Georgia motorists planning to hit the road over the upcoming Fourth of July holiday may want to drive with extra caution. This holiday is the deadliest of the year in the United States.
More fatal car accidents take place over the Fourth of July holiday than any other, including New Year’s Eve as people ring in the new year. Drunk drivers over the Independence Day holiday accounted for 40 percent of highway deaths between 2007 and 2011, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Annually, there are nearly 200 traffic fatalities across the nation on this holiday.
It isn’t just car accidents that injure people on this holiday. Fireworks also are a top cause of injury because the colorful devices either don’t malfunction or aren’t handled properly. Hands and finger suffer the most injuries, but the head also is prone to injury, says the federal Consumer Safety Product Commission. Injuries caused by fireworks usually aren’t fatal, but such accidents can be painful and debilitating.
Survivors of victims killed in Fourth of July car accidents may be eligible for compensation through a wrongful death claim if one driver is determined by police to have caused the accident. Such compensation might include burial benefits and income replacement if the victim was the family’s breadwinner. Victims who suffered injuries through no fault of their own may be eligible for a personal injury claim. A personal injury attorney may be able to explain the difference between wrongful death and personal injury claims and the eligibility for each. Such an attorney may also be able to assist in obtaining this compensation.
