Motorists are often quick to blame anything other than their driving for the car accidents they cause: The road was slick. The weather was foggy. The car’s brakes were faulty. Another common defense is to shift the blame to the other driver. However, there’s an open question about whether there’s a link between car color and crash risk in Metairie, LA, collisions.
If an at-fault driver tries to attribute your accident to the color of your car, you have defenses available. A skilled Metairie car accident lawyer from the Law Office of John W. Redmann, L.L.C. can provide the evidence and legal arguments needed to overcome this deflection. Contact our law firm today at (504) 500-5000 to schedule a free consultation.
How the Law Office of John W. Redmann, L.L.C. Can Help After a Car Accident in Metairie, LA
Our legal team has extensive experience fighting for people injured in car accidents in Metairie, Louisiana. We have recovered millions of dollars from at-fault drivers and their insurers through negotiated settlements and court victories.
If you suffered an injury in a crash caused by driver negligence, our Metairie personal injury lawyers can help you pursue compensation by offering the following services:
- Reviewing your accident and analyzing the legal arguments you can raise
- Gathering records to support an insurance claim
- Defending you from claim denials and negotiating an insurance settlement
- Litigating your case if the insurer fails to resolve your case fairly
Insurance companies use many tactics to justify claim denials, including vehicle visibility. Contact us to schedule a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney. We’ll build a strong case on your behalf and help you seek meaningful compensation.
Does Car Color Affect Crash Risk?
Logically, one can imagine situations where car color might play a role in an accident. For instance, a black car with burned-out headlights is more likely to be involved in a head-on collision at night than a white car with its lights on. However, the role of color may be questionable, since the same car would have been visible even with its headlights on.
Another example involves glare. A highly reflective silver or white vehicle may reflect more intense glare than a black or dark blue vehicle. As a result, a driver approaching a light-colored vehicle could be blinded. Again, however, the issue is whether the color was the critical factor that made the collision unavoidable.
Studies on the Relationship Between Car Color and Crash Risk
Scientific studies have investigated whether certain colors are always more dangerous than others. As part of these experiments, researchers have examined crash risk across all conditions while controlling for time of day, lighting, and weather.
Two seminal experiments produced conflicting results. A study in New Zealand found that silver cars were safest under all conditions, while another in Australia concluded that silver cars were among the most dangerous.
These conflicting results were addressed by a subsequent study conducted by researchers at the University of Dayton. They looked only at the vehicle color of the driver not found liable for the crash. In other words, the scope was limited to the victim’s car color.
The University of Dayton researchers found that negligent drivers tend to hit cars at the same rate, regardless of their color. Their conclusion: No color was safer than any other.
Liability for Car Accidents in Poor Visibility Conditions
The University of Dayton study doesn’t necessarily resolve the issue of liability. In certain conditions, some colors could indeed make a vehicle harder to see. However, the law generally doesn’t consider this possibility a viable legal defense against an injury claim.
A driver acts negligently when they fail to exercise reasonable care. “Reasonable care” means that the driver avoided unreasonable risks to other road users. If a motorist can’t see the road or other vehicles, irrespective of their vehicle’s color, the reasonable response is to pull over, slow down, or take some other measure to reduce the risk of a crash.
Put another way, the color of the victim’s vehicle usually isn’t the central factor in causing a crash. Instead, most collisions can be traced to the at-fault driver’s actions. For example, a reckless driver may have been able to avoid a glare-related crash by paying closer attention, slowing down, or following at a greater distance.
Similarly, a collision that occurred in foggy or rainy conditions might not have been primarily due to the color of the car that was struck. Here, as in most cases, the victim can point to the other driver’s careless actions, such as speeding or distracted driving.
Contact Our Experienced Metairie Car Accident Lawyers for a Free Initial Consultation
Even when Metairie car accidents occur due to poor visibility, vehicle color is largely irrelevant. Contact the Law Office of John W. Redmann, L.L.C. for a free consultation with our Metairie car accident attorneys. Learn more about your legal options and right to compensation today.