Following a car accident, the police may respond to the scene to take a report. An officer will typically note the location of the cars involved, take witness accounts and include other relevant information in the accident report. Sometimes the officer’s report will clearly state that one driver violated a specific vehicle code that caused the accident and that the driver was issued a citation. Even the mention of careless driving will help an injured party show that the other driver was at fault.

All drivers have a duty of care which is an obligation to avoid injuring someone or putting them in a dangerous situation. The duty of all motorists is to obey the law and to exercise common sense when driving. A car accident that results from a breach of this duty will typically result in a finding of fault.

For example, an accident may result when a driver is traveling too fast for conditions such as icy roads or reduced visibility in a snowstorm where any reasonable person might have slowed down. It may a situation where a motorist disregards the law by texting while driving or fails to stop at a stop sign.  If an officer’s report shows that a driver’s careless or illegal actions led up to an accident, it can clearly establish fault so that an injured party can seek compensation for injuries or property damage.

If an officer was on the scene of your accident, the insurance company for the other driver should receive a copy of the police report, but you will want to make sure and also get a copy for yourself. If you are working with a personal injury attorney, they will certainly collect all the necessary information and documentation surrounding the accident including the accident report and will often go further to photograph the scene, follow up with witnesses, check for prior incidents on the other driver’s record and more, to show that the other driver is in fact responsible for your damages.

If you or a family member has been injured in a car accident, it is important to seek knowledgeable advise. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you get compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering and property damage that will often result in a higher payout from the insurance company. Hemminger Law Firm has handled hundreds of Iowa motor vehicle accidents over more than three decades. Our attorneys have the trial and negotiating experience to reach a fair settlement that will compensate you for your injuries and losses. To schedule a free consultation, call 515-283-2116 or contact our offices online today.

Using a phone while driving increases the risk of having an accident significantly and, unfortunately, 75 percent of the over 200 million people that own a phone say that they use them while driving. A study out of the University of Toronto reveals that using a phone while driving quadruples the risk of being involved in an accident – the same risk associated with drunk driving. The NHTSA reports that 80 percent of all accidents are attributed to inattentive or distracted driving which unfortunately includes pervasive texting while driving.

​If you are involved in a car accident with someone who was on their phone, texting or otherwise, you would have a good argument that the person on the device was at fault. If the accident happens to occur in a state or city where texting and driving is illegal, you will have a powerful negotiating tool when trying to settle your claim with the insurance company, whether your damages are limited to property or you are injured.

Although you may believe texting and driving was to blame for the other driver’s negligence, proving the other driver was on the phone before the accident may require witness accounts or an admission by the driver when confronted by law enforcement. In the event there are no witnesses and the driver does not admit fault, cell phone records can be scrutinized to establish negligence in court.

If you or a family member has been injured in a car accident caused by a distracted driver, it is important to seek the help and guidance of an experienced Iowa car accident attorney. For over three decades the Des Moines car accident lawyers of Hemminger Law Firm have handled hundreds of Iowa motor vehicle accidents and our attorneys have the trial and negotiating experience to help you reach a fair settlement that will compensate you for your injuries and hold those responsible. To schedule a free consultation, call 515-283-2116 or contact our offices online today.

Care related to sepsis is the most common reason for transfers of nursing home residents to hospitals, resulting in more fatalities than hospitalizations for other conditions.  Sepsis, a bloodstream infection, can develop in bedridden patients with illnesses such as pneumonia, but can also be a result of untreated bedsores which are preventable if the necessary precautions are taken.

Because bedsore infections are a well-known danger it follows that patients who are immobile should be turned and re-positioned at regular intervals and checked for signs of a developing bedsores in order to treat them before they progress.   Yet year after year, nursing homes across the country fail to prevent bedsores and other infections that lead to sepsis, putting patent lives in jeopardy.

If bedsores and associated infections are preventable and highly treatable in their early stages, why are so many nursing home patients afflicted? Unfortunately, it boils down to low staffing levels according to regulators and patient advocates. Not having enough hands on deck diminishes the quality of nursing home care overall so patients do not receive the care they need to prevent bedsores, and by the time problems are detected, little infections have turned into big infections that are difficult to treat.

Not surprisingly, many families of nursing home residents across the country have file lawsuits alleging that bedsores and other common infections have caused serious harm or death. The outcome of the numerous cases that are brought every year is not known because most result in a settlement with confidential terms, however, nursing homes likely pay substantial sums when their negligence results in injury or death.

If your family member is suffering sepsis from untreated bedsores or is injured due to the negligence or abuse in an Iowa nursing home, contact the Des Moines Law Offices of John T. Hemminger for immediate help at 515-283-2116.

New drivers and even people who have been driving for decades can make mistakes on slick and icy roads when winter weather strikes. All too often drivers do not slow down when conditions become hazardous and do not know how to handle a skid if they hit a patch of ice. When drivers do not adapt their driving to weather conditions, accidents can result and sometimes people can get hurt.

On dry pavement, drivers can often get away with accelerating quickly, slamming on their brakes and even making sharp turns, confident that the tires will grip the road. However, when winter storms start brewing, it is time to prepare for a slippery ride and driving has to slow down, become smoother, to avoid an accident.

Many liken it to walking on ice, where you take smaller, tiny steps to avoid a fall. It is much the same when operating a vehicle – every movement must be minimized and slowed to keep from colliding into traffic, hitting obstructions, or rolling into a ditch. All drivers have a duty of care to their passengers and other motorists to drive according to conditions – a failure to do so may result in a finding of negligence.

Every year, twenty percent of the roughly 6 million car crashes involve hazardous weather. Over 5,000 fatalities annually are due to weather related crashes and hundreds of thousands are injured. Slick surfaces can easily result in an accident especially when drivers do not take the necessary precautions so it is important to act responsibly on Iowa roads this winter season.

If you or a family member has been injured in an Iowa motor vehicle accident during slippery road conditions and from the negligence of another driver, contact the Des Moines personal injury law offices of John T. Hemminger for your free consultation and help at 515-283-2116.