar Kennestone Hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead. None of the other victims of the accident appear to have suffered life-threatening injuries.

Washbourne Was Under the Influence at the Time of the Accident

The intersection where the crash occurred is at Johnson Ferry Road and Woodland Parkway. Investigators from the Cobb County Police Department say that around 6:45pm, the driver of the SUV, 38-year-old Courtney Washbourne, was driving down the southbound lane of Johnson Ferry Road. When she reached the intersection with Woodland Parkway, the traffic signal was red, but she continued into the intersection. She collided with two vehicles in the northbound lane of Johnson Ferry Road, both of which were turning left onto Woodland Parkway, then entered the northbound lane and struck a third car. Emergency response personnel transported Washbourne to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital for injuries that were non-life-threatening. Police charged Washbourne with violation of a traffic control device, driving under the influence and felony homicide by vehicle.

More Traffic Cameras Means More Accident Evidence

In accidents like this one, you might ask yourself, “How did the police know that the driver entered the intersection against the red light?” Of course, they could have proved this the old-fashioned way: by questioning witnesses. But nowadays, that isn’t always necessary, because of the growth in the use of cameras at intersections. As Atlanta upgrades its traffic signals, new systems will make increased use of cameras, metal detectors and other sensors to help regulate traffic more efficiently, WABE Atlanta reports. Some of these cameras can also be used to document the events surrounding an accident. An attorney for a victim in a traffic accident can subpoena evidence from traffic cameras. Some of this evidence may appear in a police report, if there is one. If it’s not in a police report, then there’s a risk it will disappear, since many traffic cameras cycle through storage and delete old footage after a certain period of time elapses. This means that you need to move quickly to protect your rights.

Victims of Parkway Accident May Use Camera Footage in Lawsuits

So would the victims of the accident on Woodland Parkway or their survivors be able to use traffic camera evidence in a lawsuit against Ms. Washbourne? Possibly, but it depends on the situation. If we assume that there was a camera at the intersection, then there was probably footage at one time of the accident, since the camera would be angled to capture cars entering the intersection. Since the police filed charges against Ms. Washbourne, they might have included photos from the camera in their police report or saved footage from the camera for the prosecutor. If so, the attorneys for the victims of the accident may be able to subpoena this footage. If the police did not save any of the footage from the camera, then plaintiffs may need to file quickly to make sure to save the footage from the cameras before it disappears.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a car accident, you need legal help. Get in touch with an experienced car accident lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today to get the compensation you deserve.

Can a Mother Who Loses an Unborn Child in an Accident Sue for Wrongful Death?

Georgia Wrongful Death Case of Fetus Car Accident Lawsuit

Pre-K Teacher Loses Fetus, Suffers Massive Trauma in Cobb County Accident

A pre-kindergarten teacher is in intensive care in Cobb County after a car crash in Powder Springs killed her unborn son, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  The woman, Karlissa Darby, 22, of Dallas, Texas, sustained serious injuries after a couple driving the wrong way down a freeway collided with her car. Officials who investigated the accident indicated that the couple in the other car were at fault for the accident. Her mother, who is staying with Darby at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital, says that if Darby survives her injuries, her recovery will take a very long time.

Elderly Couple Drove Wrong Way on Street, Struck Darby

Police sources say that a couple in a Crown Victoria were driving eastbound on the westbound side of Macland Road when they hit Darby’s Plymouth Voyager.  Darby suffered a broken leg, broken ankles, broken wrists, serious head trauma, and a stroke. The crash also resulted in the death of her unborn child. 11 Alive Atlanta reports that the elderly couple who crashed into Darby’s car both died in the car accident. Doctors are uncertain whether Darby will ever regain the ability to walk.

In Georgia, Pregnant Women Who Lose a Fetus Can Sue for Wrongful Death

In a car accident where the other party is at fault, the surviving victim can sue the party at fault for negligence and seek damages to compensate them for the injuries they have sustained. If one of the accident victims died from their injuries, then that victim’s survivors can sue the at-fault party for wrongful death. But what about if the victim who died was an unborn child? In Georgia, surviving mothers can sue at-fault drivers for wrongful death if a car accident leads to the death of their unborn fetus. However, the fetus must have reached the stage in development at which they are “quick,” which means that the mother can feel the fetus moving. Quickening can occur as early as 13-16 weeks from the mother’s last period. But the general rule is that fetuses quicken between 18 and 24 weeks of gestation.

