It is not unusual in Southern California suburban communities to see a parent crossing the street as they hold their child’s hand. This is not only predictable, but a necessary way to guard one’s child from an inattentive, drug or alcohol impaired or otherwise indifferent driver. Ironically, parents often do not show the same level of attention and care when their children are playing near the driveway of their residence. While most people believe that the lion’s share of children are hit by motor vehicles while crossing the street, a substantial number of children are injured every year by people backing out of a driveway. There are over 220 fatal back over accidents per year, including a fair number right here in Southern California, and there are another 14,000 people being injured by vehicles backing out of a driveway. At the Galstyan Law Firm, we understand the devastating emotional toll of having a child injured in the driveway back over accident as well as the enormous financial cost that may accompany serious catastrophic injuries.
Tragically, small children are the most common victims of driveway back over accidents. Because there is absolutely no visibility in terms of small objects immediately behind a vehicle, it is essential when backing out of the driveway that a driver physically walk behind the vehicle and check to make sure there are no children, pets or other obstacles present. This simple practice could prevent most if not all back over accidents in Southern California driveways. However, motorists are typically in a hurry to get to work, take their children to school or get home to deal with daily chores. This urgency to get to one’s destination often means that drivers do not check behind their vehicle to determine if it is safe to back out of a driveway or parking lot. The problem associated with back up accidents has increased with the growing popularity of SUVs and vehicles with lift kits. The higher a vehicle sits off the ground the greater the area of one’s blind spot behind a vehicle.
New innovations in vehicle safety technology offer hope in reducing the number of these serious and often fatal Los Angeles backing up car crashes. Some collision warning systems sound an alarm to alert a driver that it is not safe to back up. Other versions of this warning system provide an alarm to those who are potentially behind the vehicle designed to alert a pedestrian that the vehicle is about to move in reverse. While our Southern California car accident lawyers commend these safety improvements, they are still a rare option on many vehicles. While eventually these may become standard features, it is essential that for now anyone backing out of the driveway be alert regarding the location of their children or other children in the neighborhood and check behind their vehicle before backing out of the driveway.