A Big Win Against ICBC

Michelle Ma of Klein Lyons recently received this thank you note from Kristy Williams who took on the machine at ICBC. She recently received a court awarded settlement for 14 times the amount ICBC offered her. Kristy’s thank you makes the win that much more satisfying!

“Pretty awesome, eh?  It’s only just beginning to sink in! In fact, things went much better than expected.

You have no idea how thankful & grateful I am to Klein Lyons for being there for me throughout this whole mess. It couldn’t have happened without you guys.

You [Michele Ma], Jenn and Paul have been awesome for putting in so much time and effort with this case.

As for Michelle? She rocks more than Stonehenge. If it wasn’t for her…I cannot find adequate words to convey the depth of my gratitude to her for everything she’s done. I haven’t been the best at conveying thanks sometimes. Indeed, I think I’ve been a bit a bit difficult at times, particularly in the prep/lead-up to trial. Stress, 3.5 years of constant pain and so on, it’s built up over time, I’ve noticed the change and it does disturb me.

Michelle has gone above and beyond with me (as have you all). Not only did she deal with the legal rigamarole, she also took care of me at times (e.g. taking me out to dinner or making sure I had food/drink every time we had a meeting) and bore my temperamental outbursts during trial prep very well. Speaking of the temper – it’s never been personal at all and she’s one of the few people I feel safe with, whom I feel safe in showing that part of myself. For that alone, she deserves a medal!”

 Read more about Kristy’s accidents and the process leading up to trial in the next Klein Lyons Full Disclosure that will be published in June 2012.

Worth Checking Out: Kristy is an avid photographer and prior to her injury, she travelled the world. Check out her fantastic work at www.kristywilliams.net, and photos, and thoughtful blog: www.wanderingpixie.com

A Split Second Can Last Forever

Alex, the husband of one of my best friends has a saying, “Your life is measured in seconds and inches (ok, should be centimeters, but doesn’t have the same impact). The first time I heard him say that I didn’t really take it to heart, but after participating in many presentations by Drop It And Drive or MADD, this short, powerful sentence has more meaning than one can ever imagine.

Drop It And Drive advocates every day against distracted driving. It only takes a second to make a fatal mistake. Take a moment to watch this video of Dustin Vernie’s story. It is sad but it really illustrates that one decision can create that split second that can change your life forever. Drop It And Drive Safely.

France Mandates a DIY Breathalyzer Kit

Last week I wrote about the Decade of Action for Road Safety. I am on a mission to look globally at what is happening around the world to reduce car-accident deaths and injuries.

Recently I stumbled upon a very interesting approach by France’s President Sarkozy. Macleans magazine reported that France is the first country to mandate its motorists to carry a Breathalyzer kit. After November 2012, anyone caught driving without one can be fined 15 Euros. This strategy is aimed at reducing the 4,000 annual road-traffic deaths in France. One third of those are attributed to alcohol, the highest stats in Europe.

France has a legal blood-alcohol limit of 0.05. The country issues very stiff penalties for blowing over 0.08, including up to € 6,000 in fines and possible prison terms.

Breathalyzer

To support its increased focus on road safety, France has been diligent in implementing roadside checks and speed cameras.  All have reduced the number of fatalities.  But will mandating drivers to have a ‘do-it-yourself’ (DIY) Breathalyzer effectively complement these other strategies?  Will people who have had too much to drink pull out their Breathalyzer? If they blow over the limit, will that encourage drivers to get out from behind the wheel? It only takes a drink or two to be impaired, so why even bother with the kit? If you have had any alcohol, the best prevention method could simply be, DON’T DRIVE. And what about all the people who don’t even drink and drive but are mandated to purchase and carry a kit? Is that a fair driver requirement?

Having been to France several times, I can tell you that it is all too easy to drink and drive in that region of the world. Great wine is affordable and accessible. The public transportation infrastructure is limited outside of the big cities. So enjoy the best wine in the world, but plan ahead to get home safely.

Are Road-Crash Deaths an Epidemic?

