Liability Explained When a Defendant’s Failure to Yield Causing a Car Accident Harms You
Our Queens car accident lawyers know that one of the most frustrating causes of personal injuries is a failure to yield causing a car accident in NYC. This is because we expect all motorists to comply with the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law. Yielding is one of the most basic obligations that all motorists most comply with. It is also one of the first rules of the road that we learn along a hexagon meaning stop and a triangle meaning yield. Even in unmarked situation we know when it is required to yield, particularly because of basic road construction and driver rules. Unfortunately, far too many motorist fail to yield which can result in serious or devastating car accidents in Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island, Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, and the rest of the metro-NYC area.
Victims who have been injured may have increasing medical bills and high lost wages from being unable to work due to disability or doctor appointments. Victims may also have extreme pain and suffering, including needing surgery to repair damage done by a negligent motorists. But often times a defendant’s mistakes are felt by the entire family who also suffer from the emotional and financial strains of having a loved one injured. This is why our experienced Queens car accident lawyers at Cohen and Cohen Law Group, P.C. have dedicated their focus to helping victims who have been catastrophically injured in a life-changing collision. We offer FREE consultations and work with victims and their families to protect their rights to compensation under New York law.
Yield under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law
The yield sign is one of the most unique signs in that it is a triangle. This should be a dead giveaway to all motorists, even young or new motorists or foreign drivers, that special attention is required where the yield sign is located. That location is almost always at an intersection.
A vehicle entering a stop or yield intersection is governed by New York Vehicle and Traffic Law section 1142, which provides the following under subsection (b) which governs yield signs and provides the following:
The driver of a vehicle approaching a yield sign shall in obedience to such sign slow down to a speed reasonable for existing conditions, or shall stop if necessary as provided in [the section governing special stops at yield lines], and shall yield the right of way to any pedestrian legally crossing the roadway on which he is driving, and to any vehicle in the intersection or approaching on another highway so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time such driver is moving across or within the intersection.
The special stops for yield signs is governed by New York Vehicle and Traffic Law section 1172 (b), which provides that “[t]he driver of a vehicle approaching a yield sign if required for safety to stop shall stop at a clearly marked yield line, but if none, then shall stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or in the event there is no crosswalk, at the point nearest the intersecting roadway where the driver has a view of the approaching traffic on the intersecting roadway before entering the intersection . . . .”
What Happens if a Defendant Fails to Yield and Harms Me?
When a Queens car accident is caused by a defendant failing to yield, it can result in serious personal injuries to a pedestrian who is stuck by a car, a bicyclists who is knocked down, or passengers in another vehicle that is truck by a vehicle that failed to yield. Under New York common law, or judge-made law, a defendant who failed to yield will likely be liable under a negligence cause of action. Negligence is where a defendant fails to act as a reasonable person and causes unnecessary or reckless harm to another through avoidable and needless risks. Essentially, negligence is when another person, business, or government entire fails to act reasonably under the circumstances.
In addition to the common law, our Queens car accident lawyers know that a defendant may found automatically negligent under the doctrine of negligence per se. This is when a defendant violates a statute which is meant to protect a certain type of harm to a certain class of persons. Generally, when a defendant fails to yield, the Vehicle and Traffic Law sections cited above are meant to protect all others on or around the roadway from injuries in a motor vehicle accident. Thus, if a defendant fails to yield and causes any personal injuries to a victim, that defendant is likely to be found liable.
Failure to Yield is a Serious Type of Car Accident that Our Queens Car Accident Lawyers May Be Able to Help You With
If you or a loved one were seriously injured or wrongfully killed in a motor vehicle accident caused by a defendant failing to yield, ask our Queens car accident lawyers at Cohen and Cohen Law Group, P.C. how we can protect your rights to compensation under New York law. We represent victims and their families against defendants who negligently and recklessly cause harm to others. We also represent victims and their families against some of the largest insurance companies in the United States that refuse to accept their responsibility and rather protect dangerous drivers.
We accept cases on a contingency fee agreement which means that we do not charge any money upfront. Rather, we get paid a percentage of what we recover for you in 1) a settlement, 2) mediation, 3) arbitration, or 4) court award. We also do not get paid until you get paid. So call our experienced bodily injury law firm in Queens, New York to learn how we can begin to help you and your family by calling 800-247-8164 for a FREE case evaluation or use our convenient and easy-to-use contact us box available here.