Georgia Personal Injury Blog

Bad Faith Insurance Lawsuits in Georgia

By Grant Law Office on November 16, 2011

Insurance coverage protects individuals from losses that may result from accidents or medical problems. Insurance companies are obligated by Georgia state law to conduct business in a just manner, carrying out their service as promised to the consumer — or in “good faith” as the law states. However, as evidenced by many lawsuits, insurance businesses sometimes operate by “bad faith” practices instead.

While insurance bad faith lawsuits can arise in any insurance area, including car, home, and medical, the most common area for these situations is in motor vehicle crashes or incidents. Two typical ways in which an insurance company may act in bad faith include the following scenarios:Read more…

Causes of Georgia Motorcycle Accidents

By Grant Law Office on November 14, 2011

Georgia’s long, open roads are a prime destination for motorcycle riders. But like any riding environment, motorcyclists are significantly more vulnerable to accidents and injuries than other motor vehicle operators, showing the need for increased motorcycle safety. The Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) reported 192,782 registered bikes in the state in 2008. From that riding pool, riders were involved in 5,051 crashes throughout the state, which resulted in 3,471 injuries and 177 fatalities.

The high percentage of accidents that result in injuries for motorcycle riders can be attributed to numerous factors, with rider vulnerability at the top of the list. Motorcycles are often lost in the sea of larger, heavier vehicles while moving through traffic; thus, one slight oversight or miscalculation by another vehicle driver can prove devastating for riders.Read more…

Stopping Distractions One Step at a Time

By Grant Law Office on November 9, 2011

Distraction is among the most lethal threats to drivers on the road today. However, it’s also among the most preventable. With awareness and discipline, drivers can weed out the hazardous behavior at the root of distracted driving. By doing so and obeying cell phone driving laws, simple and strong choices save lives every time someone gets behind the wheel. Culled from recent tips released by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association (GHSA), here are some of the main causes and solutions for distraction behind the wheel.

• Cell Phones: Most distracted driving accidents stem from cell phone usage. Turn off your ringer when you’re behind the wheel, or use an application that automatically notifies callers you’re driving and states you will get back to them as soon as possible. If talking or making a call is essential, pull over to a safe and permitted area.Read more…

Security Breach At Emory University Endangers More Than 7,000 Patients

By Grant Law Office on November 7, 2011

In the digital age, protecting sensitive, confidential information can be a nonstop battle against invisible assailants. From credit card transactions to online shopping and banking, vigilance is essential. A security breach involving several Emory University medical centers jeopardized thousands of patients’ information and serves as an unfortunate reminder that when our health is vulnerable, our confidential information may be as well.

During the last week of October, Emory started a large scale alert to notify over 7,300 patients at its spinal and orthopedic treatment centers that their sensitive patient records were potentially compromised during a security problem back in 2008. According to reporting by Channel 11, representatives of the university claimed the thousands of sensitive records were physically copied by a former employee. The documents contained patients’ personal information, such as social security numbers, addresses, birthdays, and other information that is commonly used to facilitate identity crime. Thirty two documents from that leak have been connected to an identity crime syndicate. The ring has since been dismantled, but not before the criminals could file nine fake tax returns. Emory officials said the amount of people affected by the security breach could continue to rise.Read more…

Big Lots Recalls 375,000 Chairs for Hazards

By Grant Law Office on November 3, 2011

At first glance, a recliner chair seems to be among the least dangerous pieces of household furniture. However, with manufacturing flaws or oversights, moving parts or gaps in the product become potential hazards to children and adults. Such was the case with a huge Big Lots recall of approximately 375,000 micro fiber and leather glider recliner chairs and ottomans by the Columbus, Ohio company.

According to a release by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), young children (infants and toddlers) can potentially crawl into an open space that separates functioning parts of the seat and become trapped. Additionally, other functioning devices of the recliner and ottoman may pinch or crush older user’s fingers, hands, or other extremities. The agency reported two accounts of kids under two years old who became stuck at the neck in between parts of the recliner. The CPSC said the two children did not suffer any lasting injuries as a result of the incidents.Read more…

Avoid Accidents this Halloween with Safety Suggestions from the CPSC

By Grant Law Office on October 31, 2011

Due to high pedestrian traffic, low visibility, and a number of other factors, Halloween can be a frightening holiday for accidents and injuries. But many of them can be prevented, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in a recent release. To aid families and individuals in having a fun but safe Halloween celebration, the CPSC issued a series of guidelines. The following are a few regarding safe costumes and clothing.

