Earlier this month in an accident that occurred in Clements, Maryland, a young woman lost her life when her car left the road and crashed into a tree, ejecting her in the process. According to a report by Southern Maryland News Net, the accident occurred near the intersection of Colton’s Point Road and Oakley Road just before seven in the evening.
Evidently, the driver was heading southbound on Colton’s Point Road when she began to drift into the oncoming lane of traffic. As she attempted to get the car back into its proper lane, she overcorrected, and the vehicle left the road, traveling over an embankment, into the air, and ultimately into a tree. The driver was ejected from the vehicle. She was not wearing her seatbelt.
The woman was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. There was also a three-year-old child in the car with the woman who was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Police believe that both speed and alcohol played a role in the fatal car accident that claimed the woman’s life.
Liability in Maryland Single-Vehicle Car Accidents
Although many car accidents involve multiple cars, many Maryland car accidents are single-vehicle accidents. Most commonly, these are situations when a vehicle leaves the roadway and crashes into an immovable object on the side of the road. In many cases, speeding, distracted driving, or drunk driving is the cause of single-vehicle accidents.
When a driver is involved in a single-vehicle accident and injures one or more of his or her passengers, those passengers many not have any other party to look to for responsibility. In many cases, they must look to the driver of the car.
Passengers in single-vehicle accidents may be able to recover for their injuries from the driver in these situations because the driver has a duty to his or her passengers to operate the vehicle in a safe manner. However, if the passengers knew that the driver was intoxicated, they may not be able to hold the driver liable because they were aware of it and assumed the risk of traveling with an intoxicated driver.
There are also other parties that may be responsible in a single-vehicle accident, such as the state or local government (unsafe roads), the car or tire manufacturer (defective manufacturing), and even another driver who may have caused the accident but not been involved themselves.
Have You Been Involved in a Maryland Single-Vehicle Accident?
If you or a loved one has recently been involved in a Maryland single-vehicle car accident, you should speak with an experienced Maryland personal injury attorney to determine who may be liable for your injuries. It may be that one or more parties are liable for the property damage and personal injuries you sustained as a result of the accident. To find out more, contact one of the dedicated Maryland personal injury attorneys at the law firm of Lebowitz & Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers. The dedicated lawyers at Lebowitz & Mzhen have years of experience representing clients in a variety of Maryland personal injury actions. Click here, or call 410-654-3600 to schedule a free initial consultation today.
More Blog Posts:
Girl Killed in Car Accident By Fleeing Murder Suspect, Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog, published June 2, 2014.
Fatal Car Accident in Fort Washington Under Investigation, Maryland Car Accident Attorney Blog, published May 8, 2014.