Darby Could Sue Estate for Wrongful Death

In a case like Karlissa Darby’s, could the mother sue the drivers for wrongful death? First, the drivers at fault in the accident are deceased, so Darby would have to sue the estate for wrongful death. Second, Darby has a lot of other serious injuries that she should get compensation for. She will likely have extensive medical bills and a long, painful recovery. Next, it’s clear that the other party was at fault. Driving the wrong way on a busy street is a blatant violation of the rules of the road, and law enforcement officers who investigated the crash have found that the other drivers were at fault. But in addition, she has lost her unborn child due to the negligence of the other drivers. In Georgia, this is the basis for a wrongful death claim. It’s necessary, though, that Darby’s pregnancy had advanced to the quickening stage for the wrongful death claim to succeed. 

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If you or someone you know has suffered injuries from a car accident, it is imperative that you speak with an attorney today. Contact an experienced car accident lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today for more information on whether or not you have a case.

Truckers Who Drive Too Many Hours Can Be Liable for Negligence

Truckers Liable for Hours-of-Service Regulation Violation Wrongful Death Georgia Attorney

Tractor-Trailer Accident Kills Henry County Teen

A local high school student died on Saturday, August 20 when a tractor-trailer accident involving 9 cars occurred on I-75 in Henry County, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Seven other passengers of various cars involved in the accident received treatment for non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities do not believe that drugs or alcohol were a factor in the multi-car accident. However, the driver of the tractor-trailer, Daniel Crane of Jemez Springs, New Mexico, had exceeded the number of hours the law allowed him to drive at the time of the accident.

Officials Charged Crane with Violating Commercial Vehicle Hours of Service

The Henry Herald reports that the deceased accident victim was Summer Anne Lee, 18,  a student at Locust Grove High School. Crane’s tractor trailer struck Lee’s vehicle from behind sometime between 10:30 and 11:00 am on Saturday morning. The collision pushed Lee’s car into the car in front of her, which led to a pileup that included the five vehicles in front of her. The crash also caused a fire, which first responders were able to extinguish. Local law enforcement officials charged Crane with vehicle manslaughter, following too closely and violating commercial vehicle hours of service.

Georgia’s Hours-of-Service Regulations Hold Truckers Liable for Violations

When a driver causes an accident that results in injuries, the victim can sue that driver for negligence. In a negligence lawsuit, the victim argues that the driver at fault failed to take reasonable care to avoid injuries to others. Usually, this means that they failed to follow the rules of the road.  Commercial vehicle operators have special regulations that govern their business, because their vehicles are much heavier and more dangerous to those around them. One type of special regulation for truck drivers is called an hours-of-service limit. An hours-of-service limit says how many hours at a time a driver can operate a commercial vehicle. The limits vary with the size of the vehicle. For example, if a vehicle weighs over 10,000 pounds, then the Georgia Department of Transportation says they can only drive for 11 hours after having 10 consecutive hours off-duty. If a truck driver violates one of these hours-of-service regulations, they may make them liable for an accident that occurs because of resulting fatigue.

Crane’s Hours-of-Service Violation Could Be Negligence

Could the survivors of Summer Anne Lee sue the truck driver Crane for negligence in a wrongful death lawsuit? They probably could. First of all, there’s plenty of evidence that Crane failed to take reasonable care to prevent injury to Lee. Law enforcement officials said he was following too close, and that alone could make him liable for an accident in which he collided with the car in front of him. On top of that, he was in violation of his hours-of-service limit. If the victim can show that there was a connection between the hours-of-service limit violation and the accident (for example, if Crane was fatigued and this caused the crash), then Crane and his employer would be liable for negligence.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a truck accident, you need help from an attorney. Get in touch with a skilled truck accident attorney at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County to find out how we can be of assistance.

