Many car accidents are unfortunately fatal. In this podcast with car accident attorneys we discuss the most common causes of death and what you can do if your loved one has been killed in a car accident.
John: Hi. I’m John Maher. I am here today with Robert Mazow and Kevin McCullough of the Law Office of Mazow | McCullough. Today we’re talking about the most common causes of death in an auto accident. Welcome Robert and Kevin.
Kevin: Thank you John.
Robert: Thank you John.
Common Causes of Death in Auto Accidents
John: What are some common causes of auto accident deaths that you tend to see in your office?
Kevin: The most common causes of death for the cases that we handle at Mazow | McCullough include ejection type injury cases, crush type injury cases and head injury cases. It can be related to the speed of the motor vehicles at the time of the collision, the roadway that they’re on, the angle of the crash and also the type of vehicle that the parties [are] in. But I think that with the cases that we’ve handled over the years, the most common ones that we see involve serious head injuries.
Determining Fault in a Car Accident Case
John: Okay. How can it be determined that the other driver is responsible for the death of an individual in an accident?
Robert: John, in the cases that we handle in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, any time there is a fatality, the state police accident reconstruction team are immediately called to the scene to take measurements, to take witness statements, [and] to take photographs. They do a complete accident reconstruction analysis to determine what happened. Each time there is a fatality involved, the state police come with an accident reconstruction team, they put together a complete report, [and do] a complete investigation. They get blood tests of the drivers and then make a determination of what happened.
Then what we’ll do is; we’ll get our own accident reconstruction team. A private team together to go out reconfirm [and] to make sure that everything was done properly and to give us an extra opinion to determine who is at fault and what happened. They give us complete picture of the accident.
What Can a Family Do If They’ve Lost a Loved One in a Car Crash?
John: Okay. Then what recourse does a family who has lost a loved one in a car accident have?
Kevin: John, the recourse that the family members have is to be directly involved with the investigation in the accident reconstruction analysis that Robert had mentioned. Typically, the family does have some input. [They] may have been witnesses to the incident itself. Further recourse would be retaining a law office like Mazow | McCullough to also work closely with the state investigating authorities and also what Robert had mentioned. We often times conduct our own investigation just to make sure that things are done thoroughly [and] properly, and also to have that extra analysis if a case ultimately moves into litigation.
[When a] family wants to retain our firm, we present the claim to the at-fault party or their insurance company or family members. Most cases do get resolved as part of a claim. Often times unfortunately, we do have to file lawsuits and the family members are directly involved in the pursuit of the claim, the damages through that claim and [the] litigation process. They may learn information that wasn’t readily available at the scene or within those initial reports. Witness statements and depositions that get conducted during that investigation phase or [the] litigation phase that the family members are directly involved in sometimes provides further light or evidence as far as how a collision may have happened [and] who’s at fault. Things like that.
John: Okay. Great information Robert and Kevin. Thanks again for speaking with me today.
Robert: Thank you John
Kevin: Thanks John.
John: For more information, visit helpinginjured.com or call (978) 744-8000.
