A new report shows that city employees are getting into more preventable and injury-causing car accidents while driving their taxpayer-funded government vehicles. According to a report on Streetsblog.com, the annual Mayor’s Management report shows that the number of car accidents where the city driver was determined to be at fault increased in fiscal year 2019 compared to the previous June-July period, during which time the size of the city’s overall fleet declined slightly.
Increase in Injuries and Fatalities
Even as the city’s fleet size shrunk 0.8 percent, the number of collisions that city said was preventable went up by about 0.3 percent. At the same time, injuries went up from 763 people injured to 827, which is an increase of more than 8 percent. Fatalities doubled from two people to four. The top five city departments with the worst record for accidents are FDNY, Sanitation, Parks, NYPD and the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, according to the report.
The city initially began to track the number of crashes involving drivers of governmental vehicles in 2015, Streetsblog says. Each agency is required to investigate all crashes, determine the cause of the crash and respond appropriately. This may mean additional training or disciplinary action against the employee, depending on the circumstances of the incident.
But, given the city’s goal to reduce traffic collisions to zero under its Vision Zero program, even one injury or death is one too many, safety advocates say. They say the city needs to step up its efforts to fully and properly train its employees in defensive driving. The report states that the city intended to train 85 percent of its employees in defensive driving by the end of fiscal year 2019, but got around to training only 82 percent.
Several agencies within the city fell way short of that goal. As a result of the injury accidents, millions of dollars have been spent to pay victims of crashes. In 2018, the city spent $114.2 million to settle personal injury lawsuits against the drivers of city vehicles who injured someone.
If You Have Been Injured
If you have been injured in a car accident, whether or not it involved a city vehicle, it is important that you file a police report, get prompt medical attention, care and treatment and gather as much information and evidence as you can from the scene of the crash. It would be in your best interest to contact an experienced New York car accident lawyer who will help you gather and compile information and evidence needed to substantiate your personal injury claim.
Victims who have been injured in New York City car accidents may be able to seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost income and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families of deceased pedestrian accident victims may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit seeking compensation for damages such as lost future income, funeral costs, medical expenses, pain and suffering, etc.
Car and pedestrian accidents often result in major or catastrophic injuries such as head trauma, spinal cord damage, broken bones, internal organ damage, etc. It is important to remember that in cases where the injured victims are pedestrians, they will be able to seek compensation for injuries or losses in a collision even if they were not walking in a marked crosswalk.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, or if you have lost a loved one in a motor vehicle accident caused by a negligent or careless driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 49 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source: https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2019/09/30/city-workers-involved-in-more-injury-causing-crashes/