Rockingham and Augusta County Accidents Increase as State Opens Up

Auto Accidents in Rockingham and Augusta Counties Increase as the Commonwealth Opens for Business

On Friday, May 15th, Virginians enjoyed a lessening of the stay at home restrictions to prevent COVID-19.  While a lessening of the restrictions is likely good for businesses, it has had some painful consequences for drivers.  Since the state reopened, there have been 22 motor vehicle accidents in Rockingham and Augusta counties. And, just after this article was first published, there was a fatal crash in Nelson County as well.  It seems that the increased numbers of drivers on the road since the state reopened may be causing some safety issues.

Accidents in Rockingham and Augusta

Here is a list of accidents showing that accidents in Rockingham and Augusta Counties have increased since May 15th. To make reading easier, accidents in Harrisonburg are listed as “Rockingham.”

5/15  Stone Spring Road/Port Republic Road (Rockingham)

5/15  Spotswood Trail near Elkton Food Lion (Rockingham)

5/15  Reservoir Street/Lucy Drive (Rockingham)

5/15  Liberty Street/Acorn Drive (Rockingham)

5/15  Chestnut Ridge Dr./East Market Street (Rockingham)

5/15 I-81, mile marker 218 (Augusta)

5/15  Rawley Pike, Hinton (Rockingham)

5/15  I -81, mile marker 207 (Augusta)

5/16  I-81, Woodrow Wilson Parkway ramp (Augusta)

5/16  Vehicle in pond (Augusta)

5/16  Port Republic Road/Misty Court (Rockingham)

5/16 Spotswood Trail/McGaheysville Road (Rockingham)

5/16  I-81, mile marker 236 (Augusta)

5/16  I-81, mile marker 257 (Rockingham)

5/17  Vehicle in tree, Berrytown Road (Rockingham)

5/18  Rawley Pike (Rockingham)

5/18 I-81, mile marker 223 (Augusta)

5/18  Tinkling Spring Road (Augusta)

5/18  E. Spotswood Avenue/North Street (Rockingham)

5/18  Fairview Road/Back Road (Augusta)

5/18  Pedestrian Struck on Berry Farm Road (Rockingham)

Some Safety Reminders

With more people on the roads, it’s important to remember a few driving tips to help keep you safe:

1. Slow down!  Watch your speed, especially heading into curves.  Speed appears to be a major factor in a significant amount of the accidents mentioned above.
2. Keep a good following distance.  If you maintain a 3 second following distance behind the car in front of you, you will have more time to react if other drivers make any unexpected moves.
3. Check your blind spots before changing lanes.

Insurance Adjuster Games

If you’ve been in an accident that was someone else’s fault, watch out for these games that insurance adjusters play to lessen the value of your case:

1.  I’d like to take your statement.  Adjusters are paid to investigate claims and gather facts.  One way they do this is by getting statements from all the people involved in an accident.  This may sound reasonable and innocent.  But, insurance adjusters are paid to give you less money than your claim is worth.  So, the questions the adjuster asks you will often be slanted to favor the party who caused the accident.
2. Please sign this Medical Authorization Form.  Your adjuster will probably ask you to sign a Medical Authorization Form.  These forms are worded very broadly so the adjuster can access your complete medical history.
3. Why do you need a lawyer? I’ll work with you.  Insurance adjusters want to keep attorneys from getting involved in cases.  This is true because the price of settlement usually goes up once a lawyer gets on the case.  Adjusters prefer to work with the claimant who doesn’t know his or her rights.

So What Do You Do About Adjuster Games?

We can help.  If you’re frustrated by the way your insurance adjuster is handling your claim, we’re here to help.