Most drivers in New York have seen someone run a red light. This rule violation is rampant nationwide. The 2008 Traffic Safety Facts report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stated that drivers running red lights directly caused 762 fatalities in that year. In the same year, 2.3 million crashes occurred at intersections, killing 7,770 people and injuring well over 700,000 people.
Annual estimates from the NHTSA attribute the injuries of approximately 165,000 people to red-light runners. Surveys of drivers further illustrate the prevalence of accidents caused by drivers ignoring traffic signals. One in three people said they knew someone who was killed or hurt in a wreck caused by a vehicle running a red light. An overwhelming number of people, 97 percent, consider drivers who run red lights to be a significant threat to roadway safety.
When the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety investigated accidents caused by red-light violations, the data showed that half of the people killed were not the drivers who ran the lights. Other drivers and pedestrians accounted for half of the victims.
A person injured in an auto accident might be able to collect damages from the party that caused the crash. Consulting with an attorney familiar with personal injury law and motor vehicle accidents might help the injured person determine if a lawsuit might be an option. An attorney could look at the evidence and determine if a case of driver negligence might be made. The testimony of an accident reconstruction expert might also be obtained through a law office. The attorney could also notify the defendant and the applicable insurance company about the victim’s right to compensation. If a settlement is not forthcoming, then the attorney could take the case to trial.