Miami Personal Injury Attorney Blog

Distracted Driving Awareness Month in Florida

April 18, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

TextingDriver-1024x682 April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month in Florida, and the Sunshine State badly needs it. In a 2017 study, Florida ranks second in the country for distracted driving, only coming in behind Louisiana. This is from the online insurance firm EverQuote. The study analyzed approximately 2.7 million vehicle trips, which accounted for over 230 million miles driven.

In the study, drivers were given a device called the EverDrive, which is a type of motion-sensing app. This device measures a person’s speed, acceleration, and turning while the driver’s phone is being used. It can tell whether a person speeds, turns aggressively, or banks hard.

The device, however, does not measure movements while the phone is in sleep mode or while it is being used with a hands-free device.

Bike Accidents in Florida

April 3, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

personal-injury-lawyer Florida’s official nickname is the Sunshine State. Its beautiful beaches and luscious state parks draw thousands each year to enjoy the great outdoors. This may sound like Florida is therefore the perfect place to go for a bike ride. Unfortunately, however, Florida is ranked as the most dangerous state in the country to ride a bicycle.

According to a recent study by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, bicyclists in Florida as far more likely to be killed than in any other state in the US. The NHTSA study looked at the number of deaths resulting from traffic crashes between 2007 to 2016, and the results were surprising. For Florida, many, if not most, of the state’s cities dominate the study’s rankings as the most dangerous for cyclists.

Unlike many cities in Europe, like London or Amsterdam, metro areas in the United States are not built with cyclists in mind. Most cities in Europe specifically build their infrastructure to include modes of transportation that do not revolve around cars. For example, the European cities are better at including independent bicycle lanes or creating safer crosswalks for pedestrians.

Miami Ultra Music Festival Accidents

March 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

On March 29^th, the Ultra Music Festival returns for its 20^th year but with a new location at Virginia Key on Key Biscayne a barrier island in Miami. A new location brings with it new challenges—especially regarding getting to and from Ultra.

This year parking will not be available at Ultra and patrons are being provided the options to use ride share applications (Uber/Lyft) or free shuttles provided by Ultra. With only one roadway on and off Key Biscayne, known as the Rickenbacker Causeway, it is going to be crucial for Ultra-festival goers to 1) download Uber or Lyft apps or 2) be aware of Ultra’s free shuttle service and its locations.

Uber and Lyft will only be available to get you and your friends to Ultra, and you can simply enter “Ultra Music Festival” into your Uber and Lyft app to get to Ultra or a transit hub which has been set up by Ultra. Uber and Lyft can get you to Ultra but are not going to be available once you are at Ultra. For this reason, Ultra is providing free shuttle service to one of three locations.

The Horror of Florida Storefront Crashes

March 27, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Roads-Traffic It can happen anywhere, at anytime. You and your family could be having a wonderful time out at a store, then tragedy happens. A car spins out of control and crashes into a storefront. The unfortunate truth is that this happens more than you would think.

According to a study conducted by the Storefront Safety Council, an automobile crashes into a building at least 60 times each day. These crashes cause almost 500 deaths and over 3,600 injuries each year.

The Storefront Safety Council is a non-profit organization that is made up of volunteers from differing backgrounds who wish to find a way to lower the high number of cars crashing into storefronts. The Council particularly favors putting barriers in front of stores to prevent the crashes.

Automated Cars May Soon Be Coming to Florida. Are We Ready?

March 7, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

accident-miami-300x225 For years now various car companies have been developing the technology for automated cars. What was once a long-away dream, may soon be reality.

In an article, the South Florida Sun Sentinel explored just how drivers in Southern Florida would be affected by the new technologies. Driverless cars will affect everything from the width of the driving lanes to speed limits. Due to the driverless cars’ technology, driving lanes will become narrower, there will be fewer public parking lots, speed limits will increase, there will be flyover ramps at intersections, and there may even be more shortcuts through neighborhoods.

