Rhode Island Accident Lawyer Blog
There’s little debate as to whether talking or texting while driving is safe. Texting while driving is already banned in Massachusetts and Rhode Island as well as many other states, but will hand held cell phone use follow behind? It may soon, at least in Massachusetts. If passed, it would join neighboring Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York in banning the use of hand-held cellphones by motorists. This isn’t the first time the bill has been proposed in Massachusetts and although already approved by the Senate, it still has a way to go before becoming law. The auto accident attorneys at Tapalian Law agree this is a positive move on the road to reducing auto accident fatalities and injuries. Although texting while driving is already banned in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, we still see clients in our Providence, RI, and Seekonk, MA offices every day suffering from car accidents caused by distracted driving, like texting, that have caused them serious personal injury, time lost from work for doctor’s visits, medical expenses, and pain and suffering.
Bill Aims to Reduce Distracted Driving
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, distracted driving took nearly 3,500 lives in the United States in 2015. This bill would aim at helping to reduce deaths caused by distracted drivers, as well as car accidents resulting in other types of injuries and property damage. Currently, 46 states have banned texting while driving, and 14 states ban handheld devices. We see drivers everyday with cell phone in hand, either talking or texting while operating a motor vehicle. The bill would require the vehicle operator to pull over and be completely off the road in order to hold or touch a phone. The Mass bill would also make it illegal to access social media, video calls, or camera functions, or manually input data, such as to a GPS system, while driving. Exceptions would be made for a single swipe to activate hands-free functions or for certain emergency calls if there is no one else in the vehicle able to make the call.
Every year, thousands of children are seriously injured or killed in backover accidents, where a driver backs up their vehicle and doesn’t see the child. On average, there are 232 deaths and 13,000 injuries due to backovers every year. Beginning next May 2018, the 
ted to texting while driving prior to the crash. In addition to texting while driving, other risky, or negligent, driving behaviors are talking on a cell phone, eating, drinking, putting on makeup, turning to chat with passengers, fiddling with the radio- anything that takes a driver’s full attention away from the road. A scary finding? We, at Tapalian Law, say yes. Unfortunately, we have seen the repercussions of the types of car accidents that can be caused by a negligent driver and the impact a serious car accident can have on the victim. Results of a car accident caused by risky, or negligent, driving practices can be deadly, or cause catastrophic injuries with life-long results.
Boston Duck Tours are a popular and fun Boston tourist attraction. This February two dozen duck boats carried the Super Bowl winning New England Patriots through the Boston streets to celebrate their victory. However, after a string of deadly accidents including a collision in Boston last spring that left a 28-year-old woman dead, the safety of these vehicles is being questioned. Accident Attorney David Tapalian understands the repercussions of these types of accidents all too well. As a personal injury attorney and car accident lawyer in Massachusetts and Rhode Island with over 15 years of experience, he has seen his fair share of serious, and sometimes deadly, pedestrian injuries caused by motor vehicles in the Boston and Providence area.
