Aggressive Driving Accidents
It’s not uncommon to witness an aggressive driver recklessly weaving between lanes or tailgating others to intimidate them into increasing their speed or allowing the aggressor to pass. In most cases, a reasonable, law-abiding driver can allow the aggressive driver to pass out of their orbit with a sigh of relief, but sadly, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes an aggressive driver causes an accident with injuries to other drivers.
Georgia reported 463 fatal accidents in 2023, including a growing number of accidents caused by reckless behaviors such as aggressive driving.
What Is Aggressive Driving?
The American Automobile Association (AAA) defines aggressive driving as any deliberately unsafe driving behavior that disregards the safety of others on the roadway. Examples of aggressive driving include the following:
- Speeding
- Tailgating
- Erratic lane changes (weaving)
- Cutting off other drivers
- Running red lights
- Brake-checking (intentionally braking in front of other drivers)
- Blocking other drivers who are trying to pass or change lanes
- Passing in the emergency lane or the shoulder of the road
- Intentionally failing to yield the right of way
In some cases, aggressive drivers may gesticulate to others, shout threats, or escalate their actions into road rage. Aggressive drivers pose a threat not only to themselves but to other drivers when their aggressive driving behaviors in traffic impede other motorists or require other drivers to swerve or maneuver to avoid a collision.
Injuries In Aggressive Driving Accidents
Aggressive driving often escalates the severity of injuries due to the increased crash force generated by speeding or erratic drivers. Common injuries cited in aggressive driving accident claims include the following:
- Head injuries/traumatic brain injuries
- Fractures
- Back and spinal cord injuries
- Neck injuries
- Soft-tissue injuries to shoulders, knees, elbows, wrists, and ankles
- Lacerations, contusions, and abrasions
- Internal bleeding/internal organ damage
- Facial injuries
- Burn injuries
Many aggressive driving accident survivors also experience emotional trauma such as PTSD, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders.
Liability In Aggressive Driving Accidents In Georgia
Under Georgia’s fault-based car accident laws, injury victims seeking compensation for their damages like medical expenses, lost earnings, and pain and suffering must file claims against the at-fault driver’s insurance. Experienced personal injury lawyers in Atlanta explain that this requires demonstrating the other driver’s liability through a preponderance of the evidence, such as a police report, eyewitness testimony, photos, and videos—all carefully presented to the insurance company to make a compelling case. Proving liability requires showing the following to be true:
- The at-fault party owed a duty of care to the injury victim and others to take reasonable measures to avoid causing an accident and injuries
- They breached this duty through negligence
- Their breach of duty directly caused the accident and injuries
- The injury victim suffered damages from the injuries
An experienced car accident lawyer not only documents evidence to make a strong case but also carefully calculates the injury victim’s damages to maximize the amount of compensation available to them.
How Can an Aggressive Driving Accident Attorney Help Me?
Insurance companies commonly protect their profits at the injury victim’s expense. For example, the state’s comparative negligence insurance laws allow and incentivize the insurance company to find the injury victim partly responsible for the accident so they can lower the amount of their compensation by their assigned percentage of fault. Call the experienced Atlanta car accident lawyers at Piasta Walker Hagenbush, LLC for skilled legal representation in your claim so you can obtain the largest possible settlement or court award for your damages.