The International Symbol of Road Safety

Every six seconds, someone is killed or seriously injured on the world’s roads.  Make Roads Safe calls the 1.3 million deaths and 20 to 50 million injuries per year an “epidemic.”

Based on the definition of an epidemic (200 occurrences per 100,000 of population), road crashes worldwide are becoming an epidemic–and a world health issue.  The rise in road-crash deaths and injuries has, in fact, prompted the United Nations (UN) to pass resolution A/RES/64/255 and designate 2011-2020 as ‘The Decade of Action for Road Safety.’  The goal of the resolution is to stabilize and then reduce traffic deaths around the world.  The objective is to save five million lives.

There are currently numerous symbols that represent—and have sparked public momentum around—particular world issues, such as the red ribbon for HIV/Aids, the white band to support the fight against global poverty, and the pink ribbon for breast cancer. A prominent yellow Road Safety Tag is now the new global symbol for the movement to improve safety on our roads.  The UN, World Health Organization (WHO), and notable individuals such as UK Prime Minister David Cameron, members of the Mandela family, Michael Schumacher (Formula One champion), members of the Ghana Black Stars (soccer team), as well as many other key influencers, have all put their support behind the movement. 

Road-crash statistics are alarming, particularly for the youth of our world. Vehicle crashes are currently the leading, global cause of death for young people aged 10 to 24WHO estimates that the financial costs are more than $100 billion US per year. We can stop this epidemic.  The science is in place the safety resources are in place. We just all need to take responsibility for driving safely each and every time we get behind the wheel and lend our support to the cause of reducing road deaths and injuries.

“The Decade of Action for Road Safety can help all countries drive along the path to a more secure future… Today, partners around the world are releasing national or citywide plans for the Decade, hosting policy discussions and enabling people affected by road crashes to share their stories widely. Now we need to move this campaign into high gear and steer our world to safer roads ahead. Together, we can save millions of lives.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Message on the launch of the Decade of Action for Road Safety, 11 May 2011.

Kamikaze Pedestrian (aka the Jaywalker)

I have been obsessing about jaywalking lately. In downtown Vancouver it’s rampant. People dart across the road, weave in and out of traffic, jump in front of parked buses, and cross against a light in the pitch dark. It scares me! Do pedestrians not understand the result of connecting their bodies with 2000 lbs of metal? Have these people never been behind the wheel of a car? The sad story will be the poor driver who didn’t see it coming. We all need to take personal responsibility and focus on safety.

My girls and I were out shopping in downtown Vancouver and lo and behold, I did the unthinkable. We jaywalked across Robson Street. I didn’t think much about it at the time, but it sure hit home an hour later when my eldest daughter stated, “Before you think it’s safe to jaywalk, have a word with yourself.” I look up and she is reading a billboard. It’s part of the fantastic, “Have a Word With Yourself” campaign by www.Preventable.ca.

As a driver I really dislike jaywalkers, but as a pedestrian, I too want to find the shortcut. But in the end, we both have to take care on the roads. Pedestrians should stick to the crosswalks and cars should yield to pedestrians when safe to do so. If we all follow the rules, we won’t have to have a word with ourselves.

A snippet from From Peter D. Norton’s Fighting Traffic (MIT, 2008), pp. 72-79:

The cleverest anti-jaywalking publicity effort was in Detroit in 1922, where the Packard Motor Car Company exploited the new fashion for monuments to traffic fatalities. Packard built an oversized imitation tombstone that closely resembled the monument to the innocent child victims of accidents in Baltimore. But Packard’s tombstone redirected blame to the victims. It was marked ‘Erected to the Memory of Mr. J. Walker: He Stepped from the Curb Without Looking.’ [...]

Driving Yourself to Hurried Sickness

I read a great blog the other day by Mark Powers about “Hurried Sickness”. It really got me thinking, “In our North American Society, do we have a pandemic of Hurried Sickness?” Do you personally suffer from this ailment?

In our quest to get the to-do list done, and in a culture of “do more with less”, do we pack too many activities in a day? Hurried sickness is leaving the report to the last minute, leaving the home or office at the last minute and perpetually running a little behind the eight ball. When we operate like this, we are in flight mode, the adrenalin is up and this can lead to risky driving behavior.

