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After Hurricanes, Hail Damage, Or Extreme Flooding, Will Homeowners Insurance Be Enough To Help My Family Fully Recover?
If the insurance company unfairly denies or delays payment on your claim, count on Alford & Associates to help after disaster strikes.
After witnessing extreme flooding in Louisiana, record-breaking hail in San Antonio, and the destruction caused by Hurricane Matthew, countless homeowners are asking: how do I protect my most important asset when disaster strikes?There are two very different types of homeowners insurance policies sold in Texas:
- Named perils policies cover only the damage caused by events and occurrences specifically named in the policy.
- All-risk policies (comprehensive coverage) cover all causes of loss unless the policy specifically excludes them. This type of policy offers much broader coverage than the named perils policy.
Reports Of Exploding Smartphones May Expose Samsung To A Surge Of Injury Lawsuits.
The trial attorneys at Alford & Associates evaluate Samsung’s exposure under Texas products liability laws.
Over this past weekend, Samsung advised all owners of its Note 7 smartphone to power down their devices and immediately exchange them. This warning comes after a flood of complaints regarding battery overheating issues that may lead to fires.
With reports of Jeep being set ablaze by a Note 7 and a six-year-old Brooklyn boy being injured when a Samsung Galaxy smartphone allegedly exploded in his hands, readers may be wondering what, if any, legal liability the electronics manufacturer may face from these apparently dangerous devices.
Products liability cases in Texas generally fall into three categories: (1) manufacturing defects, (2) design defects, or (3) marketing defects. Depending on the evidence, a particular case could feature any combination of these defects or even all three at the same time.
Under Texas law, a plaintiff (the injured party) has a manufacturing defect claim when the finished product that hurt them deviates, in terms of its construction or quality, from the specifications or planned output in a manner that renders it unreasonably dangerous.
What Are The Top 10 Most Dangerous Driving Habits?
Driving is one of the most dangerous things you do on a daily basis. Good driving habits can help make the difference between a safe trip and a catastrophe. But do you know what bad habits you need to avoid?
The Texas Department of Transportation maintains a database of all reported motor-vehicle collisions that taking place across the state. The trial attorneys at Alford & Associates dug into the latest data to determine the Top 10 Most Dangerous Driving Habits in Texas.
10. Disregard Stop and Go Signal – 20,983 CrashesIf you’ve been in a serious accident, please visit www.injuredtexan.com to learn more about how Alford & Associates can help you recover or you can call 210-951-9467 now for a free, confidential consultation with an injury attorney.
Failing to obey a traffic light can easily cause a crash. Remember that a yellow light is a warning. Many drivers made a habit of running yellow lights or speeding up to try to "catch" the light. This bad driving habit causes over a hundred fatal crashes every year. Shaving a few seconds off your drive by running a yellow or blowing through a red light is not worth that risk.
9. Faulty Evasive Action – 23,945 Crashes
What is faulty evasive action? When a driver takes no evasive action at all when they should have, or when a driver takes improper evasive action by doing something like overcompensating. By staying alert, and not panicking, you can reduce your chances of a crash. Stay alert, stay calm, and stay alive.8. Failed to Yield Right of Way – Stop Sign – 25,329 Crashes
Bad driving habit #8 is the failure to wait your turn at an intersection. It occurs when a vehicle does stop for a stop sign, but then fails to yield the right of way to another vehicle in the intersection. When stopping at a stop sign, it is critical to actually take a moment to look both ways before proceeding through the intersection.7. Followed Too Closely – 25,436 Crashes
Tailgating – unless you’re at a football game – is not only dangerous, it’s illegal. Indeed, Texas law requires that drivers, maintain a sufficient stopping-distance when traveling behind another vehicle. When a vehicle is following too close to take proper evasive action, the results can be deadly: tailgating contributed to 12 fatal crashes in 2015.6. Unsafe Speed – 26,608 Crashes
Many drivers think it’s always okay to travel the speed limit. Wrong! Sometimes safe driving requires you to drop your speed BELOW the speed limit. Not doing so can be dangerous. Unsafe speed occurs when a driver fails to reduce speed while traveling (1) through an intersection or railroad crossing, (2) around a curve, (3) over a hill, (4) on a narrow or winding road, or (5) when approaching a special hazard. A total of 407 fatal crashes could have been avoided last year alone, if drivers made a habit of reducing their speed when caution demanded it.5. Failed to Yield Right of Way – Turning Left – 30,741 Crashes
It’s simple: yield to oncoming traffic. Typically, an oncoming vehicle has the right of way over a vehicle turning left. But even if you have the right of way, make a habit of yielding when trying to make a left turn. The few seconds it takes could save your life.4. Changed Lane When Unsafe – 34,157 Crashes
