Lowry, Herren & ClineLowry, Herren & Cline2026-08-13T10:54:49Zhttps://www.griffithlowry.com/feed/atom/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/sites/1504986/2020/11/cropped-glm-512x512-1-32x32.jpgOn Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[5 things to know during North Alabama’s back-to-school traffic]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489292026-08-13T10:54:49Z2026-08-13T10:49:18ZOn roads like US-278, AL-157 and I-65, it only takes one driver looking at a phone or running a bus stop arm to put a student in the hospital. Alabama law imposes clear duties on motorists to prevent tragedy, but parents see these rules broken every morning. If another motorist's negligence hurts your child this school year, you need to know what options your family has.
1. School zone speed limits are enforceable by law
Drivers must comply with strict speed limits in school zones to protect students during arrival and dismissal times. Most zones require vehicle operators to slow to 15 or 25 mph when lights flash or signs are posted. A driver who speeds through a school zone and hits your child has violated state law.
2. Bus stop arm laws exist to save lives
When a school bus extends its stop arm and flashes red lights, motorists traveling in both directions must come to a complete stop. The only exception under state law is for vehicles traveling in the opposite direction on a divided highway with a physical barrier or an unpaved median. On undivided four-lane roads, all lanes must stop.
3. Alabama bans using phones behind the wheel
Distracted driving remains a leading cause of crashes near schools and bus stops. Under the state’s Hands-Free Law, it is illegal for anyone to physically hold or manually operate a wireless telecommunication device while driving. If a distracted motorist hurts your child, an attorney can subpoena mobile phone records and telemetry data to demonstrate whether the driver was texting, browsing or physically holding a device at the time of impact.
4. Teen drivers face additional restrictions
Alabama's Graduated Driver License law places strict limits on 16- and 17-year-old Stage II drivers. These young motorists cannot operate vehicles between midnight and 6 a.m., and new license holders face restrictions on the number of passengers they can carry.When a teen driver violates these regulations and causes a crash, they are liable for damages. The teen's parents may also face liability if they meet specific legal criteria, such as negligently entrusting the vehicle to the young motorist.
5. The law offers an avenue to pursue recovery if an accident occurs
In the event of an avoidable accident, you can seek a personal injury claim on behalf of your child. Available compensation often includes:
Head into the school year with confidence and clarity
Safe commutes start with alert driving, and no parent should have to watch their child suffer because another driver chose to break the law. Alabama has protections to back you up when others fail to drive responsibly. If an unsafe driver disrupts your family's routine, knowing your legal rights ensures you can seek full justice and accountability.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[Road rage and motor vehicle accidents in Alabama]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489282026-07-07T15:58:03Z2026-07-22T15:56:13ZRoad rage behaviors that lead to crashes
When a motorist drives while angry or agitated, their emotions can quickly affect their judgement. Road rage often increases the risk of a collision due to the following actions:
Aggressive maneuvers: Tailgating, slamming on the brakes and weaving wildly through traffic
Intimidation: Using the vehicle as a weapon, forcing other drivers off the road or preventing other cars from merging
Impaired judgment: Experiencing delayed reaction times and decision-making caused by anger
A driver experiencing road rage is often more focused on reacting emotionally than on protecting the safety of others. As a result, the chance of a crash increases significantly.
The legal impact in Alabama
In Alabama, road rage often moves beyond simple negligence and into wantonness – a conscious disregard for others’ safety. When a driver acts wantonly, victims may be eligible for punitive damages, which punish the wrongdoer and deter similar conduct.
Alabama also follows a strict contributory negligence rule, which can make recovering compensation especially difficult for the injured party. If a victim even slightly contributed in any way to the accident, they may not recover compensation. Having strong evidence that proves that the other driver’s road rage caused the crash is crucial in establishing fault.
What to do after a road rage incident
If you get into a car crash because of another driver’s anger, your first priority should always be your safety. It is best not to argue with the aggressive driver or pull over to confront them, as this can escalate the situation and put you in further danger.
It is better to move to a safe location and call 911. You can collect evidence while waiting for police to arrive, including:
Photos of vehicle damage, skid marks, road conditions and injuries
Names and contact details of witnesses
Dashcam and traffic camera footage
When the police arrive, explain what happened and describe any aggressive or reckless behavior by the other driver. It is vital to ensure those details are in the police report.
