Denver Fatigued Driving Crash Attorneys
Helping Victims of Drowsy Driving Crashes in Denver
While crashes are a fact of life for frequent drivers, few of us ever expect to become the victim of one. Sadly, your crash may have been caused by a kind of driver you weren’t even aware was dangerous: fatigued drivers. Driving while overly tired is an incredibly reckless act that puts countless lives at risk. If you have been involved in a collision with a fatigued driver, you are likely feeling angry, frightened, and lost. That is where we come in.
We at Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. are staunch supporters of auto crash victims. For decades we have been fighting for our clients to get the compensation that they are owed by the at-fault party. As more and more people turn to cars for their daily commute, the number of fatigued drivers on the road goes up. But we are here to make sure no one has to pay out of pocket for their own medical bills after a tired driver collided with them. For expert legal aid and advice, call our firm at (303) 759-9945 or toll-free (877) 433-3906. We are ready to help.
What Are the Dangers of Fatigued Driving?
There are many organizations and outreach projects on the topic of drunk driving. There are few people who don’t already know how dangerous drunk driving can be. Unfortunately, there is far less awareness about the dangers of driving while overly tired. New efforts to research the impact that fatigue has on driving has revealed that tired drivers are impacted by their exhaustion very similarly to how drunk drivers are impacted by alcohol.
An overly tried driver may experience:
- Lowered reaction times
- Falling asleep at the wheel
- Problems concentrating
- Impaired judgment
- Blurry vision
These side effects of being fatigued are incredibly dangerous, especially falling asleep at the wheel. Even a few seconds of closed eyes could result in a serious crash, especially if the fatigued driver is in a truck. Truck drivers spend their lives on the road, and often work very long hours, leaving them exhausted. While there are federal laws that only allow them to drive for a certain amount of time before they are required to take a break, many trucking companies encourage or force their drivers to skip or shorten rest periods in order to maximize profits. There is nothing more dangerous than a fatigued truck driver, as truck accidents, whether they be underrides, rollovers, or jackknifes, are devastating for victims.
How Fatigued Driving Can Change Your Life
Whether you were in a car, a motorcycle, or crossing the street on foot, being the victim of a fatigued driver can be, and often is, devastating. Because fatigued drivers have a lowered reactions time and have difficulty concentrating, they may not hit their brakes until a split second before they collide with you, if they hit their brakes at all. This means that the collision will likely be one of high impact, leading to debilitating injuries. Some of these injuries include:
- Fractured and broken bones
- Crush injuries
- Brain damage
- Severe burns
- Limb loss or amputation
- Spine injuries
- Organ damage
- Road rash
- Nerve damage
- Internal bleeding
- Lacerations
As with any auto collision, there is also the chance that the victims do not survive. If you have lost a loved one to a fatigued driver, you are likely feeling angry, pained, and hopeless. While we cannot reverse what was done, we can help you get the compensation that you and your family need to financially recover. We at Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. have been helping clients with wrongful death cases for decades now and are well versed in the process.
However, even if you did survive the crash, chances are you have been left in a severely injured state. Car crash injuries can take months, or longer, to heal. That means hefty medical bills on top of lost wages due to time away from work. That can be a struggle for anyone to deal with, let alone those who are trying to recover from injuries that could impact them for a lifetime. Getting compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance provider may be your best chance at getting back to normalcy after your accident.
How to Spot a Drowsy Driver
Every driver on the road should make it their utmost responsibility to drive responsibly. Sadly, many motorists treat driving as a right, rather than the privilege that it is. While you may drive defensively and responsibly, that doesn’t mean those around you are doing the same. That is why knowing what to look for when it comes to fatigued driving may be the best way to keep yourself and your passengers safe. Common signs that a driver has become overly tired include:
- Swerving
- Driving dangerously slow or speeding
- Sudden stops and starts
- Failure to yield the right of way
- The appearance of the driver falling asleep, even for a second
- Running red lights or stop signs
- Slowly edging towards the road or another lane
- Failure to avoid objects in the road or other vehicles
Knowing these signs can also help you after a collision. Following a serious crash, police will often show up on the scene to take a report. Unlike with a drunk or drug-influenced driver, it can be difficult for a police officer to spot a drowsy driver, especially after the driver has been woken up by the adrenaline of the accident. However, you can tell the officer about the fatigued behavior you noticed prior to the collision. This may help you down the line when it comes time to hold the at-fault driver liable.
Drowsy Driving and Liability
While driving while fatigued is not prohibited by the law in the same way that driving while intoxicated is, being tired is still not a valid excuse for acting negligently. The at-fault driver should have known to take a nap before getting behind the wheel. At the very least, once they felt themselves beginning to fall asleep, they should have pulled over to the side of the road to give themselves the rest time they need to be alert. Instead, the driver at-fault for your accident may choose to keep driving while exhausted, leading to a serious accident.
Even if the adverse insurance tried to convince you that their client wasn’t at fault, don’t believe them. Drowsy driving is just another form of negligence, meaning that the at-fault driver broke their duty of care towards you. All drivers are expected to operate their vehicles responsibly and safely, ensuring that those around them are as safe as possible. A fatigued driver is clearly not taking this responsibility seriously and should be held accountable when they inevitably cause a wreck. Doing so will require a skilled attorney, however.
Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. Wants to Help
When a driver chooses to get behind the wheel despite being overly tired and crashes, they should be held accountable, especially when someone is seriously injured. Many accident victims are in desperate need of compensation to help them recover. No one should have to have to pay for negligence that wasn’t their fault. If you or a loved one have been the victim of a crash with a fatigued driver in Colorado, call Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. at (303) 759-9945 or toll-free (877) 433-3906 for top-notch help from an expert Denver auto accident attorney.
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