We have all been stuck behind a slow driver on the highway and felt the urge to pass them. However, reckless passing is one of the most common and most dangerous bad driving habits in Texas. When passing another vehicle – ESPECIALLY on a two-lane highway – make a habit of taking extra care to avoid causing a potentially deadly collision.3. Failed to Drive in Single Lane – 36,238 Crashes
This is the deadliest driving habit. When a driver fails to keep his/her vehicle within their lane of travel, the results can be catastrophic. The dangerous habit of drifting into other lanes or off the road produced 502 fatal crashes last year.2. Driver Inattention – 94,876 Crashes
Pay attention! Driver inattention can result from driving while texting, talking on the phone, putting on makeup, or even playing Pokémon Go while driving (you know who you are). The Texas Department of Transportation defines "Driver Inattention" simply, it’s when a driver’s lack of attention to the road or traffic contributes to a crash. At least 326 fatal crashes occurred last year due to inattentive driving.1. Failed to Control Speed – 136,383 Crashes
Speeding. It’s the most dangerous thing you can do behind the wheel of a car. Each year, approximately 1 in 100 Texas drivers are involved in an accident that was caused by speeding. It caused nearly 140,000 crashes last year, of which 417 were fatal. Speeding doesn’t just mean going over the posted speed limit, it means not adjusting your speed for traffic, weather, and road conditions. Don’t be a statistic, slow down and stay safe.If you have been in a motor vehicle accident, call Alford & Associates now for a free, confidential consultation. Our attorneys are on call – 24/7 – and are happy to answer any questions absolutely free of charge. You can find Alford & Associates online at www.injuredtexan.com or you can speak with an injury attorney now by calling 210-951-9467.
New Texas Law Requires One Million Dollars In Insurance For Uber And Lyft Wrecks – Here’s What You Need To Know!
Ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft are the fastest growing method of transportation in Texas. While these services are obviously convenient for their users, the companies behind these services must properly hire, train, and supervise drivers. Their failure to do so has produced a startling number of accidents in Texas.
As a result, the Texas legislature passed new legislation that took effect on January 1, 2016. Among many other provisions, including a section requiring drivers to disclose their cellphone use, the Texas Legislature saw fit to include a requirement that ridesharing companies carry up to one million dollars in insurance.
As with any new service and any new law, ridesharing and ridesharing laws have created a great deal of confusion in the legal community. Most Texas attorneys don’t even know what ridesharing is, let alone how to properly handle a case against Uber or Lyft. Alford & Associates, on the other hand, is at the forefront in tracking the case law as it develops.
What Would Our Bodies Look Like If We Had Evolved To Survive Car Crashes?
Recently, a trauma surgeon and crash expert teamed up to envision what features our bodies would need in order to survive low-impact car crashes. The startling results are a reminder of how fragile our bodies truly are. You can click on the photo below to interact with a 3D digital model of Graham, the only human designed to survive car crashes. Find attorneys.
Visit www.injuredtexan.com to learn more about how Alford & Associates can help you recover after a serious motor vehicle accident. Call 210-951-9467 now for a free, confidential consultation with an injury attorney.
Top 5 Mistakes Most Drivers Make After Car Accidents
#1 – Not calling the police
Always report car accidents to the police. Even if the accident seems relatively minor or if the other driver tries to convince you not to call the police. Even if you are unsure who, if anyone, is responsible, contact the police immediately after the accident.The reason you should call the police is not to get the other driver in trouble. Instead, it’s a necessary step to properly documenting the accident. A responding police officer will investigate the scene, interview drivers, passengers, and witnesses, and prepare a police report. The police report is often the most important piece of evidence. Memories will fade with time. The other driver, who might admit fault at the scene, will be coached by his insurance company the second time around. Not calling the police is the #1 mistake we see.
Your typical police report is a jumble of codes and jargon. Check out the Texas Instructions to Police for Reporting Crashes to make sense of your report!
Alford & Associates has offices in San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Corpus Christi, and Dallas, and we represent clients in Bexar County, Selma, Schertz, Live Oak, Converse, Kirby, Travis County, Round Rock, Pflugerville, Harris County, Bellaire, West University Place, Spring Valley Village, Nueces County, Portland, Port Aransas, Robstown, Dallas County, Tarrant County, Fort Worth, Irving, Garland, Arlington, Mesquite, Grand Prairie, and throughout all of the state of Texas.
Results listed are not a guarantee or indication of future case results.
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