Syracuse, New York: Car Accidents Caused By Speeding

Jed Dietrich, Esq., Recognized as a Best Lawyer in America and an America’s Top 100 Personal Injury Attorney, Has Spent Decades Fighting for The Rights of Car Accident Victims. If You Have Been Injured in a New York Car Accident Caused By Speeding, the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. Could Help You File a Personal Injury Lawsuit and Secure the Compensation You Need to Reclaim Your Independence.

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New York has some of the lowest speed limits in the country, yet speeding remains a leading cause of accidents across the Empire State. According to a recent report issued by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, one out of every three fatal collisions involves excessive speed, a risk factor that is almost always attributed to impatience and disregard for the rules of the road.

You should not have to pay the price for another driver’s impatience. For nearly 20 years, the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. has fought to protect the rights of car accident victims in Syracuse and across the region. Our experienced team of personal injury lawyers knows what it takes to ensure that our clients obtain the resources they need to begin rebuilding their lives, and we have the results to prove it. Please send us a message or call us at 1-866-529-5334 to speak to a lawyer and schedule your 100% free consultation as soon as possible.

Speeding Laws In New York State

Every state in America has the power to set its own rules and standards for driving.

In New York, different levels of government have different rights when it comes to determining speed limits. Towns and cities, for instance, may set their own speed limits, while the state Department of Transportation is responsible for establishing speed limits in rural areas and on many county roads.

However, even when towns and cities are entitled to exercise some discretion in setting speed limits, they must still adhere to certain baseline requirements detailed by the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law. These requirements typically stipulate the following:

1. The Minimum Speed Limit: Cities and villages cannot typically set or authorize a speed limit under 25 miles per hour.
2. The Maximum Speed Limit: The statewide maximum speed limit is 55 miles per hour unless otherwise posted. Some portions of interstate highways, like I-90 in Onondaga County, have higher speed limits of up to 65 miles per hour.
3. Exceptions: The New York Vehicle & Traffic Law provides several exceptions for speed limit-related policies. For example, towns and cities can set a 15-mile-per- hour speed limit in school zones.

Motorists in every part of the state are obliged not only to abide by posted speed limits, but to alter their own driving to accommodate unusual traffic flows and inclement weather.

New York VAT 1180, for instance, provides the following instruction:

1. No driver is permitted to travel at “a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the conditions”;
2. Motorists must sometimes reduce their speed if a “special hazard exists”; and
3. In ordinary conditions, drivers are never permitted to exceed the maximum posted speed limit.

In practice, it is very common for drivers across the Empire State to exceed posted speed limits by a significant margin, especially in heavy Syracuse traffic, on the New York State Thruway, and on rural county roads. However, if a speeding driver either causes or contributes to an accident, they will likely be found at least partly liable for the collision. Obtaining evidence of speeding, though, is much easier said than done.

The Dietrich Law Firm P.C. could help you, or a loved one, investigate the causes of your Syracuse car crash. Even if you do not have dashcam footage or other evidence to show that another driver was exceeding the speed limit, our team of experienced attorneys could consult crash reconstruction experts to determine which types of negligence caused your crash. Please send us a message online or call us at 1-866-529-5334 to speak to a personal injury lawyer and schedule your 100% free consultation as soon as possible.

Liability In Car Accidents Caused By Excessive Speed

Speeding is not only against the law; it is a negligent act that risks the health and well-being of everyone on the road. In New York, drivers who have sustained certain serious injuries have a legal right to obtain compensation from any person or party whose negligence caused their accident.

However, filing and winning a personal injury lawsuit takes much more than showing that another driver exceeded a posted speed limit. To make a successful recovery, victims are typically expected to establish each of the following elements:

1. Duty of Care: A duty of care is a legal obligation to act reasonably and in a way unlikely to cause injury to oneself or to others. Everyone has a duty of care. Motorists, for instance, fulfill their duty of care by abiding by traffic laws, respecting the speed limit, and yielding their rights-of-way to other drivers whenever necessary.
2. Breach of Duty of Care: Motorists can only be held liable for a crash if they breached their duty of care. In other words, they must have either committed an infraction or another negligent act. Speeding, in most cases, constitutes a breach of duty of care.
3. Causation: Even if another driver was negligent, their negligence must be the direct or proximate cause of your injuries. Although proving causation may seem straightforward, at-fault drivers can fall back on any number of defenses; in some cases, they may even claim that a failure to seek prompt medical attention for an apparent injury means that they are not responsible for any resulting complications.
4. Damages: The Empire State’s courts can only award compensation for an accident if the victim suffered damages, a legal term that is used to describe specific types of physical injuries, mental anguish, and financial loss. Calculating and assessing damages can be very difficult, especially in cases that involve disabling or disfiguring injuries.

Your Potential Damages In A Syracuse Car Accident Lawsuit

New York recognizes several categories of damages in personal injury lawsuits. The two most common types of damage include the following:

1. Economic Damages: Economic damages, or “general damages,” are compensation for different types of financial losses. General damages can compensate losses that you have already incurred, or losses that you could be expected to incur as a result of your injuries. Examples include the repayment of existing medical bills, the costs of ongoing physical rehabilitation, or money for long-term care and recovery.
2. Non-Economic Damages: Non-economic damages, sometimes called “general damages,” are compensation for more subjective forms of loss. Examples of non-economic damages could include payment for emotional pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment, and disfigurement.

Under certain circumstances, judges can also recommend the imposition of punitive damages. Unlike either economic damages or non-economic damages, punitive damages are not compensatory. Instead, they are meant to punish the at-fault party for an especially reckless act of negligence.

Although New York does not currently cap damages in most car crash claims, it does enforce a strict statute of limitations, a special rule that limits how long you have to take action after an accident. If you wait too long to contact an attorney and file a lawsuit, the statute of limitations could lapse. And once the statute of limitations expires, you could lose your right to a fair recovery.

Do not lose your chance to obtain justice: contact the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. today to schedule your 100% free, no-obligation consultation and begin exploring your options for efficient legal relief.

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Call the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. immediately at 1-866-529-5334 so that our aggressive, tenacious, and hardworking personal injury lawyers can fight to obtain the best result for your personal injury claim in Syracuse, New York. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and there is never a fee until we WIN for you!

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