Effects of Reno truck accident injury lasts for years
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • May 25, 2017
Thinking about the possible dangers that could befall one out on our roads and highways, what comes to mind? One big danger is semi-trucks, and other commercial trucks that can be involved in truck accidents. Truck accidents cause serious injuries or even death to Reno motor-vehicle drivers and their passengers. While the event itself is terrifying enough, it generally does not end there. Serious injuries can negatively affect a person’s life for years and in different ways.

Commercial trucks are particularly dangerous due to their size and speed at which they travel. Even traveling the speed limit can be too fast for some semi-trucks. Speed, driver fatigue and load weights can all play a role in causing a truck accident. Truck maintenance could have been neglected, which could have played a role if the truck malfunctioned and causes it to lose control.

In short, there are almost endless instigators that could have been behind truck accident injuries. There are potentially multiple parties at play who could be held responsible for their negligence, by contributing to the crash.

No ill will need be involved at Bradley Drendel and Jeannie. We know just how devastating these truck accident injuries can be on a person’s life. Accident injury can put a person out of work, cause them to have severe medical issues and even steal their cognitive abilities.

This can amount to lost wages, soaring medical expenses, loss of loved ones and destruction of property, just to name a few outcomes. The ramifications of truck accident injury can be like a domino effect, cascading down on a Reno family at the worst moment. This is why one should consider seeking reparations for their injury, loss and suffering due to serious injuries.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Effects of Reno truck accident injury lasts for years

Seventeen dead so far in 2017 Nevada motorcycle accidents
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • May 18, 2017

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Seventeen dead so far in 2017 Nevada motorcycle accidents

Some ways to avoid Nevada spinal cord injury
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • May 11, 2017

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Some ways to avoid Nevada spinal cord injury

Bill to Limit Hospital Costs for NV Seniors Gets Hearing
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • May 09, 2017
May 8, 2017 – Suzanne Potter, Public News Service (NV)

Depending on the hospital, seniors on Medicare may not get the lower Medicare rates if they’re injured in an accident where someone else is at fault. (AARP)

CARSON CITY, Nev. – A hearing will be held this week for AB 183, a bill that would make sure seniors are charged lower Medicare rates by hospitals if they are injured in an accident in which someone else is at fault.

Right now, some hospitals in Nevada charge patients for the full bill rather than the lower Medicare rates, based on the assumption that the victim will hire a lawyer to go after the responsible party’s insurance company. Bill Bradley, a consumer trial lawyer in Reno and a member of the Nevada Justice Association, said seniors on Medicare should get the benefit of the lower rates Medicare has negotiated.

“Medicare agreed to pay the bills on behalf of these people,” Bradley said. “These people paid for their Medicare contract, and for the hospital to unilaterally decide that it doesn’t have to bill Medicare is unfairly taking advantage of our senior citizen population.”

Bradley said many hospitals refuse to bill Medicare in these cases. The University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas is an exception.

If the patient recovers money from the other person’s insurance company, the patient will have to pay Medicare back.

Opponents of the bill say hospitals have the right to refuse to bill Medicare because the patient has the right to sue for the full amount of the bill. But Bradley argued that if the responsible party only has the minimum insurance coverage of $15,000, the patient is responsible for paying the rest.

“Where there is not adequate insurance, lawyers try to approach these hospitals and explain that there wasn’t adequate insurance and ask the hospital to reduce its amount,” he said. “And sometimes the hospitals are willing to negotiate, and other times they aren’t.”

According to Bradley, there is no national standard on how to deal with these types of situations. Rather, other states take a variety of approaches to the problem.

The bill will be heard before the Assembly Judiciary Committee at 9 a.m. on Tuesday.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Bill to Limit Hospital Costs for NV Seniors Gets Hearing

There are many possible causes of Nevada car accidents
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • May 04, 2017
Nevada residents like their cars. Like many people in the U.S., especially those in Western states, many Nevadans see their motor vehicles as a symbol of freedom and independence. They can also be an extension of a driver’s personality, from the sleek, fast sports car, to the dependable battered pick-up truck. Unfortunately, this penchant for hitting the roads comes with a price; with more vehicles driving around, there is a larger chance of a Nevada resident being involved in a car crash.

