carwrecks

The hit and run driver leaves a mess in his wake:   unpaid property damage, unpaid medical bills, unreimbursed lost wages, and frustration that someone would flee their responsibility.  

Texas law requires drivers to carry a minimum of $30,000 in liability coverage to protect the other driver from harm that might result from a collision; however, if a driver flees and no one can identify him, then no insurance claim against the negligent driver is possible and the victimized driver will have to turn to his own automobile insurance for Uninsured Motorist coverage. 

Hit and run accidents are a perpetual and growing problem.  While state law requires that those involved in a collision to stop and exchange information, statistics indicate that the number of reported hit and run accidents increased almost 20% over the past decade.

Some believe that the problem may be related to the growing number of illegal immigrants. After all, if an illegal, unlicensed immigrant causes a fatal accident and remains at the scene, he or she might risk detention and deportation.  If the driver flees, that driver might not get caught and might suffer no consequences from the fatal act. But if the driver remains at the scene, the prospects aren't good.

But illegal immigrants do not account for all hit and run accidents. Legal citizens of high status who don't want to risk bad publicity might flee the scene of an accident that has left injured or wrongfully killed victims. Drunk drivers who don't want the consequences of a DWI arrest will often try to flee if they can. People driving without a valid license or under a suspended license will try to flee so that they don't get caught for their crimes. And sometimes ordinary citizens who just don't want to take responsibility for their mistakes will flee the scene of a fatal accident.

What is the solution?  Like many complex problems, there is not an easy answer.  Protect yourself by having UM/UIM coverage on your own automobile.

Imagine that you have just been in a wreck.  You expect that the other driver will come over to your car and check on you, so you can exchange information.  Instead, the other car drives away.

For a fleeting moment, you get a look at the license plate, but it's just gibberish and you cannot recognize and remember it.

That scenario plays itself out daily.

Part of the problem is that states are making license plates that are hard to read.  Colorful backgrounds, eye-catching logos, state slogans, and an inconsistent numbering scheme all combine to make license plate numbers hard to see and remember when you only get a moment.

Here is what a good license plate used to look like:

This is clean. Three letters and three numbers.  TNF 990.  Even if you only get a moment as the vehicle flees, you can remember TNF 990.

Then the state started moving the letters and the numbers around.  Sometimes the letters and numbers were mixed in the same grouping.

Do we really need the space shuttle, cowboy and the slogan to clutter up this license plate?

Now, let's really mess it up.  This is the current license plate with scrambled letters and numbers, as well as background color.

Very pretty, but very hard to read and memorize. 

So, of the three license plates, which is the best for its intended purpose?  Which is the best for allowing you or a police officer to quickly identify a vehicle? 

For Texas License Plate history and images, take a look at http://www.15q.net/tx.html

Texas Gov. Rick Perry vetoed the Legislature’s plan to ban text messaging for all drivers.

Perry called the distracted driving legislation a “government effort to micromanage the behavior of adults.” The veto came June 17. The law would have taken effect Sept. 1, 2011.

“The keys to dissuading drivers of all ages from texting while driving are information and education,” Perry said in his veto statement. He is campaigning for president, wooing voters on the right.

About a dozen bills addressing texting and driving were considered during the 2011 session.

Two new Texas distracted driving laws are in effect:

One banning teen drivers from using cell phones and text messaging devices;

the other prohibiting drivers from using handheld cell phones in school crossing zones.

Current prohibitions:

* Drivers under the age of 18 are prohibited from using wireless communications devices.

* Learners permit holders are prohibited from using handheld cell phones in the first six months of driving.

* School bus operators prohibited from using cell phones while driving if children are present.

* Drivers prohibited from using handheld devices in school crossing zones.

* Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, Amarillo, Galveston, El Paso, Missouri City and Stephenville are among the Texas cities that have enacted local distracted driving laws.

Read the Texas statutes.

Text messaging and cell phone use while driving are bigger problems than five years ago, Texas motorists say. 85 of drivers interviewed said text messaging was worse, while 80 percent agreed that cell phone use had become a bigger problem than a half decade ago. (The Texas Transportation Institute interviewed 1,167 motorists at Texas Department of Public Safety Driver License Offices in fall 2010.) Supporters of a ban on handheld cell phone use while driving outnumber opponents by a two-to-one margin. Aggressive driving ranked with distracted driving as a danger cited by the drivers. (View a video about the Texas driver safety survey.)

Missouri City’s ban on texting while driving went into effect June 1, 2010. Law applies when vehicle is stopped. Fines up to $500. The city posted traffic signs stating: “No Texts Emails or Apps While Driving.”

Galveston has banned text messaging while driving within city limits. Fines up to $500. The City Council voted to outlaw texting for motorists on Jan. 14 and the ban went into effect immediately.

Source credit: http://handsfreeinfo.com/texas-cell-phone-laws-legislation