According to a recent report prepared by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, which is affiliated with the American Automobile Association, there is a hit-and-run crash every minute somewhere in the United States, with an average of 682,000 hit-and-runs happening annually. A summary of this fact and the report’s other findings is available via a press release issued by the AAA.
The report revealed that Florida does not fare well when it comes to the number of hit and runs. Along with Louisiana and New Mexico, Florida ranked as among the worst states for the frequency of hit-and-run accidents.
Across the country, the number of fatalities related to hit-and-runs has been increasing steadily, by over 7 percent each year, since 2009. The year 2016 marked a sad high-water mark for the number of hit-and-run deaths, with over 2,000 people dying nationwide, a 60 percent increase from 2009. Many of these victims, about 65 percent, were either pedestrians or riding on bicycles at the time of the crash.
Despite the fact that leaving the scene of an accident is illegal and widely thought of as unacceptable, this report goes to show that hit-and-runs are likely to continue in Florida.
This trend could prove hit home and be especially frustrating for a bicyclist or pedestrian who is the victim of such an accident and has no means of paying medical bills and supporting themselves afterwards. It is important these victims remember that help may be available even if the victim never finds the responsible driver.
For example, in addition to investigating to see if other people or organizations can also be held liable, West Palm Beach, Florida, car accident injury lawyers may also be able to help an injured victim recover benefits from his or her own insurance carrier.
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