Fort Lauderdale Failure to Yield Lawyer

Failing to yield the right-of-way is a primary cause of automotive collisions in Florida, and the most frequently injured are pedestrians and bicyclists. Thousands of people are seriously injured each year by drivers who miss or ignore yield signs.

When that happens, the services of the Fort Lauderdale failure to yield lawyer are necessary to achieve compensation to cover medical and other related costs and harms. Get in touch with an experienced Fort Lauderdale car accident attorney right away to begin your case.

When to Yield in Florida

All vehicles must give way to pedestrians and people working on roads, including those guiding traffic with red flags or another warning signal. Other times to yield the right-of-way are:

• When turning left, yield to oncoming traffic at intersections or some other crossings including private driveways
• To buses that are returning to traffic lanes
• To vehicles coming to an intersection from another highway
• To traffic on the right when entering an intersection from other highways
• When two vehicles come to an intersection at the same moment, the one on the right must go first
• To all traffic when entering a road that does not have a traffic light or sign
• When a yield sign is in place, slow down or stop for other traffic

Right-of-Way Factors

Failing, or refusing, to yield the right-of-way in Florida was the second major cause of injury and fatal accidents following careless driving, according to the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Crash Statistics Report for 2015.

Failing to yield the right-of-way that year caused 554 deaths, totaling 19.25 percent of all traffic deaths, and injured 28,242 people for a total of 17.32 percent of all traffic injuries.

Drivers most often violate the state’s yielding of the right-of-way law by failing to yield when: merging with traffic; making a left turn; approaching a pedestrian in or out of a crosswalk; approaching a bicyclist; ignoring traffic signals and red lights; an emergency vehicle is coming; and moving from a parking space.

Drivers who fail to yield the right-of-way will try to defend themselves by claiming that the conditions at the time prevented them from obeying the law. They will argue that they tried to get out of harm’s way, another driver was reckless, or they did not see a yield sign because of poor visibility.

Florida’s Negligence Law

A motorist who fails to yield the right-of-way, causing injury or death, is legally negligent. The modified comparative negligence law in Florida holds parties who had some fault in causing an accident liable for the expenses the injured person or the immediate family of persons killed incurred because of failure to obey the traffic law.

The injured party or family may sue for damages but they have the burden of proving their allegation.

Available Damages

Injured parties are entitled to recover medical care expenses as well as income they could not earn because of the injuries. Non-economic damages include pain and suffering, mental anguish, and emotional distress.

How a Fort Lauderdale Failure to Yield Attorney Can Help

In times following the injury, a family may not be financially able to hire an attorney, but personal injury lawyers, such as the Fort Lauderdale failure to yield lawyers of Kogan & DiSalvo, work on contingency. In this way, the attorney fees are paid by the person who failed to yield the right-of-way or their insurance carrier, if that person is found liable. If the case fails, the attorney does not charge a fee.

To get started, promptly take advantage of the no-obligation consultation provided by our skilled attorneys by tapping the link below or submitting our online form.