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Written and reviewed by Peter Zneimer

You are visiting at a friend’s house and as you are walking down their front stairs, you slip and fall on ice and break your arm. Do you have a cause of action against your friend for your injuries?  That is a common question that the personal injury lawyers of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. receive during winter months.  The answer is: “it depends”.

In Illinois, landowners and occupiers have no common-law duty to remove natural accumulation of snow and ice from their property.  Additionally, even if the landowner has made an attempt to clear ice and snow but did not clear it all, the landowner is not liable for any injuries caused by slipping and falling on that ice or snow. See the case of Murphy-Hylton v. Lieberman Management Services, Inc., 2016 IL 120394.  This “natural-accumulation” rule was further codified for owners of residential units in the “Snow and Ice Removal Act” 745 ILCS 75/1 which states that the owner of a residential property who removes or attempts to remove ice and snow from his or her sidewalks shall not be liable for personal injuries caused by the icy or snowy condition.

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You buy a new car and you finance it and make your payments every month.  You drive a lot and put 60,000 mile on your car in one year. Then one year later another driver runs a red light and slams into your car.  You, thankfully, are not injured, but your car is a total loss. Good thing you have full coverage.  You insurance company evaluates your car and determines the value of your car is $15,000 and will cut you a check for that amount.  Unfortunately, you still owe $20,000.00 on your car.   You complain about the settlement offer but the insurance company points out that they are only liable to pay the value of your car, not what you paid for it and directs you to Kelly Blue book to verify what your car is worth. You may ask how can I protect myself from incurring a loss in this situation.  The personal injury Lawyers of Zneimer & Zneimer, P.C, have encountered this scenario quite a few times and the first thing we ask our clients is whether there was a GAP insurance policy in effect at the time of the accident.

What Is GAP Insurance?

GAP insurance“Guaranteed Asset Protection” is a type of auto insurance coverage that protects car owners from financial loss if their vehicle is totaled or stolen and the payout from their standard auto insurance doesn’t cover the full amount they owe on the car loan or lease.

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Written and reviewed by Peter Zneimer

Anyone who computes down Western Ave. in Chicago has noticed all the construction being done along the sidewalks to add curb bump-outs and other pedestrian friendly additions.  Curb bump-outs are curbs that are extended into the street, creating more space on the sidewalk at the corner.  The philosophy behind curb bump-outs according to the Chicago Department of Transportation website is that the bump-outs make the streets safer and reduce pedestrian injuries that result from pedestrians being hit by a car:

  • Slowing down traffic by narrowing the street

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You conscientiously pay your auto insurance premium month after month. You pay extra for full collision coverage.  You have never made a claim in years. Then for no fault of your own, someone driving with no insurance rear-ends your vehicle.  You are taken to the emergency room in an ambulance and your car is totaled.  This is the time when you need your insurance company to come through for you.  However, you call the insurance company and wait on hold for 45 minutes.  The insurance company takes forever to adjust your claim and when they finally make an offer it is for far less than your car is worth on your car damage claim and they contest your personal injury claim, only offering nuisance value that doesn’t even cover your medical bills.   At this time your are wishing that you had picked a better insurance company, even if it would have costed a little more. Completely frustrated, you call the Illinois Department of Insurance to make a complaint but you are told that your complaint will be recorded but the agency is too understaffed to do anything about it. The Illinois Department of Insurance used to post complaint ratios of insurance companies to advise consumers of which insurance companies received the most complaints, but stopped doing that in 2020.

The Chicago Sun-Times  recently did a study of Illinois Department of Insurance data and determined a small number of substandard insurance companies account for a large percentage of the customer complaints. The Sun-Times decided to analyze the raw data from the departments webpage themselves for the years 2021-2023 from the departments website.  The study revealed that eight substandard insurance companies accounting for 5.28% of the of the passenger car liability insurance market accounted for an stunning 40% of the complaints filed.  The study used a formula to compare companies.  The complaint ratio was calculated by taking the number of complaints divided by the amount of premiums paid in millions of dollars. Below are the substandard insurance companies that received the most complaints:

  • First Chicago Insurance of Bedford Park ranked highest in complaints in Illinois in 2023 with 180 complaints according to the Sun-Times article, with the highest complaint ratio of 5.14 which was 39 times higher than State Farm.

