Car Accidents and Speeding in Las Vegas

Without a doubt, speeding is a major contributor to accidents out on the road. We have seen many victims suffer terrible injuries after they were struck by a driver going too fast. At Ladah Law Firm, our legal team has decades of experience holding drivers accountable when they drive over the speed limit and collide with innocent people. Please contact us today. A Las Vegas car Accident lawyer will review the facts of your case to determine your odds of bringing a successful claim.

Why Speeding is So Dangerous

According to the Department of Transportation, there is a clear relationship between driver speed and accident risk. The faster a driver goes, the higher the risk of a collision. This is why roads with higher speed limits have more crashes. It also explains why motorists who speed get into more accidents than those who drive slower.

When a driver is speeding, accidents increase for the following reasons:

A speeding vehicle needs more space to come to a stop. Even if a driver sees someone stepping into the road or a car pulling into traffic, they might not have enough time to stop even if they immediately stomp on the brakes.
A speeding motorist has less time to take defensive actions. Many accidents are avoided when a driver swerves into another lane. The faster the car is going, the less time they have.
The faster a driver is going, the less time they have to process information. Before they know it, they have collided with another vehicle.

Some people insist that it’s safer to drive fast, but the evidence points in the other direction. For this reason, Nevada sets a speed limit on its roads. The limit will depend on the number of people around and the amount of normal traffic, which is why you can go faster out in the desert than on the Strip.

Speeding Increases the Severity of a Crash

This is another risk of speeding. The faster a car is going, the more force it generates, which increases the severity of the crash:

Your vehicle will sustain more damage. When cars are going very slowly, you might end up with a scratch on the bumper. But if you are struck by a speeding vehicle, your car could be totaled.

More people will be injured. A T-bone collision at low speed might only injure the occupants on the driver’s side of the car. But the higher the speed, all occupants could suffer major injuries.

Injuries will be more severe. Of course, people can suffer injuries at even low speeds. The human body is vulnerable to injury, and a slight jolt could pinch nerves or damage other soft tissue. But at higher speeds, injuries become even more serious, possibly fatal.

Safety design has improved over the decades. Air bags can cushion someone’s head, and improved design absorbs energy. More people are surviving accidents. But high-speed collisions are still deadly, even when people are properly buckled in.

Vehicle Size Matters Too

As the DOT explains, smaller vehicles tend to absorb more of the energy generated in a crash, so the passengers of a smaller car usually suffer more serious outcomes. An SUV will emerge from a crash with less damage than a four-door sedan, and cars sustain much less damage than pedestrians and bicyclists.

For this reason, speeding is a serious risk to pedestrians. Studies have shown that virtually all pedestrians will survive a collision with a car going 20 kilometers an hour (about 12 miles per hour). But only 50% survive at 80 km/h and 10% survive at 100 km/h.

You Sometimes Need to Drive Slower than the Speed Limit

There’s a misconception that it’s safe to drive the speed limit in all sorts of weather. That’s not true. For example, in a heavy rainstorm, your visibility is reduced and your car could need more time to stop. In fact, hydroplaning is a risk if you drive too fast. Environmental factors like rain require that you go slower to be safe.

You should also go slower when going through an intersection or making a turn. That’s really common sense, but Nevada has a law to that effect anyway as a reminder (NRS 484B.603).

You also must slow down in a construction zone. Typically, the new speed limit is posted. Workers are moving in and around the construction zone, so the risk of accidents is much higher.

Speeding is Illegal in Las Vegas

Nevada Revised Statutes 484B.600 says it is unlawful to drive over the posted speed limit. It is also illegal to drive at a speed that endangers any person or property or that is unreasonable given the conditions, like weather and traffic.

Generally, speeding will result in fines. However, if a person speeds in a work or safety zone, fines are doubled. A defendant could also spend up to 6 months in jail.

Someone who is speeding at an extreme level exhibits willful and wanton disregard for other people’s safety. They could face charges of reckless driving under NRS 484B.653 and do time behind bars.

Speeding Motorists Are Usually at Fault for Crashes

If you were struck by a speeding motorist, you might be happy to know that they could face serious criminal penalties. But what about the financial losses you have suffered? Accidents cause physical injuries and property damage, and your expenses could be very high.

At Ladah Law Firm, we are happy to represent car accident victims as they seek compensation. We can typically seek damages for:

Medical care to treat your injuries
Lost income, if you can’t go to work as you recuperate from the accident
Pain and suffering caused by the accident
Damage to your vehicle and other property

If the driver who hit you was at fault, he should pay fair compensation for all these damages. Our team is experienced at reconstructing accidents to determine if the driver who hit you was speeding. We can use this evidence as part of your claim for compensation.

Insurance Covers Speeding Accidents

Nevada requires that motorists carry minimum liability insurance in order to drive in our state. The good news is that this insurance will cover accidents caused by a speeding motorist. Working with your lawyer, you can submit a claim for compensation to the insurance company, and they will review to determine if their insured was really at fault.

Most accident victims benefit from hiring a lawyer to represent them, since there are hurdles along the way. The insurer might also allege that you were speeding, which could reduce your ability to receive any money at all. Or they might claim that you are not seriously injured and therefore don’t deserve meaningful compensation.

If a loved one died in a crash, then our Las Vegas fatal car accident lawyer can submit a wrongful death claim. This is a special type of Nevada lawsuit that only certain people can file, but it provides some compensation to try and make up for your loved one’s death.

Contact Ladah Law Firm Today

Were you injured by a speeding motorist? Helpfully, Nevada law gives accident victims important rights to hold speeding motorists accountable. At Ladah Law Firm, our entire team has spent decades in the trenches fighting for compensation on behalf of our clients. Although you might think the process of getting paid is easy, the fact is that insurance companies deny claims every day of the week.