The reason for this is that all of the automated cars will be able to not just communicate with each other, but also with the traffic signals and roads. All of this technology will be used to prevent accidents with other vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles, and anything else (like deer or fallen tree branches).

The Electric Scooter Revolution Comes to Florida

March 6, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

hospital-300x200 If you have been in a large city recently, you may have noticed a lot of people riding around on electric scooters. The trend is sweeping across the United States, with large companies investing millions of dollars and dropping hundreds of dockless electric scooters in cities across the nation.

The electronic scooter companies are aiming to reshape how people get around cities by creating a new era of environmentally friendly micro transportation. Bird and Lime are two of the largest electronic scooter companies in the United States, each with valuations of $2 to $3 billion.

The appeal? Both companies offer fairly cheap and convenient services. It costs just $1 to rent an electronic scooter, plus 15 cents per minute. There is no docking station, which means that riders are allowed to just “drop” their electronic scooters as soon as they are done with them. Moreover, the companies require that each rider is at least 18 years-old, and technically requires the riders to use a helmet, although enforcement of the helmet rule is difficult to police.

When Can You Use Building Code Violations for Florida Slip and Fall Accidents?

March 1, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Miami-Rooftop Unfortunately, slip and falls accidents are very common in Florida, and they can result in serious injuries and expenses. Slip and fall accidents can lead to a host of injuries, from simple sprains and bruises to broken bones and back injuries. These injuries can lead to permanent disability and costly medical bills.

If you have a slip and fall accident in Florida, you may be forced to file your claim with the property owner, instead of the business owner. This happens most often when stores lease space from a property owner. The property owner is then generally responsible for the upkeep of the common areas, such as the parking lot.

When you file your claim with a property owner, you will need to prove that the accident you had stemmed from the property owner’s negligence. This can often be difficult to prove. Many times negligent property owners are able to get away completely free due to a lack of proper evidence. This is because it can often be hard to determine exactly what caused the fall.

Walking Can Be Bad for Your Health in Florida

February 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

hitandrunax Going out for a walk may seem like a great idea. However, ironically, going out for a walk in Florida may actually lead to a serious injury or death.

Smart Growth America, a non-profit organization founded in 2000, found in a recent study that over the past decade, over 49,000 people in the United States were stuck and killed by drivers while walking on streets. Put another way, that is the equivalent of approximately 13 people per day.

The number of pedestrian fatalities has increased almost every year since 1990. In the past decade alone, there was a dramatic 35.7 percent increase in the number of pedestrian fatalities, with 2016 and 2017 being the deadliest since 1990.

What’s the Difference Between Comprehensive and Collision Insurance in Florida?

January 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Ramp When people think of auto insurance, they probably think of the comprehensive and collision insurance. But, most do not actually full understand the terms. So, what is the difference?

Comprehensive and collision insurance are two of the most common types of auto insurance that are offered to repair damaged vehicles. The two insurances, however, act very differently as they cover different types of damage.

Comprehensive car insurance is meant for damages which are caused by non-collision-related damages. So, anything that deals with inclement weather or theft or vandalism. Collision insurance, on the other hand, is meant for damages just caused by collisions. In both types of insurance, the coverage may include individual repairs or a full replacement of your vehicle.

Top 5 Factors that Raise Your Florida Car Insurance Rates

January 28, 2019 | Wolfson & Leon

Flat-Iron-Miami Shopping for car insurance is certainly not something that people look forward to. But, it is important for people to know exactly what goes into the calculation of insurance rates.

To many, insurance policies can be a confusing jumble of technical words and differing prices that do not make any sense. There is, however, an actual logic to the process. Companies use complex algorithms based on personal factors to determine how likely it is that you will have an accident. The idea behind all of the factors is that the higher risk, the higher the rates.

Most people know that your insurance rate is highly affected by the amount of coverage a person chooses and the amount of deductibles a person chooses. In general, a person can reduce their rates by choosing lower amounts of coverage or by raising their deductibles.