Residents of Billings, Montana, want their loved ones safe from car crashes when traveling on local roads. Various findings suggest that many of these crashes could be prevented if drivers simply had followed traffic rules.
According to a recent online survey, Montana and South Carolina have worst drivers in the United States when considering the number of car accidents and injuries that occur as a result. Other states with bad drivers, at least as far as this survey is concerned, include Texas, North Dakota, Delaware, Louisiana, Nevada, Hawaii, Oklahoma and Missouri.
The website ranked each state's drivers in following categories:
- Fatality rate for every 100 million miles travelled by vehicle
- Percentage of fatal crashes caused by drivers ignoring certain traffic laws
- Percentage of fatal crashes caused by excessive speeding
- Fatal crashes caused caused by drunk drivers
- Pedestrian and bicyclists fatalities, per 100,000 residents, caused by careless drivers
Reacting to the ranking, lifelong Montanans commented that the state has a population of just one million people and the bad ranking must be due to residents from other states who are moving to Montana. However, people from other states had different view. A person from Tennessee who now has spent a decade in Montana said that Montana drivers were not as courteous as her home state drivers. Another person who had moved to Great Falls from California 16 years ago agreed with the ratings, stating that in her opinion, Montanans drive carelessly. She also said that Montana residents tend to ignore red lights and leave the scenes of accidents.
Serious injuries resulting from a car accident can impact all aspects of the life of a victim and his or her family. The financial situation of the family can be further complicated if a victim suffers permanent disability or even death. A victim or his or her family has a legal right to seek compensation, including medical expenses and lost wages, from a party who is found to be negligent in causing an accident. Since accident-related cases require specific legal expertise, a Montana accident attorney may provide the help needed to get maximum compensation.