Theaters Without Metal Detectors May Be Liable for Negligent Security

Georgia Law Landowners Negligent Security Personal Injury Wrongful Death Attorney

Atlanta’s Fox Theatre Announces New Metal Detector Policy

According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the historic Fox Theatre in downtown Atlanta has decided to install a new security measure: metal detectors at the front entrances. With this move, the theatre hopes to mirror the practices of other entertainment venues in the region, including football and baseball stadiums. The theatre will begin using the metal detectors for shows during its summer film festival. The metal detectors will be looking for items that are already prohibited in the theatre. That list includes firearms, pocket knives, and utility tools.

More Venues Introduce Metal Detectors

The announcement comes the same week that the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln Nebraska announced its new metal detector policy, the Lincoln Journal-Star reports. It’s not just keeping up with the Joneses that’s motivating the Fox to tighten security.  According to manager Allan Vella, the theatre “can’t help but see what’s going on in the world.” The theatre will use 8 to 10 metal detectors in the arcade section of the theatre during a full house event. The process will require patrons to remove keys and other metal items from their pockets before undergoing metal detection. Each patron will probably spend between five and seven minutes going through the process.

Georgia Law Holds Landowners Responsible for Providing Security

One motivating factor for arenas and theatres to tighten security may be to reduce their liability for criminal acts that occur on the premises. Georgia law holds landowners responsible for taking reasonable care to prevent injuries to their guests and customers. This includes doing what they can to prevent foreseeable injuries from criminal acts. Courts usually ask whether the area around the premises is a high-crime area and whether crimes have occurred at that location in the past.

Theaters Without Metal Detectors May Be Liable for Negligent Security

But cinemas, theaters and stadiums may pose a special case. These types of public venues have been the site of numerous violent shootings and terrorist attacks over the past few years. In the context of such a situation, a court may find that a theater is the foreseeable location of a shooting or violent attack. If that’s true, then the venue has a responsibility to take reasonable measures to prevent an attack from happening.

Usually, reasonableness is measured by what other similar businesses are doing. In the case of the Fox Theatre, the reasonable thing is probably to install metal detectors, since this is quickly becoming the standard practice for public venues.  Most of the venues that are announcing the use of metal detectors are large sports arenas rather than live theater venues. However, a 2012 shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado made national headlines, and for this reason, a court might find that a shooting at a similar venue, like the Fox Theatre, might be foreseeable.

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If you or someone you know has suffered an injury on someone else’s property, you need legal advice. Get in touch with a premises liability lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today to get the compensation you deserve.

Pool Accidents May Spell Liability for Property Owners

Georgia Property Owners Liable for Negligence Personal Injury Attorney

Marietta Woman Walks for First Time in Years at Her Wedding

A Marietta woman who was paralyzed in a swimming pool accident was able to walk at her wedding last week, according to ABC News. The bride, Jacqui Goncher, suffered paralysis from the neck down after jumping into a friend’s pool in 2008 when she was 17. Although doctors gave her zero chance of recovering the use of her legs, physical therapy and exercise eventually allowed her to stand for short periods of time. Her low blood pressure prevented her from standing for more than 30 minutes. Not only was she able to walk down the aisle, but she danced with her groom at her wedding reception. It was the first time Goncher and her husband had ever danced together.

Goncher Was A High School Athlete Before Injury

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that before Goncher suffered paralysis from her pool accident, she was a high school athlete, playing on a fast-pitch softball team. But after the accident in her friend’s pool, she was trapped in a wheelchair for years. Friends and family were deeply moved to see Goncher dance at her wedding reception after years of disability. Photographs commemorating the occasion went viral over social media and found their way into newspapers across the world.

Georgia Law Holds Property Owners Responsible for Keeping Guests Safe

It’s a miracle that Mrs. Goncher was able to recover so much of her strength, but even now she suffers from a serious disability. Whenever someone loses the use of their limbs from an accident on someone else’s property, we have to ask whether or not the owner was liable for negligence. In Georgia, property owners are responsible for taking reasonable care to prevent injuries to their guests. That means repairing any dangerous problems on the property and making sure to warn their guests of any potential dangers. If the property owner fails to take reasonable care to fix potential dangers or warn their guests to avoid them, and this failure leads to an injury, then the property owner may be liable for the injury in a negligence lawsuit.

