At the law offices of Stewart J. Guss, we know Humble and consider many of the clerks, judges, and others that you regularly see at the courthouse friends. We’re committed to serving the needs of the community and regularly represent people who were injured in accidents in and around Humble and Harris County.
Humble boasts quite a few amenities worthy of pride, most importantly the Golf Club of Houston, which hosts the annual Shell Houston Open PGA tournament. Other popular attractions in the city include the Mercer Arboretum, which visitors can access for free, and the Deerbrook Mall, which is currently the only major mall in the northeastern Houston suburban area. If you want to take a break from smelling the flowers and shopping until you drop, we recommend the Humble City Café for some mouth-watering southern classics.
Because Humble is located in a large and busy metropolitan area, especially one well-known for its traffic issues, you might find yourself the victim of a car accident while you are there—especially when you consider that 1,040 accidents took place in Humble in one recent alone, four of them fatal and 240 of which caused injuries. In fact, if you are reading this, you may have already gotten into an accident in Humble and are trying to figure out how to manage your repair bills, medical expenses, lost income, and other losses.
You may be injured, you may have questions about what to do next, and you may not even know where to start. Please know that we offer a FREE consultation, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so call us right now at 281-664-6500, or click HERE to send us a question or get more information. There is NO cost to get a free consultation right now. If you decide to hire us, you pay us nothing up front, and you will pay absolutely nothing at all unless and until we’ve won your case.
With more than 20 years of experience, and thousands of victories under our belts, our team of Humble car accident attorneys will leave no stone unturned to get you the largest possible recovery for your injuries. Furthermore, we are one of the highest rated major personal injury law firms in the state, and we take pride in treating our clients like family, so contact us right now.
Car Accidents in Humble, Texas
Nationwide, car accident rates are increasing. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Traffic Safety Facts Research Note of October 2017, 37,461 persons died on U.S. roadways in 2016, a 5.6 percent increase from 2015 (although that represents a smaller jump than the 8.4 percent increase from 2014 to 2015). Fatalities also increased from 2015 to 2016 in almost all segments of the population—passenger vehicle occupants, occupants of large trucks, pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, alcohol-impaired driving, male/female, and daytime/nighttime.
Texas, including Humble, has not proven immune from this increase. According to the Texas Department of Transportation, the fatality rate on Texas roadways for 2016 was 1.44 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, a 3.59 percent increase from 2015. Thus, no one is immune from the rising tide of vehicle accidents and deaths.
There is a silver lining if a car accident injured you: You are not alone. If you were injured by a car accident in the Houston area, including Humble, consult a Humble personal injury lawyer as quickly as possible to explore your options. For a free case evaluation to see if the law entitles you to compensation for your injuries, contact the lawyers of Stewart J. Guss, Attorney at Law, at (281) 664-6500, or send us an email through our online contact form.
The Human Toll of Car Accidents
Most car accidents are caused by human, rather than technical, error. The most common culprits behind car crashes follow:
- Alcohol: In 2016, 10,497 persons died in alcohol-related crashes (defined as any fatal crash involving a driver with a blood-alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08 percent or higher), which is up 1.7 percent from the 10,320 killed in 2015. Of the persons who died in traffic crashes in 2016, 28 percent perished in alcohol-impaired driving crashes.
- Speeding: According to the NHTSA, 10,111 deaths took place in 2016 due to speeding-related accidents, an increase of 4 percent from 2015.
- Running red lights: More than 900 persons a year die and nearly 2,000 are injured as a result of vehicles running red lights. About half of those deaths are pedestrians and occupants of other vehicles whom red-light runners hit.
- Fatigue: In 2016, the NHTSA found 803 fatalities as a result of fatigued driving in 2016, which accounted for 2.1 percent of all accidents. Another study by the AAA Traffic Safety Foundation found that 37 percent of all drivers report having fallen asleep at the wheel at some point in their lives. An estimated 21 percent of fatal crashes, 13 percent of crashes resulting in severe injuries, and 6 percent of all crashes involve drowsy drivers.
- Distracted driving: The NHTSA gauges distracted driving by collecting data on “distraction-affected crashes,” which focuses on distractions that are most likely to affect crash involvement, such as dialing a cell phone or texting and the distraction caused by another person or an outside event. In 2016, 3,450 persons died in distraction-affected crashes, and 391,000 were injured. NHTSA estimates that more than 660,000 persons drive distracted every day.
- Cell phone use: Cell phone use is a sub-type of distracted driving, but it is such a widespread and growing problem that it merits its own discussion. In 2014, the NHTSA released the results of the latest National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), which found that in 2012, 1.5 percent of drivers texted or visibly manipulated hand-held devices, an increase of 1.3 percent from 2011. Driver use of hand-held cellphones was 5 percent in 2012 for the fourth year running. Hand-held cellphone use was highest among 16- to 24-year olds (6 percent) and lowest among drivers 70 and older (1 percent).