When you get in your car do you race to the red light? Do you change lanes frequently trying to pass other cars? Do you take short cuts through alleys? Do you avoid routes with traffic calming devices and speed restrictions? If you do, you have the symptoms of Driving Hurried Sickness!

This year, make a New Years Resolution that can lead to less stress and safer driving. This is one resolution that won’t fail. It won’t cost you anything, it isn’t hard to maintain, and you receive immediate rewards! Take the time to learn to slow down, not just in your car, but also throughout your daily life.

1. Take a few moments to plan out your day – what is feasible and what can realistically be accomplished.
2. Leave 5-10 minutes early for your next destination.
3. Allocate squish time.
4. In the car, take a few deep breaths before turning on the ignition
5. Learn to go with the flow – traffic that is. Stay in one lane consistently and keep an even speed.
6. Pay it forward – learn to be generous on the road to other drivers.

By being proactive with your driving health, you too can get rid of hurried sickness and contribute to safer driving habits.

A Mother’s Grief: A Child Lost to a Drunk Driver Never Comes Home

November marked a month of remembrance and recognition to victims of drunk and distracted driving. The real life stories are heart breaking and if we all remember these stories whenever we take the wheel, there will be no more distracted or drunk driving.

Drop It And Drive hosted a memorial event at Sullivan Heights High School in Surrey on November 29 to bring awareness to the senseless loss of life due to distracted driving.  A solemn parade of 96 high school students, holding 96 coats,, represented 96 lives – lost to distracted driving. But it is not just 96 lives. It is the many lives affected by the loss of a loved one, it is the domino effect of hundreds of people dealing with pain, sorrow, grief and remorse. 96 drivers who caused 96 deaths – all of which were completely preventable. The pain never fully goes away for both victim and negligent driver.

MADD Metro Vancouver held their Red Ribbon Campaign in Surrey, BC on November 30.  The event is held every year just before the holiday season to remind people to take personal responsibility and to not drink and drive. As stated by Bob Rorison, President of MADD Metro Vancouver, “Just because you had the least to drink in your group, does not make you the designated driver.  One drink is too many.”   There were many statistics communicated, heart felt speeches by first responders, politicians and lawyers, but there is only one speech that a person needs to hear. That is the sorrow of a mother who has lost a child due to drunk driving.

Please take a few moments to listen to the story (very amateur video by the blogger) of Markita Kaulius, who lost her 22-year-old daughter Kassandra Kaulius to a drunk driver on May 3rd, 2011 in Surrey, BC. Remember her sorrow and support MADD to remove drunk drivers from the road. The Kaulius family have also started  Families for Justice, a support and resource group to help other families who have lost loved ones in tragic preventable car crashes.

Happy holidays and safe driving everyone.

If you are celebrating over the holidays please  take a cab, take a bus, walk, sleep over, call your mom, dad or best friend, or call a designated driver server.

The Life You Save Could Be Your Own

With the holidays approaching, I’ve had a chance to reflect on a more personal level on the tragic consequences of impaired driving. Recently, I had the privilege of addressing MADD presentations at two Vancouver high schools. MADD does incredibly important work in educating students, and Klein Lyons is pleased to sponsor them.

The students were very respectful and attentive. I tried to drive home to them how their age group is particularly at risk. They then watched a film about families touched by the death of a teenager in an alcohol related car accident. The film also dealt with the legal nightmare facing the impaired driver whose carelessness resulted in the death of his girlfriend, and paralysis of his best friend. They were visibly moved by the true story of accident victims close to them in age and life experience. Hopefully MADD can continue to mount these presentations across the country so the newest generation of drivers practices zero tolerance when it comes to driving and drinking and drugs.

In Surrey I spoke at the kick off for MADD’s seasonal “Red Ribbon” program to raise public awareness at a time of year when people are celebrating the holidays and, unfortunately, often mixing drinking and driving. The police, fire and ambulance services were well represented. Several families of peopled killed in senseless impaired accidents were also in attendance. Many carried photos of their loved ones, heartbreaking reminders of lives tragically snuffed out by the actions of impaired drivers. It was a powerful reminder that impaired driving is about real life people with shattered families and stolen futures, not statistics or abstract warnings.