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El uso de scooters eléctricos ha aumentado dramáticamente en Chicago en los últimos años. La popularidad de los scooters eléctricos ha sido impulsada por la introducción de servicios compartidos como Divvy, Lime y Spin. Estos scooters se dejan en las aceras y calles y se pueden desbloquear con una aplicación de teléfono inteligente. Cuando un usuario termina su viaje, puede dejar el scooter en su destino. Este aumento en el uso de scooters eléctricos ha estado acompañado por un aumento en las visitas a la sala de emergencias relacionadas con los scooters eléctricos.

Es fácil ver lo vulnerables que son los conductores de scooters a las lesiones. Los scooters eléctricos alcanzan velocidades de hasta 20 MPH y algunos incluso van más rápido. El abogado especializado en lesiones por scooters eléctricos, Peter Zneimer de Zneimer & Zneimer, P.C., recientemente conducía por la avenida Peterson en Chicago a aproximadamente 25 MPH cuando fue adelantado por un scooter eléctrico que iba al menos a 30 MPH. Además, los scooters eléctricos tienen ruedas pequeñas que requieren superficies lisas para circular. Como cualquier residente de Chicago puede confirmar, los baches y las superficies irregulares están por todas partes en las calles de Chicago. Cuando las ruedas pequeñas de un scooter eléctrico golpean un bache o una superficie irregular, es probable que el conductor salga despedido con fuerza al pavimento. Si una persona se cae de un scooter eléctrico al pavimento a estas velocidades, las lesiones son casi seguras. Las lesiones más comunes son cortes, raspones, moretones, fracturas y lesiones en la cabeza.

Hubo aproximadamente 42,200 visitas a la sala de emergencias en los Estados Unidos en 2021, según la Comisión de Seguridad de Productos del Consumidor. Esto representa un aumento del 66% con respecto a 2020. El aumento en las lesiones afecta a niños menores de 16 años. Debido al alto riesgo de lesiones, la Academia Estadounidense de Pediatría recomienda que los niños menores de 16 años no puedan usar scooters eléctricos.

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Escrito y revisado por Peter Zneimer

En los últimos años, Chicago ha invertido mucho en mejorar la seguridad en los cruces peatonales. La ciudad ha agregado señales en muchos de los cruces. Algunos incluyen advertencias de que es una violación de la ley estatal no detenerse para los peatones en un cruce peatonal. Los cruces más sofisticados tienen luces intermitentes que se activan al presionar un botón que advierte a los automovilistas que los peatones están cruzando. Los esfuerzos de la ciudad para mejorar la seguridad peatonal son dignos de elogio, dado el aumento de las lesiones peatonales en Illinois. Los abogados de lesiones personales de Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. observan que los casos de accidentes peatonales suelen tener lesiones graves porque estos accidentes, la mayoría de las veces, implican un vehículo que golpea a un cuerpo humano.

Dado el aumento constante de muertes peatonales en el condado de Cook, el dinero gastado en mejorar la seguridad peatonal está bien invertido. Según la Administración Nacional de Seguridad del Tráfico en las Carreteras (NHTSA), las muertes por accidentes peatonales en el condado de Cook aumentaron un 28% entre 2016 y 2020. En otro estudio realizado por la Asociación de Seguridad en las Carreteras de los Gobernadores (GHSA), se mostró que las muertes de peatones en Illinois aumentaron un 55% entre 2005 y 2020.