There are many potential causes of car accidents. From factors beyond the control of individual drivers, such as bad road design, stray animals in the roadway, poor weather conditions, and defective automobiles, to those in which some drivers engage, such as speeding, drunk driving, or fatigued driving. The creation of the circumstances in which an accident occurs can be numerous.

One factor that has gotten much attention over the last several years is that of distracted driving. While most often associated with texting or other cell phone use, just about any activity that takes a driver’s attention away from the road can be a dangerous distraction. Eating, applying make-up or even playing a radio loudly and singing along can divert a driver, for precious seconds, from his or her task of navigating the roads safely.

Because injuries suffered in Nevada car accidents can be life-altering, those who have been hurt due to another’s negligence may have the right to legal compensation. Those in such a situation may want to consider employing an experienced personal injury attorney. From knowing the rules of evidence to having dealt with esoteric concepts such as ‘ negligence per se ,’ the attorneys at Bradley Drendel & Jeanney may be able to steer a case to a favorable completion. Our law firm’s website has more information about our staff, and about personal injury legal topics.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on There are many possible causes of Nevada car accidents

‘CMV’s subject to regulation to try to prevent truck accidents
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Apr 27, 2017
This blog has previously discussed some of the factors that might be involved in truck accidents that occur in Nevada and elsewhere in the United States. Because of the necessity of transporting goods in a relatively fast and efficient manner, our society has decided that having trucks on the roads is worth the risk they can pose to other drivers, due to their size and limited handling characteristics. However, our government regulators do expect truck drivers and companies to abide by regulations that are meant to minimize this risk as much as possible.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the agency responsible for promulgating and enforcing rules that are supposed to keep trucks relatively safe while travelling on the country’s roads. The FMCSA publishes rules about many aspects of commercial vehicle operations, including safety equipment, maintenance schedules, and amounts of rest drivers must have.

Before getting into how these regulations work, however, one needs to consider to which types of vehicles they apply. Basically, to be regulated by the FMCSA Hours of Service regulations, a vehicle has to be involved in interstate commerce, and be a commercial vehicle by the agency’s definition. This definition includes vehicles that weigh over 10,000 pounds or are designed to carry nine or more passengers for pay, or 16 or more passengers for free, or transport some type of material that is considered ‘hazardous.’

Vehicles that meet the above definitions may be subject to the federal rules and regulations set out by the FMCSA. It should be remembered that states like Nevada may have their own rules and regulations that apply to trucks operating on state roadways. Even with these federal and state rules, however, commercial vehicles remain dangerous to other drivers due to their handling limitations and sheer size.

Truck accidents can have devastating consequences for, and cause serious injuries to, those involved. When a trucking company is not following the rules, those injured may have a claim against that entity for damages.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on ‘CMV’s subject to regulation to try to prevent truck accidents

What is ‘negligence per se’ in a Nevada drunk driving accident?
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Apr 20, 2017
Drunk driving has been a social problem in the United States for about as long as automobiles have been around. Because of the country’s penchant for equating driving with independence and freedom, and the history of the manufacture, sale and consumption of intoxicating beverages, especially as a form of celebration, the operation of motor vehicles while drunk also has long been a common event throughout the country. Over the last several decades, however, the dangers of drunk driving have become more and more apparent. Moreover, the political will to curb such behavior has grown such that every state has laws penalizing people criminally for driving will intoxicating.

Criminal penalties are not the only way to deter drunk driving, however. The use of civil law to compensate victims for damages they suffer at the hands of an intoxicated driver has resulted in many monetary awards against those who have broken the laws. While civil and criminal cases are distinct and separate proceedings, there can be some interplay between them when it comes to proving negligence in cases where a Nevada resident is injured by a drunk driver.

This is due to the legal concept of ‘ negligence per se.’ Per se is a Latin phrase meaning “in itself.” In legal cases, a plaintiff normally would have to show evidence of a duty, breach of that duty, causation and damages to recover under a negligence theory. However, when an individual has been convicted of violating a statute, such as the one against drunk driving, this process can get a little easier. As long as the victim is the kind of person meant to be protected by the criminal law, violation of the criminal statute can be considered evidence of negligence as a matter of law.