Enforcing safer driving practices
Pursuing an insurance claim is not just about your personal recovery. It is also about preventing further car accidents involving intentional or wanton acts. A lawyer can help you hold the aggressive driver accountable while securing the compensation you deserve.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[5 dangers of June road construction work for Alabama motorists]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489262026-06-17T21:31:11Z2026-06-16T15:45:10ZUsual work zone dangers
Roadwork zones can change driving conditions quickly and increase the risk of severe motor vehicle crashes. Several common factors can cause liability for an injury after a road accident:
Poor signage: The Alabama Department of Transportation or private firms must provide clear alerts according to standard traffic rules. Failing to place clear merge signs or active speed limit warnings may put them at fault for resulting wrecks.
Negligent driving: Drivers must use great care and slow down when entering marked work zones. Drivers who speed, tailgate or look at cell phones violate the law and can face blame for rear-end crashes.
Hazardous conditions: Crews may leave steep drops, loose gravel or unmarked lane shifts that shake up passing cars. These groups can face blame if their failure to keep a safe road directly causes a driver to lose control.
Improper equipment placement: Crews might park big dump trucks, diggers or temporary walls too close to open lanes. This setup can cut the view of drivers and create obstacles for them.
Confusing lane merges: Engineering firms may build temporary lane transitions that force big trucks and small cars to combine too abruptly. When short merge zones trap high-speed traffic, the firm or contractor may share blame for side-swipe wrecks.
Following a work zone road accident in Alabama, it is essential to immediately take photos of the active crews to preserve vital evidence before the construction setup changes. These scene photos can help prove the other driver violated Alabama law, which doubles traffic fines for moving violations that happen while crews are working. In addition, police reports and traffic tickets issued to the driver can strengthen an injury claim.
Advocating for your rights
Navigating a motor vehicle accident claim while on the road to recovery can be overwhelming. With legal support, you may receive guidance for evaluating the evidence, identifying every at-fault party and advocating for your rights during a difficult time.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[Should you say “I’m sorry” at an Alabama accident scene?]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489242026-06-15T17:56:52Z2026-06-15T15:05:15ZHow an apology can ruin your claim
In Alabama, all injury claims must follow the pure contributory negligence system. This bars you from getting any compensation from the other driver, even if you are 1% at fault for the crash.
If you say that you are sorry to the other party, the insurance adjuster will treat this as a confession of guilt. You may have said this as a polite gesture, but it can be that 1% they need to deny your car accident claim entirely.
What you should say to the other driver
Instead of apologizing, check on everyone’s safety, including the other driver and their passengers. Then, exchange your names, contact numbers, driver’s licenses and insurance information.
Should they start the conversation about the collision, keep everything strictly to the facts. If they keep pressing you about the accident, simply inform them to let the police and insurance companies handle the details.
Once the police arrive at the accident scene, they will interview you for an accident report. You must be honest when answering their questions, but avoid speculating.
Getting legal help to handle insurance negotiations
Insurance adjusters tend to be aggressive in getting a confession from you. They can use various tactics to make you accept low settlement offers. Facing these by yourself can be overwhelming, but you do not have to do it alone. Seeking legal counsel from an experienced personal injury attorney can get you the guidance you need.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[Summer road trips through Alabama: Tips after a car accident]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489222026-06-12T15:46:08Z2026-06-12T15:46:08Z travel through Alabama is common as families head to lakes, Gulf beaches and travel the route south toward the Destin Coast. More vehicles on I-65, I-10 and rural lake corridors means more opportunities for crashes, especially when drivers are unfamiliar with local traffic patterns, speed changes and heavy congestion. When an out-of-state motorist is involved, the legal and insurance issues quickly become complicated.
Why out-of-state crashes create legal complexity
A typical Alabama wreck may involve one police report, one insurer and one set of state rules. Interstate accidents can involve multiple insurers, multiple states and disputes over where to file a lawsuit. Evidence also becomes harder to secure when drivers and witnesses return home quickly and vehicle repairs are completed in another state.
Jurisdiction and venue: where the claim belongs
When it comes to disputes about legal action, one of the first questions involves jurisdiction. Jurisdiction is the court’s authority over the parties. In many Alabama roadway crashes, Alabama courts can exercise jurisdiction because the collision occurred in Alabama and the defendant purposefully drove here. Venue then determines the proper county, often where the crash happened and results in the application of Alabama law.However, disputes over jurisdiction can arise in various circumstances such as when a crash involves a rental car company, an employer-owned vehicle or a driver who argues they have no meaningful ties to Alabama beyond passing through.
