ATVs, All Terrain Vehicles, are particularly popular and useful in Texas, which still has a lot of rural areas where one can ride. ATVs stress power and maneuverability over safety. The Houston ATV injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC note that currently there are very few laws governing ATV operation or safety standards in the United States. The U.S. CPSC encourages ATV manufacturers to adopt and abide by voluntary safety standards in the absence of federal regulation.
A CPSC study following ATV use over a five-year period found that the number of ATV riders increased by about 36%, the number of ATVs in use increased 40%, hours spent riding ATVs increased 50%, and emergency room visits related to ATV use went up a whopping 109%. Some ATV safety issues, like those caused by manufacturing and design defects, you can’t prevent. But there are many steps you can take to enhance the safety of your self and your family members as you ride.
Our Houston ATV injury lawyers present the following list of ATV safety tips:
Always wear a helmet and protective clothing. Many of the serious and fatal ATV injuries result from head injuries caused vehicle rollovers and ejections. Our Houston ATV injury lawyers emphasize that a helmet could prevent or reduce the severity of your injury in an accident. And long pants, long sleeves, gloves, tall boots, and goggles could also help prevent or reduce the severity of injuries such as lacerations, bruises, and abrasions.
The CPSC recommends taking an ATV rider training course to reduce your risk of injury.
Don’t drink and drive. Alcohol and drugs impair your good judgment, your visual perceptions, and your reaction times. ATV operation relies even more than passenger car operation on proper driver reactions to the terrain to keep the vehicle safely balanced and upright.
Always operate your ATV at a safe speed. ATVs are prone to rollovers, and taking a curve or a turn at high speed exposes you to the risk of rollover, vehicle ejection, and serious injury or death.
Don’t let your children drive or ride ATVs designed for adults. Studies have shown that children under the age of 16 don’t have enough size or weight to properly control adult ATVs. Children suffer almost one third of all ATV deaths and injuries requiring an emergency room visit. Our Houston ATV injury lawyers point out that most of these accidents occur when they are on ATVs designed to be controlled by adults.
Don’t drive your ATV on paved roads. ATVs are not designed for paved roads and can be very difficult to control on pavement. Driving on a paved road puts you at greatly increased risk of being struck by another motor vehicle and fatally injured.
Don’t ride an ATV as a passenger or carry a passenger when you drive an ATV. Most ATVs are designed to carry only one person. Drivers need to be able to shift their weight freely in any direction in order to respond to the terrain and adequately control the vehicle. Having additional people on the ATV impairs the ability of drivers to properly shift their weight and control the vehicles.
Contact the Houston ATV Injury Lawyers at Denena Points, PC for a Free Initial Legal Consultation if you or Your Loved Ones have been injured in an ATV Accident
We always offer a free and confidential initial consultation. You have no obligation to hire an attorney. And our 15 years of experience successfully handling Texas injury and wrongful death claims could help guide you in making informed decisions to benefit your family after a serious ATV accident. Contact us at 281-369-4363 or through our online contact form for your free consultation. Let us help guide you to a fair financial recovery after a needless accident has harmed you.