arizona auto accident

Car accidents in Arizona many times are fatal because drivers are distracted and are not paying attention, but the auto accident that happened last Sunday on Mother’s Day is one of the most devastating accidents I have heard about in a long time.

On Mother’s Day, mothers all around the world were enjoying themselves and celebrating being a mother. After all, it’s the one day that we really all get catered to as a mother.

A couple from Palmer, Alaska who were visiting Arizona names Randall Bjerken and Doris Bjerken decided to spend their mother’s day taking a walk. From what I understand they have 4 children, the youngest of which is a sophomore in high school.

Randall and Doris were taking a walk in the Scottsdale area on the sidewalk and enjoying an early morning stroll at the intersection of Scottsdale Road and Jackrabbit Road at about 10:00 a.m.

While the couple was out for an innocent walk on Mother’s Day, unexpectedly a vehicle came up on the sidewalk and hit both Randall and Doris, sending them through the air. A 911 tape was released as well as a video. Both Randall and Doris were killed as a result of the Scottsdale motor vehicle accident.

The 911 tape went as follows and was reported by CBS 5 news:

Operator: “911 what is your emergency?”

Caller: “I don’t know. They look young but they…I don’t know” (crying)

The driver has been reported to be a 23 year old male. As of this time, it is not known why the male driver went up on the sidewalk, causing a double fatality. There were no other vehicles involved. It seems that neither drugs nor alcohol was involved but an investigation is still pending.

While this accident may not have involved alcohol and drugs, there is no question that many car accidents do involve alcohol and drugs, and take many lives.

There have been many accidents in the Scottsdale, Arizona area where drugs and alcohol are reported to be a major factor in the car accident fatality. Each year, many people are killed in Arizona distracted driving crashes as well as DUI crashes. The statistics on drunk driving accidents throughout the United States is overwhelming.

Below we have listed statistics that have been released from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). These are the latest results and we are currently waiting for 2010 results:

Car Accident Statistics for Drunk Driving in Arizona and throughout the United States:

• Three out of ten Americans will be involved somehow in a car accident crash that involved alcohol at some point in their lives
• 32 percent of fatal car accidents involved alcohol in 2009
• Due to alcohol, on average, one person died every 48 minutes in an auto accident
• As of 2009, all 50 states as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico made it illegal to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher
• 10,839 people died of alcohol related car accidents in 2009. Of this number 7,281 or 67% had a BAC above the legal limit
• For fatal crashes that happened from midnight to 3:00 a.m. 66% of those crashes involved alcohol impaired driving
• Alcohol impaired driving that involves fatal car crashes is 4 times more likely to occur at night than during the day
• Men are more likely than women to be involved in a fatal car crash where their blood alcohol content is above the legal limit
• For fatal car accidents where the drivers were 21 to 24 years old, 35% had a BAC above the legal limit
• 14% of children ages 14 years old and younger were killed in car crashes because of alcohol in 2009
• 181 children plus were killed due to drunk drivers
• Drivers who caused fatal accidents that had a BAC of .08 or higher were 8 times more likely to have been convicted prior for driving under the influence
• The most recorded BAC level for drivers who were driving under the influence and caused a fatal car accident was .17. .17 is more than twice the legal limit.

The above are just some statistics on drunk driving. It is shameful that innocent people’s lives are taken due to the actions of other people who choose to drink and drive under the influence of alcohol. Again, although we do not know if the driver of the double fatal car accident with Mr. and Mrs. Bjerken involved alcohol, either way, it is devastating. I heard on the news last night such amazing comments from people in Alaska about what great people the Bjerkens were and how they had come to Arizona and were expected back in just a couple of days. It is beyond sad how this double fatal accident occurred in Scottsdale, Arizona to innocent people who were just enjoying a Sunday stroll. In the end, it doesn’t really matter the reason, whether drunk or not, the fact remains that two great people’s lives have been taken, and their children, family, and friends’ lives will never be the same.

We hope that more people learn that distracted driving or driving under the influence affects many innocent lives and that people need to be more committed to safe driving if they are going to be allowed on the road.

