Seat belt laws are designed to save lives and as is so often the case, failing to wear a seat belt can cause a person to die needlessly in a common, everyday automobile accident.

For example, in late July, a Huntsville man was killed when the car he was driving veered off the highway and into a ditch, rolling and flipping several times. What could have been an unfortunate common automobile accident that he might have walked away from turned deadly as the driver was violently ejected from the vehicle because he was not wearing his seat belt and died from his injuries, probably head trauma. Charles Lonnie Carney, 59 of Huntsville, was killed when he lost control of his vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene.

In contrast, four other people involved in a car accident the same day are recovering in Huntsville Hospital after being taken there as a result of a similar rollover crash in Huntsville on Highway 11 at South Mary Lake Road.

While investigations into the exact circumstances surrounding theses two accidents are ongoing, it is safe to assume that wearing a seat belt kept the four safely in their vehicle during the accident while not wearing a seat belt may have caused the other man to be ejected and killed. One only has to read http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/seatbelts/facts.html to understand that failing to wear seat belts is the most effective way to save lives and prevent injuries that occur due to motor vehicle accidents. The CDC states “Seat belts reduce serious crash-related injuries and deaths by about half”.

If you have been injured or have had a loved one killed as a result of an automobile accident please call Ferguson & Ferguson Attorneys at Law. We are here to help.