Happy Holidays everyone. Please do not drink and drive. The life you save could be your own.

Local Advocacy Group Plans Fundraiser for National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims

The National Day of Remembrance for Road Crash Victims in Canada is on November 23, 2011. This day commemorates those killed or seriously injured on Canadian roads; not in accidents but in preventable collisions.

The number of people killed to date in 2011 on BC roads is 279. Approximately 35% of those deaths can be attributed to distracted driving. That is 98 preventable deaths.

One local advocate, Karen Bowman, founder of Drop It And Drive is taking this seriously. Distracted driving is more than electronic devices,” says Bowman, it includes drinks, food, makeup, reading, and the kids fighting in the back. There are so many potential distractions. A driver needs to be fully aware and present when driving.” Challenged by the increasing multitasking drivers around her and an accident that involved her own child, Bowman developed an educational program to take the message on the road.

Drop It And Drive has been gaining momentum over the last year and provides educational seminars to schools, communities, government bodies and associations. Drop It And Drive has the support of many organizations such as the Surrey Firefighters, the Surrey RCMP, Young Drivers of Canada and Klein Lyons. To bring awareness to this increasingly dangerous behavior;  this National Day of Remembrance, Drop It And Drive is hosting the first annual “Show You Care With Coats” charity event on Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at Sullivan Heights Secondary School in Surrey. The event activities are geared to educate, bring awareness to distracted driving and to give recognition to those who have lost their lives. Drop It And Drive is seeking donations of new or gently used winter coats to represent and honour the 98 lives lost in British Columbia. Donations will go to Surrey Urban Mission and The Front Room (South Fraser Community Services Society) with non-perishable food donations for the Surrey Food Bank.

Location

Sullivan Heights Secondary School Lower Parking Lot
6248 144 Street, Surrey, BC V3X 1A1Date: Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Time

10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

About

98 Coat Salute, Young Drivers of Canada Car and Track, Veteran Fire Fighter Greg
Drew, founder of Jammin’4 Jay Charitable Society.
We have confirmation that the Surrey Fire Fighters will do the crash extraction demonstration between 10 am and 11 am.

Coats can be dropped off before November 29th at Klein Lyons and labeled ‘Show You Care With Coats.’ Coats and food donations will be accepted at the event.

Drinking and Driving is Devastating. Even on a John Deere Lawn Tractor Mower

Photo courtesy of: John Deere, http://www.deere.com

A couple of years ago, there was a Mad Men episode that was darkly humorous.  At an office party, Lois takes the in-house John Deere tractor mower for a spin, loses control, and runs over MacKendrick’s foot, causing a bloodbath and worse.

Prior to the incident, everyone in the office was celebrating and drinking alcohol (what episode of Mad Men is there no alcohol?). For Mad Men fans this was a classic scene never to be forgotten. Unexpected, edgy, and fiercely entertaining. But there’s also a point that stands out in the driving world. Drinking and driving affects every one of us and can happen in an instance. Lois will always have to live with that moment of disfiguring another human and losing her job.  MacKendrick will never walk the same again and gets sent back to London, losing his opportunity to climb the corporate ladder.

During the week of October 24^th, Mark Lyons and I participated in the MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) Canada Multimedia Damages presentation to more than 600 high school students at John Oliver and Templeton Secondary Schools’ in Vancouver.  “Our message is simple: drinking affects everyone, even if you are not the one drinking. We can only continue to communicate to young drivers not to drink and drive. The results are devastating, not only to the victims but to the person who causes the mayhem and survives. Everyone is impacted:  friendships are destroyed, and families ripped apart. The real life stories are heart-breaking and can never be undone,” reports Mark.

Take the pledge to stay sober, make alternative transportation arrangements, have a designated driver, take a cab, or sleep over. Call 911 if an intoxicated friend gets behind the wheel. Take the pledge to call your parents if you have had too much to drink and promise them you will make it home after the party.