According to a recent news article, Dr. Mark Rosekind of the National Highway Traffic Administration said that using the word “accident” when referring to a car crash infers that “God made it happen.” Safety experts and safety advocates believe that the use of the word “accident” trivializes the seriousness of auto crashes which kill or maim thousands yearly. Safety experts and advocates want the media, the courts, and any agency that investigates traffic crashes to stop using the word “accident” because it minimizes the most common cause of car crashes which is human error.
Traffic crashes caused by distracted drivers are up. Personal injury lawyers representing families of motorists killed by distracted drivers constantly fight insurance company lawyers who misuse the word “accident.” Whether it is a rear-end collision, failure to yield, or left-of-center violation, the at-fault driver in the large majority of car crashes makes a conscious choice to divert his or her attention. The resulting car crash is not a mere accident.
Almost all crashes are a result of distracted drivers. Lawyers who are hired by the insurance industry to defend those drivers who cause a crash that results in injury or death love to use the word “accident” when referring to the crash that their client caused. Why? “Accident” implies that no one is at fault; that something unexpected happened due to the fault of no one. Until or unless you are injured by a distracted driver you are susceptible of continuing to believe the insurance industry’s misinformation campaign of blaming injury victims for their injuries instead of taking responsibility and paying full and fair compensation.