Of course, the best way to avoid getting into an accident is to avoid these behaviors. Do not drive under the influence of alcohol, go the speed limit, and put your phone down.
Accidents, however, strike even to the safest of drivers because we simply can’t control the actions of everyone else on the road. If you find yourself the victim of a car accident caused by any of the above behaviors, you’ll want someone looking out for your interests.
Common Injuries Caused by Car Accidents
The human body is an amazing instrument, but it is also quite fragile. Put simply, our bodies were not designed to withstand the sort of trauma that often occurs during car accidents. As such, some of the most common injuries our clients sustain include:
- Whiplash: Whiplash may arise after car accidents because of the violent jerking that can stretch the muscles and ligaments of the neck and upper back.
- Head injuries: Head injuries are among the most serious car accident injuries, and are most often caused when an occupant’s head is thrown about and hits a nearby object, including windows, armrests, steering wheels, and other passengers. Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) can often arise in car accidents. While the symptoms of minor TBIs (such as concussions) may fade with time, more severe TBIs can result in life-long and debilitating injuries.
- Spinal cord injuries: The spinal cord is a long tubular bundle of nervous tissue and vertebrae that extends from the base of the brain, down the middle of the back, to just below the last rib in the waist area. The spinal cord’s main job is to communicate messages between the brain and other parts of the body. These messages allow movement and sensation in the limbs and extremities. If a car accident injures the spinal cord, the injury can result in loss of feeling in some limbs—or even paralysis.
- Bruises, scrapes and cuts: A variety of items can become projectiles and cause scrapes and cuts in an automobile accident, including broken glass, coffee mugs, bags, cell phones, dash-mounted GPS systems, and anything else that is not physically attached to the vehicle or otherwise held in place.
If you suffer fairly minor car accident injuries—such as shallow cuts or a mild concussion—you probably might treat them on your own with minimal medical supervision. However, more severe injuries can require extensive hospitalizations, long recovery times, and thousands of dollars in medical bills. If any kind of car accident severely injured you, contact a personal injury attorney to determine your options.
Do You Need a Personal Injury Attorney?
Not all car accident injuries merit the involvement of a personal injury attorney. Particularly complicated accidents or those that result in severe injuries, on the other hand, make consulting a personal injury attorney more logical.
Personal injury attorneys are experts on the laws governing issues arising from car accidents, and they can assist you in navigating the often complex legal system. A few clues that your accident might merit the involvement of a car accident attorney:
- Fault is disputed
- Someone died or suffered a life-altering injury in the accident
- You don’t have insurance or your insurance company claims that you did not pay your premium
- The limits of your insurance policy are too low to cover your damages
- You are confused by the terms in your insurance policy
- You need an expert to look over confusing paperwork and forms
Considerations When Deciding on a Personal Injury Attorney
Before you hire a personal injury attorney, think about a few considerations:
- Pick a lawyer who exclusively practices personal injury law, or who devotes a significant amount of practice to it. Personal injury law is intricate and involves many specialized rules and procedures. An attorney who practices personal injury law on the side may not fight as diligently for you as an attorney for whom personal injury is his bread and butter.
- Your attorney should provide you with references. Good attorneys leave behind a trail of contented clients who are more than happy to recommend the lawyer’s services to others. Consider it a red flag if a lawyer is unwilling or unable to provide references.
- Select an attorney with a history of substantial verdicts and settlements. If you’re looking for an attorney, chances are that you are out a significant amount of money or suffered a severe, expensive accident. In those cases, know that your attorney can deliver a verdict or settlement that covers all of your losses.
- Hire an attorney (or firm) who is capable of taking your case to trial. Although most personal injury issues never make it to trial, some do, and you want to prepare if your case is one of them.
- Communicate with your attorney. An attorney who asks you a sensitive question most likely has a good reason to do so. Be prepared to fully disclose all of the facts of your case to your attorney, no matter how uncomfortable.
Injured in Humble by a Car Accident? Contact the Attorneys of Stewart J. Guss, Attorney at Law
If you were injured in a car accident in Humble, talk with one of our Humble car accident lawyers as soon as you can. For a free case evaluation to see if Texas law might entitle you to compensation for your injuries, contact the lawyers of Stewart J. Guss, Attorney at Law, at 281-664-6500, or send us an email through our online contact form. Remember, you pay nothing at the time we take your case, and you pay us nothing unless and until we’ve won financial recovery for your damages.
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