Goncher’s High School Host May Have Been Liable for Negligence

In Mrs. Goncher’s case, was her high school friend’s family responsible for her injuries? Although reports give few details of the accident that left Goncher bound to a wheelchair, we can imagine several situations that might have made her host liable. First, it’s possible that the pool was in a dangerous condition when Goncher jumped in. For example, if the level of the water in the pool was too low, and this led to Goncher’s injury, the property owner might be liable.

More likely, the pool was simply not deep enough to allow for safe diving. In that case, the property owner has a duty to their guests to warn them not to attempt to dive into the pool. If they don’t, and a diving guest injures themselves, then the owner might be liable for negligence. Another possibiity is that Goncher’s jump went wrong due to the conditions around the pool. Slippery deck surfaces could make a diving guest slip and strike their body against the edge of the pool, leading to serious injuries. If the host failed to take reasonable steps to keep the deck safe, or failed to warn their guests about the dangers of slipping, then the host might be liable for Goncher’s injuries.

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If you or someone you know has suffered an injury on someone else’s property, you need legal advice. Get in touch with a premises liability lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Cobb County today to get the compensation you deserve.

Road Rage Drivers Risk Negligence Lawsuits

Road Rage Negligence Personal Injury Attorney Georgia

Marietta Court Sentences Road Rage Driver to 15 Years

A court in Marietta recently convicted a Kennesaw man of aggravated assault for pulling a gun in traffic, The Savannah Morning News reports. The court sentenced the man to 15 years in prison on Friday for an incident that occurred in November of 2014. The convicted man, James Matthew Colomb, was angry because another driver had cut him off in traffic. Colomb followed the other vehicle to a store, where he pointed his gun at the driver and his family and threatened them verbally before driving away.

Colomb Aimed Gun at Driver and Family

According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the driver who changed lanes in front of Colomb did so “inadvertently” and did not realize he would be the victim of road rage. The driver of the other vehicle was traveling with his wife and three children. When they stopped at an eyeglasses store, Colomb aimed the gun at them and told the driver he could “wipe the smile off [his] face.” Colomb never fired the weapon, but prosecutors argued that anyone willing to pull out a gun because of an “innocent traffic maneuver” was a danger to society.

Road Rage Causes More Car Accidents Each Year

Road rage is causing more and more car accidents each year, as a report from The Washington Post explains. As of 2015, there were more than ten times as many fatal accidents due to road rage annually as there were in 2004. Commuters are the most likely drivers to report feeling uncontrollable rage toward other drivers on the road. What driving behavior is most likely to cause road rage in other drivers? Weaving between lanes and cutting people off. Other behaviors that tend to make drivers angry are speeding, tailgating and behaving in a hostile manner.

Road Rage Can Lead to Lawsuits

Road rage incidents involve drivers who react with anger toward other drivers. Often, the very behaviors they are angry about are the same kind of behaviors they themselves react with: aggressive driving behaviors like tailgating or expressions of hostility. Many of these behaviors are more likely to cause accidents and can lead to liability in a lawsuit. For example, drivers are expected to maintain a minimum distance between their own vehicle and the one in front of them, dependent on speed and road conditions. If a driver fails to maintain that minimum distance and this leads to an accident, the tailgating driver can be liable for negligence in a lawsuit.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a car accident, you need legal assistance. Reach out to a car accident lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Marietta to get the compensation you deserve.

Are Road Construction Contractors Liable in Accidents?

Georgia Law Construction Contractors Liable Personal Injury Wrongful Death Attorney

Ohio Authorities Charge Cobb County Man with Vehicular Manslaughter

Authorities in Cleveland, Ohio have charged a truck driver from Cobb County with aggravated vehicular manslaughter after an accident there Sunday, according to The Toledo Blade. The man, Chana Roosevelt Carter, age 40, of Powder Springs, was driving a tractor trailer when he collided with a slow-moving line of cars on the Ohio Turnpike. A 14-year-old girl, Madison Creagan, of West Shokan, New York, died in the accident. Local authorities have also charged Carter with failure to obey a traffic control device and vehicular assault.