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Las leyes de la física se aplican a todo, incluidos los accidentes de vehículos. Cuando un SUV o camión de 5,500 libras choca con un automóvil que pesa 3,300 libras, es de esperar que el automóvil sufra más daños y, en consecuencia, es más probable que el conductor del automóvil resulte herido o fallezca. Los abogados de lesiones automovilísticas de Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. han observado que cuando automóviles más pequeños están involucrados en choques con SUVs grandes o camiones, el automóvil más pequeño sufrirá significativamente más daño. The Economist realizó recientemente un estudio en el que recopiló diez años de datos de accidentes de informes policiales de 14 estados. Sus hallazgos fueron publicados el 7 de septiembre de 2024 en un artículo titulado “Peligrosamente pesados”. Los números son sorprendentes. Para los vehículos más pesados, aquellos que pesan alrededor de 6,800 libras, los conductores de estos vehículos experimentaron 4.1 “muertes en el propio vehículo” por cada 10,000 accidentes, en comparación con 6.6 “muertes en el propio vehículo” para autos que pesan un promedio de 3,500 libras. Sin embargo, estos vehículos más pesados fueron responsables de 37 “muertes en el vehículo contrario” por cada 10,000 accidentes. Entonces, si bien los conductores de los vehículos más pesados estaban ligeramente más seguros, el resto de nosotros en autos corríamos un riesgo sustancialmente mayor de sufrir lesiones o muerte. The Economist observa, basándose en estos datos, que “por cada vida que los SUVs y camiones más pesados salvan, se pierden más de una docena de vidas en otros vehículos”. Para los vehículos en el 10% superior de peso, que pesan al menos 5,000 libras, la tasa de mortalidad fue de 26 muertes por cada 10,000 accidentes. El conductor del SUV o camión experimentó 5.9 de estas muertes por cada 10,000 accidentes, mientras que el desafortunado vehículo contrario experimentó 20.2 muertes por cada 10,000 accidentes. Para la siguiente categoría, de vehículos que pesan entre 5,000 y 4,500 libras, la distribución fue de 5.4 muertes del conductor del SUV o camión por cada 10,000 accidentes y una tasa de mortalidad de 10.3 muertes por cada 10,000 accidentes para el vehículo contrario. Lo que las estadísticas dejan en claro es que el peso mata. Además, también es evidente que el peso de los vehículos más pesados se puede reducir sustancialmente con solo un impacto mínimo en la seguridad del conductor del SUV o camión, mientras se salvan muchas más vidas de personas que conducen vehículos de peso promedio.

Dadas estas estadísticas tan contundentes, uno pensaría que se prestaría más atención a este problema de seguridad. Sin embargo, los abogados de lesiones de Zneimer y Zneimer, P.C. señalan que los automóviles estadounidenses solo están aumentando de peso, creando un ambiente de carrera armamentista en el que los conductores estadounidenses necesitan comprar vehículos cada vez más pesados solo para estar seguros de otros conductores. El automóvil nuevo promedio en Estados Unidos ahora pesa 4,400 libras, mientras que el automóvil promedio europeo pesa 3,200 libras y el automóvil promedio japonés pesa 2,600 libras. Una solución sería imponer un fuerte recargo a los vehículos más pesados. Antes de que una idea así pueda ganar tracción, sin embargo, es necesario que las personas sean más conscientes de los peligros que representan los SUVs y camiones más pesados en las carreteras.

Publicado en: Accidentes automovilísticos y Accidentes de camiones

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Written by Peter Zneimer

Chicago has had only 0ne bicyclist fatality in 2024 as of September 16, 2024. Though any bike death is a tragedy, that number is a vast improvement from previous years.  According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, Chicago reported seven bicyclist deaths in 2023, 10 deaths in 2022, and 11 in 2021.  The question that Chicago city officials and bike safety advocates is contemplating is whether the decrease is a fluke or whether the decrease can be attributed to actions taken by the city to improve bike safety.

The bike injury lawyers of Zneimer and Zneimer P.C. note that the city of Chicago has been committed to broad program to improve bike safety in the city. Chicago, in recent years, has instituted 50 miles of bike safety upgrades and 27 miles protected bike lanes that have been completed by the Chicago Department of Transportation.  Though improvements have been made, Chicago has a ways to reach its vision zero goals of zero traffic deaths since there have been 22 pedestrian deaths and 41 traffic deaths in Chicago through July of 2024 according to the Chicago Department of Transportation.