• Always choose costumes with a certified “flame resistant” label. Fabrics with flame resistant qualities include polyester or nylon.
• Lower the danger of coming into contact with lit jack o’ lanterns and other open flames by avoiding costumes that have long draping or hanging parts; these can catch fire and also present tripping hazards.Read more…

AAA Study: Teenage Driving Safety Starts At Home

By Grant Law Office on October 31, 2011

A study by the AAA Automobile Club, under their Foundation for Traffic Safety initiative, found that teenage drivers were significantly more susceptible to accidents than those on the road with more experience. As reported by the Delaware County Daily Times, teenagers who are driving by themselves during their first month on the road were observed to be 50 percent more probable to be involved in a crash, as compared to those driving with a year of experience under their belts. And the trend continues exponentially, as those first month drivers were almost two times as likely to have a car accident than those who had been driving for two years time.

In the research, teenagers had particular problems with decreasing speed properly, distracted driving, and neglecting to yield. Those kinds of situations produced errors that caused 57 percent of crashes observed in the research. The data also confirmed that the occurrence of specific kinds of crashes (such as accidents resulting from left hand turns) dropped in relation to driver experience.Read more…

Toy Gun Company to Pay $1.1 Million Civil Fine

By Grant Law Office on October 28, 2011

Henry Gordy is set to pay a civil fine of $1,100,000 to resolve accusations that the firm knew about dangerous defects in its toy gun kit “Auto Fire Target Set” but failed to report them to the public, according to a release by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The toy in question was allegedly involved in the fatalities of four children, said the CPSC.

The commission claimed that representatives from the company were aware of at least one fatality tied to the toy gun set around May of 2006. After that first reported accident, the company changed the product’s design that summer and included a new cautionary statement on the toy that read: “parental supervision suggested,” according to a listing in the U.S. Federal Register. However, an official recall wasn’t issued until approximately four years later in May of 2010 when around 1.8 million product units were recalled by the CPSC due to a lack of compliance by the company. By the time of the recall, there had been three deaths associated with the product. The CPSC claims the small, malleable plastic darts in the “Auto Fire Target” pose a serious choking hazard to children when chewed or inhaled.Read more…

Do Laws Lower Distracted Driving?

By Grant Law Office on October 26, 2011

As society becomes increasingly hypnotized and married to cell phones and handheld devices, most would agree on the severity of the distracted driving epidemic in this country. But there is a level of discourse regarding how to adequately address and decrease it. Some think legislation that prohibits texting and overall cell phone usage deters violations and inherently reduces the number of wrecks caused by distraction. However, a recent Fact Checker column in the Reno Gazette Journal questioned the proven merit of these types of regulations, specifically speaking to a new bill (Senate bill 140) that outlaws every kind of hand held cell phone usage in Nevada.

It’s important to reinforce that the column did not question or condone the serious consequences of distracted driving, pointing to University of Utah data that found drivers using hand held electronic devices while driving to be as compromised as those who were legally drunk with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08 percent or more. The column also noted devastating wrecks in its region as a result of distraction. But it questioned the arguably inconclusive evidence found in research studies as to whether laws actually effectively curb the hazardous activity, citing a Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) quote that alleged: “there is no evidence that cell phone or texting bans have reduced crashes.”Read more…

CooperVision Recalls More than a Half Million Contact Lens Products

By Grant Law Office on October 24, 2011

CooperVision, one of the country’s biggest eye product providers, recently announced its second recall in about two months time. The latest was for approximately 600,000 of their Avaira Toric model lenses after widespread reports were received by users of blurred vision and eye trauma, including torn corneas. More than 7,000 retailers sell the eye products.

In an ongoing dialogue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has commented on the need for CooperVision to expand and accelerate their efforts in alerting consumers about the dangerous product. The agency told the Associated Press it would take additional public communication measures on the issue if the Pleasanton, CA, company did not resolve its concerns.Read more…