Construction Caused Slow-down; Carter Failed to Brake

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that the tractor-trailer accident occurred at about 2 pm Sunday near the State Route 4 interchange in Erie County’s Groton Township. A construction zone covering part of the freeway caused traffic to slow down in that stretch. Law enforcement officials on the scene said that Carter didn’t slow down fast enough to avoid a collision with the slower traffic in front of him. Seven other people suffered injuries in the accident. Ohio state agencies are rebuilding the freeway where the crash occurred. Local authorities are holding Carter in the Erie County jail. There has been no positive or negative report of whether Carter was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident.

Under Georgia Law, Construction Contractors Can Be Liable for Accidents

The State of Georgia spends hundreds of millions of dollars every year on road construction. This money goes to private contractors to complete freeway construction and other jobs, as a report from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution explains. The state agency responsible for construction (for example, the Georgia Department of Transportation or GDOT) is usually immune from liability for accidents unless they fail to follow standard engineering practices in the construction of roads. However, private contractors can be held liable for negligence if they fail to take reasonable care during the construction work on a freeway, if that failure leads to injuries. For example, in a case called Comanche Construction Inc. of Georgia v. Department of Transportation, a construction contractor for the GDOT placed a detour sign so that it blocked a stop sign, which lead to an accident. The court found that although the state was immune from a negligence lawsuit for the injuries that resulted, Comanche Construction could still be liable.

Construction Contractor Could Be Liable in Carter Crash

If a case like the Carter crash were to occur in Georgia, would the construction company have any possible liability in a negligence lawsuit for the injuries to the seven passengers and the wrongful death of the 14-year-old girl? If the construction company failed to take reasonable care to provide warning of construction, and this prevented Carter from being able to slow down and avoid hitting the traffic in front of him, the construction company might be liable. Even if Carter also failed to follow the rules of the road (for example, if he was driving over the speed limit), the construction company might share some of the liability.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a car accident, you need legal assistance. Get in touch with a car accident lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Marietta to get the compensation you deserve.

Are Drivers Liable for Emergency Response Costs?

Car Accident Emergency Response Costs Personal Injury Attorney Georgia

Cobb County Accident Requires Emergency Personnel to Remove Passengers from Wreck

Five people are in the hospital after an auto collision in Cobb County last weekend, according to WSB-TV 2 Atlanta. Near Cobb Parkway and Barrett Parkway at about 3 am, a car and a pickup truck crashed into each other. The passengers were trapped in their vehicles, and emergency first responders closed lanes of traffic while they worked to remove the passengers. Emergency personnel transported five of the passengers to Kennestone Wellstar Hospital in Marietta, three of them in critical condition.

Accident Caused Serious Injuries but No Fatalities

ABC 9 Atlanta reports that the car accident did not result in any fatalities. Police reports indicate that the driver of one of the vehicles may have been under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. Video footage of the accident scene shows that the accident mangled both vehicles, caving in the sides of the bodies of the minivan and showering the roadway with shattered glass. There are currently no reports on the present status of the passengers who suffered injuries during the accident.

Georgia Law Bans Accident Response Fees

When a driver causes an accident and that accident requires emergency response personnel to respond to the scene, the municipality or local government who operates the emergency response agency may incur large expenses. It is more and more common for these municipalities and local governments nationwide to charge the person responsible for the accident a fee to cover the costs of their emergency first response, as The Insurance Journal explains. However, the Georgia Code specifically bans local governments from charging accident response fees to insurance companies for emergency response to a car accident. There are exceptions for services fee for which the driver has explicit coverage.

Driver Probably Won’t Have to Pay for Emergency Response

Could the driver responsible for the accident at Cobb Parkway and Barrett Parkway have to pay municipal accident response fees? It appears that the county probably incurred significant costs in responding to the accident, including firefighters and emergency medical personnel. Services by fire departments are the ones that municipalities are most likely to try and bill for.

If the driver was in fact under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, it is likely that the driver is liable for negligence and that their insurance company is on the hook to cover the expenses of the accident. It’s possible then that the county will attempt to charge the driver’s insurance company for the costs of emergency response. However, they will probably not be able to hold the insurance company responsible for paying such a fee, since the Georgia Code bans this kind of billing. The only exception might be if the driver is already insured for the payment of municipal accident response fees, in which case the insurance company will have to pay out.

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If you or someone you know has been involved in a car accident, you need legal assistance. Get in touch with a car accident lawyer at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter in Marietta to get the compensation you deserve.