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Written by Peter Zneimer

The laws of physics apply to everything including vehicle crashes.  When a 5,500 pound SUV or pick-up truck crashes with an automobile weighing 3,300 pounds you would expect the automobile to sustain more damage and consequently the automobile driver is more likely to be injured or killed.  The car injury lawyers of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. have observed that when smaller cars are involved in crashes with large SUVs or pick-up trucks, the smaller car will incur significantly more damage. The Economist recently did a study where it collected ten years of crash data from police reports from 14 states. Their findings were published in September 7th, 2024 in an article entitled “Dangerously heavy”.  The numbers are stunning.  For the heaviest vehicles, those weighing around 6,800 pounds, the drivers of these vehicles experienced 4.1 “own car deaths” per 10,000 crashes. compared with 6.6 “own car deaths” for cars weighing the average of 3,500 pounds.  However, these heaviest vehicles were responsible for  37 “partner -car deaths” per 10,000 crashes. So while the drivers of the heaviest vehicles were slightly more safe, the rest of us in cars were put at substantially more risk of injury or death.  The Economist observes based on this data “that for every life that the heaviest SUVs and trucks save, more than a dozen lives are lost in other vehicles.”  For vehicles in the top 10% of weight, weighing at least 5,000 pounds, the death rate was 26 deaths per 10,000 crashes.  The SUV or pick-up driver experienced 5.9 of these deaths per 10,000 crashes while the unlucky partner vehicle experienced 20.2 deaths per 10,000 crashes. For the next category for vehicles weighing 5,000 to 4,500 pounds the the breakdown was 5.4  SUV or pick-up driver deaths per 10,000 crashes and a death rate of 10.3 deaths per 10,000 crashes for the partner vehicle.  What the statistics make clear is that weight kills. Furthermore, it is also clear that the weight of the heaviest vehicles can be reduced substantially with only minimally affecting the safety of the SUV or pick-up truck driver while saving many more lives of people driving average weight vehicles.

Given these stark statistics one would think there would be more attention focused on this safety issue.  However, the injury lawyers of Zneimer and Zneimer, P.C. note that American cars are only getting heavier creating an arms race environment where American drivers need to buy heavier and heavier vehicles just to be safe from other drivers. The average new car in America now weighs 4,400 pounds while the average European car weighs 3,200 pounds and the average Japanese car weighs 2,600 pounds. One solution would be to levy a steep surcharge on the heaviest vehicles.  Before such an idea can gain traction however, people need to be more aware of the dangers poised by the heaviest SUVs and pick-up trucks on the roadways.

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Chicago has witnessed a dramatic increase of e-scooters riders on the roadways and bike paths in recent years propelled propelled by e-scooter ride share companies like Divvy and Lime setting up stations.  With increased number of e-scooter riders, the e-scooter injury lawyers of Zneimer & Zneimer P.C. has also observed a dramatic increase of people injured in e-scooter accidents.  Driving around Chicago, one witnesses e-scooters everywhere.  One sees people riding on the bike paths, riding on the sidewalk, riding with traffic and riding against traffic.  To add to the confusion, e-scooter riders have a tendency not to follow traffic rules like stopping at stop signs and stopping for red lights.

The influx of e-scooter riders on the sidewalks and on roadways have not only lead to more accidents but also more complaints from pedestrians who must dodge e-scooters. With more complaints comes more regulations.  Some cities have gone a step further and have banned e-scooters all together. The city of Melbourne has recently voted to end its contracts with e-scooter operators, Lime and Neuron ending a two year trial period.  “I have heard in recent days from residents, from traders, from visitors to Melbourne, literally begging us to bring the trial to an end to make our city safe again” Melbourne Mayor Nicolas Reece was quoted in saying at a news conference.

Though the e-scooters were popular, averaging 6,800 daily trips according to city statistics, the popularity also came with a sharp rise in complaints from pedestrians on footpaths and a sharp rise in emergency room visits.  The Royal Melbourne Hospital reported 256 e-scooter related injuries in 2023, including one death.

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