A 45-year-old man was killed in a Tucson car accident after he lost control of his pickup truck and crashed. According to a KOLD news report, the fatal car accident occurred near Golf Links Road and Swan Road in Tucson. Officials say that for unknown reasons the 2008 Nissan Frontier pickup veered out of control, went over the median and rolled over into oncoming traffic. The driver died from his injuries at a nearby hospital shortly after the accident.

Rollover accidents have the potential to cause catastrophic injuries or death. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) statistics, nearly 25 percent of all traffic accident fatalities involve rollover crashes. Sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks are more prone to rolling over because of their design. According to the NHTSA, 60 percent of fatalities in SUVs and 40 percent in pickup trucks were attributed to rollovers.

In Arizona auto accidents that involve rollovers, it is important that the injured victim or the family of a deceased victim preserve the vehicle in its current state, unaltered, so the vehicle can be thoroughly examined by an expert for product defects, malfunctions, design flaws and other evidence. Rollover accidents may also be caused by a hazardous or defective roadway.

The experienced Tuscon rollover accident attorneys at The Breyer Law Offices P.C. handle all types of serious injury accidents. If you or a loved one has suffered a serious personal injury in Arizona, please contact us at 520-624-4228 for a free consultation and comprehensive case evaluation. Call us today to find out how we can help you.

Dealing with an insurance company can be stressful especially if you have just been injured in an Arizona car accident. If you have been injured in a traffic collision in Arizona, you will have to submit a demand letter to the insurance company of the responsible party. After submitting your request you will have to negotiate with the insurance company to receive the compensation you rightfully deserve.

The initial phone call with the insurance company will involve both sides stating their demands. Injured victims must remember that insurance companies are highly profitable corporations and they do not rake in these profits by making generous payments to everyone who files a claim. In fact, insurance companies are notorious for going out of their way to reduce the value of a claim. Therefore, it is common for an insurance company to offer an amount much lower than the amount requested in a demand letter.

It would be in your best interest to seek the counsel of an experienced Phoenix personal injury lawyer, who will remain on your side, fight the insurance companies and ensure that you receive a fair settlement. It would be counterproductive for injured victims to rush into a settlement or hastily sign an agreement. Once you do so, you sign your rights away; the case is closed and you can no longer pursue any further damages. Remember, not all injuries sustained in a car accident surface right away. Injuries such as whiplash could become evidence days or even weeks after the incident. If you accept a settlement, you cannot claim damages for any required treatment or therapy expenses you may undergo later.

The reputed Arizona auto insurance dispute attorneys at The Breyer Law Offices P.C. work directly with insurance companies on behalf of our clients. We work diligently to present your case to the insurance company in order to help you receive just compensation. If the insurance company denies your claim or minimizes the value of your claim, we know how to fight them and stand up for your rights. Call us at 602-978-6400 to discuss your potential claim at absolutely no cost.

Any Peoria personal injury lawyer who considers him- or herself to be one of the best in America, but does not truly care about a client’s medical condition ought to be scratched from the list. On the flip side, even an inexperienced personal injury lawyer who fights valiantly to assist their clients as they get better deserves a lot of credit.

The best injury attorneys not only go to every possible length to make sure legal claims are resolved by fighting to win the maximum compensation allowable by law, they also make sure the injury victim’s rights are protected. At the same time, top injury lawyers are willing to get involved in the medical aspect of their client’s situation if necessary.

When a legal professional intervenes on behalf of an injured client, the real goal is to make sure that the doctors do everything that they can do. But there are many times, unfortunately, when our clients badly need surgery, but lack the money to pay for it. Doctors cannot be expected to work for free, nor should they be. They have a right to be paid fairly, and so do hospitals. The result of this conflict is that many non- emergency surgeries are not performed until there is a way to ensure that the doctors and hospital staff who provide the care will be paid.

If you are concerned that you may not be financially able to obtain the medical care you need after a serious auto accident or other personal injury claim, please do not hesitate to contact us. At Breyer Law Offices P.C., our Arizona personal injury attorneys strive to do everything we can to make sure our clients have access to the medical treatment they need to achieve the best possible recovery after an automobile accident.