Because drunk driving statutes are generally meant to protect other people on the roads from intoxicated drivers, a drunk driving conviction will usually fit this definition when an accident has been caused by the drunk driver. Of course, even in these cases, the victim will have to show he or she was injured and that such was caused by the defendant. Because this area of the law can be complicated, those who have been hurt in a drunk driving accident may wish to consider contacting an experienced Nevada injury lawyer.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on What is ‘negligence per se’ in a Nevada drunk driving accident?

Who is most likely to suffer Nevada spinal cord injury?
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Apr 06, 2017

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Who is most likely to suffer Nevada spinal cord injury?

What is duty and breach in a Nevada motorcycle accident?
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Apr 14, 2017
About a month ago, we very briefly outlined the basics of a negligence case that might stem from an accident in Nevada. When someone is injured on the road, there is often a search to determine who is at fault. Negligence is one theory under which an accident victim may hold someone else responsible for his or her injuries, and seek monetary compensation from that individual.

As we touched on previously, there are several elements to a negligence case that might follow injuries in a motorcycle accident. The first step in determining if such a case might succeed is to examine the elements of duty and breach. To hold another driver or entity liable for one’s injuries, the plaintiff will first have to show that the person involved had some legal obligation to the victim, and broke that obligation. In many cases, this legal duty will be the one that all drivers owe to others on the roads to drive with reasonable care based on the circumstances at the time they are driving.

Sometimes, however, there may be other parties that owed a duty. Perhaps a municipal government that knew about a dangerous road condition but abrogated its duty to the public by not acting in a timely manner to repair it or warn motorists about it. Or, an employer might have a duty to others to ensure that its vehicles are well maintained and its employees are sober and not too tired to drive.

Because whether a legal duty existed is generally a question of law rather than fact, a Nevada judge will usually determine if a defendant owed a duty to a plaintiff in any given situation. The question of whether a duty was breached, however will usually be decided by a jury, if there is one. Those with questions about how a motorcycle accident negligence case might work may want to consider contacting an experienced lawyer.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on What is duty and breach in a Nevada motorcycle accident?

Hit and run driver allegedly responsible for Nevada accident
On Behalf of Bradley, Drendel & Jeanney • Mar 29, 2017
In Nevada and around the United States, everyone who uses the public roadways agrees to abide by the traffic laws and the rules of the road. For example, while no physical barrier prevents vehicles from crossing a double yellow line, millions of cars pass each other in opposite directions each day without incident as most people respect the idea that the line represents. Likewise, when an accident does occur, it is understood that those involved stop and exchange information, and possibly cooperate with any investigation required by law enforcement. Sometimes, however, people do not respect the traffic laws, creating a problem for themselves and those affected by their actions.

For example, a recent accident in South Tahoe involving a car and a bicycle was resolved only because of the actions of police and someone who was not a party to the original incident. According to reports, a 33-year-old man hit a cyclist and then fled the scene of the accident. A passerby who witnessed the crash followed the car driver to a nearby residential area, where the man allegedly attempted to ram the witness’ vehicle. The witness eventually provided a specific description of the man to authorities who arrested him. He is suspected of being a drunk driver, and has been charged with various crimes in connection to the accident.

While it is not reported what injuries the cyclist suffered, any time a motor vehicle hits a bicycle, there is the potential for devastating injuries. Further, in this case, there was the potential for another crash involving the alleged perpetrator and the witness who followed him. Hit and run accidents can be especially difficult for injured victims, as not only do they not get to confront the person who hurt them, but it makes it more difficult to pursue legal compensation from an unidentified individual who caused injury.

The injuries that are possible in any kind of car accident can range from minor to life-altering. When the cause of such injuries is the negligence of another individual, such as a drunk driver, the victim can pursue compensation to help defray costs incurred due to the incident. Experienced personal injury attorneys in Nevada can help victims investigate and identify responsible parties, and initiate legal action to help the victims get compensation.

Source: foxreno.com, ” Tahoe hit and run suspect arrested with help from witness ,” AP, March 22, 2017.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Hit and run driver allegedly responsible for Nevada accident