Acrophobia is associated with an intense fear of climbing up ladders, standing on balconies, and mainly, crossing over bridges. This type of phobia affects three to six percent of people. It is, unfortunately, understandable to have a fear of bridges, as many hazards may exist on them. Continue reading to learn the potential dangers you may face when driving over bridges and how an experienced Toronto auto accident lawyer at Merricks Law Group, P.A. can offer legal protection after such a horrific event.
What are the potential dangers of driving on bridges?
Even if you proceed on a bridge with an abundance of caution, you unfortunately cannot control the driving habits of neighboring motorists.
For example, a motorist a few automobiles ahead in your lane may tailgate the automobile in front of them and ultimately rear-end into them. And due to your confinement on a bridge, it may be difficult to avoid this rear-end accident you see occurring right in front of you. Therefore, this may cause a chain reaction collision in which you and the drivers in front of and behind you may crash into one another.
In another example, a motorist on either side of you may be recklessly failing to maintain their lane. And due to the tight lanes on a bridge, their veering may come close to striking your automobile. Therefore, you may try to swerve out of the way but ultimately make a side-door impact with a bridge barrier. What’s worse is if there is no bridge barrier present. Then, you may life-threateningly plummet into the water or fall into a ditch below.
Lastly, there are rare instances in which the motorists on a bridge do not pose any dangers to one another. Rather, the structure stability itself may have been hazardous. Sadly, this may result in a catastrophic bridge collapse that seriously injures or even kills present motorists.
What is the statute of limitations for an auto accident on a bridge?
No matter what danger prompted your auto accident on a bridge, you must consider the same statute of limitations for your personal injury claim. That is, Ontario enforces a deadline of two years from the date your auto accident on a bridge occurred. Of note, the same deadline applies if you are filing a wrongful death claim on behalf of your loved one who sadly passed due to an auto accident on a bridge.
Essentially, a failure to file on time means a failure to achieve justice after being made the victim of such a terrible event. This is all to say that there is no time like the present to kickstart your legal claim. So, at your earliest possible convenience, please get in touch with a skilled Ontario personal injury lawyer from Merricks Law Group, P.A.
