Drowsy drivers or motorists asleep at the wheel can cause devastating accidents on Bakersfield highways. Victims hurt in an accident may have to hold a careless driver responsible for their recovery costs, and in some cases, may have to prove that someone was driving while drowsy.
To find out how to build your case so insurers can’t poke holes in it and escape blame, contact Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Bakersfield to schedule a free consultation. It’s a confidential, no-obligation review of your case with a real Bakersfield car accident attorney.
Risks When Drowsy Drivers Get Behind the Wheel
The highways around Bakersfield can feature a lot of long straightaways, like those on Route 58. These stretches can lull already tired motorists to sleep. Drivers might also fall into a trance-like state that slows their reaction times and decision-making. This is a really dangerous state to be in when going 65 or 70 mph around other vehicles.
When the sun goes down, drivers who didn’t get a lot of sleep the night before, or have worked a long shift can be at risk of nodding off and causing scary collisions.
These collisions can be extra dangerous, because a driver asleep at the wheel won’t be able to see that an impact is coming. They would likely fail to hit the brakes to lessen the impact. This extra force can lead to severe injuries.
There are several reasons a driver might be more susceptible to a drowsy driving accident:
- A lack of sleep the night before or over several days, with the effects building up.
- A driver working from behind the wheel (e.g., a delivery driver or a truck driver) and not getting proper breaks and days off.
- A driver who is going through an emotional or difficult time in life and can get any rest.
- A driver who has had too much caffeine to stay awake and loses the ability to tell that they are drifting off.
- A driver on a prescription medication that makes them drowsy.
We can all have a bad night and feel a little sleep-deprived, but some drivers show reckless judgment when getting behind the wheel while exhausted. These motorists and their car insurance providers need to be fully responsible for their mistakes.
A skilled attorney would demand full support for injured victims. A lawyer would make sure any accident settlement provided enough to last as long as necessary for victims to reach 100% recovery with their health and their finances.
Winning Your Accident Claim Against a Drowsy Driver
Evidence will be key in your case, especially if you suspect the other driver was drowsy or asleep, but that driver refuses to admit it. Showing proof may also be critical when a Bakersfield Police Officer doesn’t pick up on the driver’s exhaustion and mention it in an accident report.
Evidence can show that you weren’t to blame, and also hopefully prove that the other motorist was too tired to be behind the wheel.
To build a strong case, it’s a good idea to try to collect as many details as you can on the scene of your accident. Contact 911 first, and request an ambulance if anyone is hurt. Then, if it’s safe to do so, try to collect these details:
- Get photos of the scene. Include damage and photos of your injuries if visible.
- Get witness contact information.
- Check on the other driver if possible. Note to the investigating officers if they seemed dazed or had bloodshot eyes. Tell officers everything you observed the driver and vehicle doing before the collision.
- Note any surveillance cameras, traffic cameras, or dash cams that may have captured what happened.
- Alert your own insurer about your accident, even if you weren’t at fault.
You would turn over your evidence to your attorney. Then your lawyer would conduct a full investigation into what happened and collect additional proof.
The evidence may include:
- Checking the logs or app activity of truckers and delivery drivers
- A lawyer can bring in an accident reconstruction team to determine how an crash occurred. This includes showing a lack of skid marks, indicating that a driver was perhaps asleep and didn’t even have the presence of mind to slam on the brakes.
- Collecting witness testimony.
- Collecting doctor testimony to help show how badly you are hurt and how long you’ll require support.
- Obtaining a copy of a police accident report and turning over any new evidence uncovered to officers.
The Statistics Behind Drowsy Driving
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that in 2023, there were 633 tragic deaths blamed on drowsy drivers.
The administration also found that over a five-year period, drowsy driving fatalities made up around 2.5% of all traffic fatalities in the U.S.
Researchers admit that an accurate account of the toll drivers asleep at the wheel take is hard to obtain. It’s because not all accidents caused by drowsy motorists are recorded that way. An officer may have trouble determining that drowsiness was involved in an accident unless a driver admits to it.
This is also an issue for Bakersfield accident victims, because they may know that the other driver was asleep at the wheel, but that driver may not confess to the police or their insurance provider. The innocent driver could even be blamed for an accident when the other motorist’s sleepy condition is ignored or undetectable afterward.
Victims can require an experienced lawyer’s help to prove who was at fault and to secure the maximum possible for their injuries.
We Back Your Case with Powerful Evidence and Fight to Earn You More
If you have a serious injury, and a driver’s sleepiness caused your accident, contact Maison Law Accident & Injury Lawyers of Bakersfield to schedule a free consultation. It’s a confidential, no-obligation review of your case with a real Bakersfield attorney.
Your full recovery becomes our number one mission. We don’t stop fighting until you are 100% healed and have the money you need to restore your normal life.
If you end up needing our help to earn more in compensation, you don’t have to worry about how you’ll afford a great lawyer. We don’t charge anything up front, and we only get paid if we win your case for you. Then our attorney’s fee comes out of the settlement check that an insurance company writes for you.