Los Angeles named as one of the least safe cities to drive in
Recently, Allstate America’s Best Drivers report named Los Angeles as one of the least safe cities to drive in due to a high occurrence of car accidents. The city joins Philadelphia, San Francisco, Newark, and Miami on the bottom of the list of cities with the safest drivers. Incidentally, all of these locations are among the nation’s largest cities, meaning that higher population may be a factor in the occurrence of car accidents. The report surveyed Allstate insurance claims over 2011 and 2012 in 200 of the country’s largest cities to determine which cities have the largest number of crashes. Allstate accounts for about 10 percent of all drivers nationwide. The report names Washington D.C. as the least safe area in the country for drivers, and northern Colorado as the safest.
The report cites factors such as getting lost, public transportation, traffic congestion, and emergencies as the key dangers to motorists in large cities. Los Angeles, as the second largest city in America, exposes its motorists to many of these dangers. Los Angeles also has the distinction of being home to many celebrities whose excessive behaviors put them at additional risk for traffic accidents. With its size and status, Los Angeles’ placement on the bottom 20 list for driver safety should not be a surprise.
Car accidents are not only a threat to the lives of motorists; they are also a threat to the livelihood of a driver. The costs of vehicle repair, property damage, lost wages, and medical bills consume massive amounts of precious financial resources for families. A car accident can have a devastating impact on a family’s finances and possibly leave them destitute.
Fortunately, anyone injured in a car accident is entitled to seek a personal injury suit against the defendant and to be awarded financial compensation in the form of damages. In this way, the defendant is reprimanded for his or her negligence and the plaintiff is awarded a degree of relief from the expenses involved. Anyone injured in a car accident or anyone who has lost a loved one to such an accident is entitled to seek damages for the injury or loss incurred.
Source: Huffington Post, “Which State has the most car accidents?” Karen Brooks, Aug. 28, 2013.