Chicago Car Accident Lawyers Blog
Nationally, it is estimated that 11 percent of all traffic accidents involve a hit-and-run driver despite the fact that it is illegal in almost all cases to flee the scene of a crash. Some areas, like Chicago, experience an even higher percentage of drivers that flee the scene and, according to recent data collected by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the city of Los Angeles may be the worst in the nation. That city had 48 percent of its traffic accidents involve a hit-and-run driver in 2009 alone – a staggering number compared to the 11 percent national average.
While Chicago is not Los Angeles, the number of fleeing drivers involved in serious accidents and even fatal collisions annually should give pause to those who call the city home. With every incident of a hit-and-run crash, the potential exists for an at-fault driver to escape the consequences of her actions but it also increases the probability that a victim will be harmed and will be unable to receive help in a timely manner. When a collision leaves a driver or a passenger hurt and that victim cannot call for help independently, the attention of another motorist may be the thing that brings emergency aid to the scene. When the second motorist flees, that avenue towards help is eliminated, potentially exacerbating any harm done in the initial impact.
When a hit-and-run car accident happens in Chicago and injuries result, victims are often unaware of what legal options may exist for them. In most cases, these victims have valid claims for their injuries whether or not the at-fault, fleeing driver is identified after the fact by police. If the driver is known, a victim can make a claim against that motorist and the driver’s insurance company. But if the driver remains a mystery, the injured victims may still recover through the use of an uninsured motorist claim, a type of action that exists to protect victims of hit-and-run accidents in Chicago.
Unfortunately, another hit-and-run accident happened in Chicago on Tuesday night and a man was killed in the collision. Police have confirmed that a 45-year-old man was walking across the street near the 6400 block of South Ashland Avenue when a passenger car approached the area. The driver of the car allegedly collided with the victim, causing the victim injuries that led to the man’s death.
Authorities have confirmed that the driver of the car abandoned the vehicle approximately one block away from the scene of the collision and fled from there on foot. At this time, the driver has not been apprehended or identified though police are still searching as part of their investigation.
No amount of compensation can ever be considered fair or adequate when a family member or a loved one is killed in a car accident. But nonetheless, the laws in Chicago may make a recovery possible and such a recovery can enable those left behind to get the monetary relief they need to move forward after an accident by relieving some of the financial burden that results.
If you have been injured in a hit-and-run accident in Chicago or if your loved one was injured or killed, call the personal injury attorneys at Abels & Annes, P.C. today and let us provide you with a free case consultation without obligation. We have a lawyer available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to take your call toll free at (855) 529-2442 or locally at (312) 924-7575 and if we represent you in your case, we will never charge you a fee unless we make a recover on your behalf.
Prior Blog Entry:
Rollover Accident involving Semi-Truck Catches Fire, Chicago Car Accident Lawyers Blog, published June 2, 2015.
Resource:
West Englewood man, 45, killed in hit-and-run, by Quinn Ford, Chicago Tribune, published June 3, 2015.