Car accident lawyers in Arizona often deal with the worst kind of tragedies a family can imagine, and sometimes the loss is so great that it affects even the best personal injury lawyers.

Near Wikiup, AZ on US route 93, such a tragedy occurred as three children, an eight-year-old boy and two sixteen-year-olds, were killed in a horrific automobile accident. All those that died were in a Ford Explorer, which blew a tire, hit another vehicle, and then rolled over.

Sadness fills our hearts whenever we hear about such incidents, even as veteran wrongful death lawyers. We understand too that a family can never be compensated enough monetarily for the loss of a child. It is very rarely the passengers that are at fault in any car accident, but they are often the ones who suffer personal injury or wrongful death. Almost always it is the fault of one driver, or a combination of drivers, who were negligent. We know, as Arizona wrongful death lawyers, that no amount of money can heal the pain of such a tragedy. Yet we also know that there are ultimately expenses and bills that are incurred when someone dies prematurely, and if the driver who was at fault has insurance, they should at least be required to pay according to the limits of the insurance policy.

A skilled personal injury attorney will very often hire experts to reconstruct the accident in order to determine fault, especially when there is a serious automobile accident in Arizona like the one above. In this way, there may be at least some measure of justice when the families are relieved of a portion of the financial burden that comes with the premature loss of loved ones.

Our hearts truly, truly go out to this family. We all see so many tragedies on our Arizona roads regularly, that it is easy to forget the tremendous loss caused by car accidents. We hope for nothing but the best for this family and for all others touched by similar tragedies.

It’s a fact: Repeat drunk drivers are responsible for 60% of alcohol-related fatalities. I learned this little tidbit, along with a lot of other information, from Chris Davis, an outstanding Seattle personal injury trial lawyer.

As an attorney for victims of Arizona drunk driver accidents, I continue to be overwhelmed by this number. Drunk driving accidents are preventable and yet, they are an everyday occurrence. It is time that we, in Arizona and in the United States, start taking drunk driving more seriously. We need to consider a zero-tolerance policy.

One DUI = No More License.

Why such an extreme reaction? Because we have an extreme problem. Clearly, one night in jail and revoking a license for one year isn’t working. If we can save a single victim of a drunk driving accident from having to suffer through years of pain by enacting such a law, then it is time to get it done.

To those in Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Flagstaff, and throughout Arizona who have suffered personal injuries caused by a drunk driver, Breyer Law Offices is always here to your answer questions. Not every victim of a drunk driver should file a lawsuit, but it is almost always best to at least talk to a skilled Phoenix car accident attorney with actual experience in fighting for victims of drunk drivers.

In Arizona, in order to pursue a personal injury claim you must show that you sustained an injury and that the injury was caused by the accident. What this means is that you must have evidence that you were hurt and that your pain and discomfort is caused by the adverse party.

If you do not have any money to go to the doctor and you do not have any medical documentation showing you were hurt, it is most likely that the insurance company is going to deny that you sustained an injury. Therefore, offering you nothing for your claim. When it comes to pursuing an injury claim, it is the burden of the injured victim to prove that they were in fact injured. In almost all cases, this requires showing medical documentation to the insurance company or jury to prove the injuries that were sustained from the car accident in Phoenix.

If you do not have the funds to seek medical care, there are a couple of things that you are able to do to get the medical care that you need. The first thing is that you can try to apply for AHCCCS. Many people who are taken by ambulance to the hospital and have no choice but to get medical care can apply for AHCCCS from the hospital. AHCCCS is a health insurance plan in Arizona that helps people who cannot afford to pay for a private health insurance plan. It often takes a couple of weeks though to see if you are qualified for AHCCCS and a couple of weeks without medical care after an accident is most likely going to cause the insurance company to deny your claim.

For those who do not have private health insurance or who cannot get accepted by AHCCCS, experienced injury attorneys in Arizona work with doctors throughout Arizona who will wait for payment. An injured person can seek treatment and the doctor will wait for payment and get paid out of the settlement. In this way the doctor is able to provide the best possible care for the injured victim and the victim can obtain the medical treatment needed to get better.