ESC Saves Lives

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You have probably heard of the terminology ‘Electronic Stability Control’ fitted on modern day cars. But you are also probably asking: does it really help in making your vehicle safer? Basically, ESCs are technological gizmos that are installed in your vehicle that helps ensure your vehicle has the maximum grip at all times.

How does the ESC work?

The faster your vehicle runs, the more that it can lose that all-important grip to keep it in control at all times. When it does lose grip, your vehicle will skid and it will be harder, if not impossible, for you to steer it to wherever you want it to go.

There are a number of factors that affect the vehicle’s grip. Heavy rain and uneven roads are the usual culprits as to why vehicles lose control on the road. Furthermore, the wrong driver attitude or lack of advanced skills can make a motorist apply the right corrective action to bring back vehicle control.

This is where the ESC system kicks in. This device has computers that get vital information about your vehicle. Depending on the situation, the system automatically applies the brakes or power to the wheels with the most grip, helping you control your vehicle better. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has ordered the deployment of this new safety feature for all light-duty trucks and passenger vehicles since September 1, 2011.

Benefits of the ESC

According to the NHTSA’s three-year study released last November 30, 2012, the agency estimated that ESC alone has saved 2,202 lives from 2008 to 2010. In the year 2008, 634 lives have been saved by this new technology. Another 705 deaths were avoided in 2009 and some 863 more in 2010. These growing number of people saved because of this new technology only prove that the device is an effective deterrent to fatal accidents.

That is why the NHTSA is strongly urging the public to consider vehicles that are fitted with this technology. Buyers can go and visit www.safercar.gov to check out vehicles from 2005 – 2010 that are fitted with ESCs. To make searching easier for consumers, they can look for individual makes and models in the abovementioned site.

ESC on all cars plying by American roads

The NHTSA published a rule in April 2007 establishing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 126, requiring automotive manufacturers to fit all passenger cars, Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), vans, and pickup trucks with ESC. Additionally, the agency is now proposing a newer federal motor vehicle safety standard that will be requiring the installation of ESC on large commercial trucks, as well as large buses. This new measure aims to prevent some 56 percent of rollover crashes every year and up to around 14 percent of loss-of-control crashes.

Nothing beats good, safe driving practices

ESCs and other active and passive safety systems may help prevent or lessen the extent of injuries and damages brought about by car crashes. Incidentally, every  Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyers also knows that practicing good and safe driving habits is always necessary.

Why Some Social Security Beneficiaries Aren’t Sold with the Electronic Mode of Payment

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Starting March 1, 2013, the Social Security will stop sending most paper Social Security checks via mail to beneficiaries. What will happen is that recipients will have to switch to the electronic mode of payment, in which they’d either have to sign in for direct deposit using a bank account or through a debit card issued by the Treasury Department.

Said date is not too far from now. In fact, any beneficiary who fails to make the switch to electronic payments before March 1 may force the Department to send the monthly benefits through a Direct Express card program. That way, there would be no interruption on the flow of payments.

For the Social Security Administration (SSA), the transition from the print to the digital form of sending monthly benefits is a way to cut down huge costs, especially with the usage of paper in mailing out checks. Moreover, this switch from paper to electronic payments would lessen the occurrences of lost or stolen checks, therefore protecting the monthly benefits every beneficiary receives.

While millions of Social Security recipients in the U.S. have already switched from paper to electronic payments long before the March 1 deadline, there are still a small number of them who still stick to the paper checks they regularly received on their mailboxes. Many senior citizens, to be specific, are not too impressed with the idea.

According to the Washington, D.C.-based organization Consumers for Paper Options president Paul Runyan, many of the senior citizens who have been content with having their Social Security checks mailed don’t have any access to financial services. He asserted that they must be given due consideration, and that they should not be forced to switch to electronic deposits, which, for seniors, are uncomfortable and may possibly confuse them.

Fortunately for the SSA, it won’t penalize recipients who may miss the March 1 deadline, saying that it won’t stop sending them paper checks. However, the federal agency may have to ask them to have a pre-paid debit card that is credited every month with their monthly payments.

Incidentally, Los Angeles Social Security claim lawyers think that it would be for the best interest of the recipients to sign up for the electronic payments right away before the deadline.

Newest U.S. Pedestrian Accident Statistics

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Pedestrian accidents account to only a small percentage of all motor vehicle accidents in the United States. Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that some 4,432 people who were killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2011 were pedestrians. This was a 3 percent increase from the previous, in which the NHTSA recorded 4,302.

Meanwhile, the number of injuries in pedestrian accidents reached approximately 69,000; a 1.4 percent decrease from the previous year, which stood at around 70,000. With these statistics, it is reasonable to conclude that many pedestrians right now are nowhere safe with vehicles around, especially in big cities such as Los Angeles in California.

In fact, the pedestrian activity in the second-largest city in the U.S. account to 20 percent of road activity. Sadly, it was revealed that the so-called “City of Angels” had three times as many pedestrian fatalities as the national average, which stands at 11.4 percent.

Indeed, getting involved in an accident while you walk on a sidewalk or use the crosswalk can be devastating. If you live in Los Angeles and you regularly travel on foot to work or school, then you must know that you are entitled to monetary compensation in case you have been injured in an accident.

If you want to claim for damages in a pedestrian accident, it is a must that you seek the expertise of a Los Angeles personal injury lawyers. Basically, pursuing a claim in such an unfortunate incident can be complicated, as this involves hard work with your chosen legal representative.

As it is, there is paperwork involved, as well as investigations to help establish the negligence of the liable party involved in the accident. Also, your claim is negotiated with the insurance company of the liable party. With your chosen attorney, he or she will do his or her best to successfully settle your pedestrian accident claim without resorting to litigation.

As you know, litigation may take a long time to settle, and this may involve legal fees that may be too much for you to handle. More importantly, you must cooperate with your attorney to ensure that you obtain the best compensation you deserve.