Tips to Help Prevent Backover Accidents

 Posted on December 00, 0000 in Lake County Injury Attorney

According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation, there are more than 200 people killed every year and another 17,000 injured in backover accidents. Backover accidents occur when a driver is backing up their vehicle and strikes an object they did not see, usually because of a blind zone in the vehicle. The popularity of SUVs and trucks – which are notorious for having blind zones - has only increased the number of backover accidents. Sixty percent of these incidents involve these types of vehicles.

Children are especially vulnerable to backover accidents. Every week, there are at least 50 children who are struck by a vehicle backing up. Tragically, two of those young victims will die from their injuries. Even more tragic is that in 70 percent of these accidents, the driver of the vehicle is a parent or other close relative of the child.

Last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that by May 2018, all new vehicles which are under 10,000 will be required to have rear visibility technology. The new regulation requires that a vehicle’s field of view must include a 10 by 20 foot zone directly behind it. The agency also has included other system requirements, such as deactivation, durability, image size, linger time, and response time.

With these new requirements still a few years away – and only on newly manufactured vehicles – there are steps parents can take to keep their children safe. There are several safety factors parents should make sure their children understand, including:

• All children should be taught to stay away from the back of a vehicle. They should also be taught to always cross in front of the vehicle and never behind it;
• Teach children to always hold the hand of an adult when in a parking lot. If there are more children hands than adult hands, safety advocates recommend making a hand-holding “train” so that everyone stays together;
• Children should also be taught to be aware that a parked car could move at any time and that the driver of the car may not be able to see them;
• Do not let children play in the driveway and make sure the driveway is always clear of their toys, bikes, or other objects they may want to play with;

As drivers, there are also several things we can do to help keep children safe, including:

• When getting into your vehicle, always walk around it to ensure that no child or pet are nearby;
• When you are in your car, make sure your child is in your sight before you begin to back up. Ideally, there should be another adult outside the vehicle watching over the child;
• If there will be an adult passenger in your vehicle, have them stand outside as you back up to make sure there are no children, pedestrians, or animals in the way;
• Consider installing safety devices, such as rear view cameras  and back up sensors in your vehicle;

If you or someone in your family becomes the victim of a backup accident, contact an experienced Lake County injury attorney to find out what legal recourse you may have for your pain and loss.