Insurance coordination: aligning policies and deadlines
Insurance coordination is the second major hurdle. Out-of-state drivers may carry coverage written under another state’s rules, while Alabama’s liability framework and procedural requirements generally still govern the claim. It is important to be aware of this potential roadblock and prepare to move forward with this potential issue in mind.Summer road trips should end with memories, not litigation. If a crash involves an out-of-state motorist in Alabama, jurisdiction and insurance coordination can quickly become the deciding factors. Prompt documentation, early insurer notice and experienced guidance can help preserve evidence, identify all available coverage and position the claim for a fair resolution.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[4 fatal driving mistakes you need to be aware of]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=489182026-06-02T16:46:06Z2026-06-02T12:09:04Z1. Driving blind (literally)
Smartphones pull your eyes off the road for several seconds at a time. If you look down to read a text for five seconds at 55 mph, you are driving the length of a football field completely blind. That is why so many rear-end collisions happen without the driver ever touching the brakes.
Other everyday distractions create similar deadly blind spots.
Eating a meal behind the wheel
Fiddling with the radio or climate controls
Turning around to talk to passengers
Any break in focus makes a sudden stop impossible.
2. Erasing your safety margin
Speeding increases the physical force of a crash and wipes out your reaction time. Excessive speed leaves you with zero safety margin to avoid an obstacle when traffic suddenly halts on a rural two-lane road or the highway. Aggressive habits such as tailgating or erratic lane changes turn a bad situation into a crash. Victims face long, painful recoveries.
3. Trying to power through exhaustion
Between local manufacturing and early-morning healthcare shifts, there are a lot of exhausted workers on the road. The CDC reports drowsy driving impairs your judgment and reaction time almost exactly as alcohol does.
Rolling down the windows or blasting the radio won't save you. Eventually, your body forces "micro-sleeps." Those brief, uncontrollable moments of unconsciousness in heavy traffic are all it takes to cause a devastating wreck.
4. Playing games in a semi-truck's blind spot
Thanks to the local warehousing industry, we share the road with a massive amount of heavy commercial trucks. While these operators hold special licenses, passenger cars make the mistake of lingering in a truck's blind spots or abruptly cutting them off.
A fully loaded tractor-trailer can need almost the length of two football fields to stop, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. When a smaller car cuts off a truck, the smaller vehicle absorbs the brutal brunt of the damage.
Financial recovery after a crash
Figuring out exactly which of these mistakes caused the wreck dictates how an injured person recovers financially. Lost wages and mounting medical bills create crushing stress when a crash forces you off the job. Insurance companies may try to shift the blame and offer quick, but low settlements before the full extent of your injuries is clear.
Securing evidence from the scene, pulling crash reports and negotiating with adjusters requires intense focus. Handing that heavy burden over to legal counsel who handles motor vehicle accidents lets you focus entirely on healing and getting your life back to normal.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[May is National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=488842026-05-09T21:16:53Z2026-05-09T21:16:53ZObserve the ‘look twice, save a life’ rule
One of the most common awareness campaigns related to motorcycle collisions is the widespread “look twice, save a life” campaign. Billboards, broadcast media advertisements and sometimes even yard signs remind drivers of the importance of checking for motorcycles in traffic.
Even the most fastidious driver could overlook a motorcycle due to how the brain works when managing too much incoming visual information. People overlook details that don't seem important for their safety due to their brains prioritizing visual elements that appear to be dangerous instead.
A motorcycle poses substantially less threat to a driver in a sedan than an SUV or a semi-truck, which makes it easy to overlook a motorcycle in traffic. People who intentionally double check for motorcycles are more likely to cognitively recognize two-wheeled vehicles at intersections or when preparing to conduct a maneuver in traffic.
Drivers can reduce their risk of causing a crash by operating under the assumption that a motorcycle is closer or approaching more rapidly than they can visually estimate. They can also intentionally maintain additional space when close to a motorcycle in traffic or at an intersection.
For motorcycle riders, prioritizing visibility is helpful. Safety experts also recommend that motorcycle riders pretend they are invisible to avoid scenarios where they have the right of way but a driver who didn't notice them causes a crash.
Those involved in motorcycle collisions may need help dealing with the aftermath of their crash. Consulting with an attorney can help injured motorcycle riders understand their rights and seek compensation for collision-related losses when drivers don’t comply with best safety practices.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[What Alabama families should know after a fatal car accident]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=488832026-04-08T15:02:26Z2026-04-08T15:02:26ZHow Alabama handles wrongful death claims
Most people assume a wrongful death case is about recovering what the family lost: lost income, lost support, lost companionship. Alabama does not work that way. Under Alabama's wrongful death statute, the purpose of a civil case is to punish the person or company responsible for the death, not to compensate the family for their losses.
That sounds like a small legal distinction, but it has real consequences for how a case gets built and what the outcome can look like. Understanding this upfront saves families from being blindsided later.
Who can file and when
In Alabama, only the personal representative of the deceased person's estate can file a wrongful death claim. That is not always a spouse or a parent. It depends on how the estate is set up or who a court appoints, so if no one has handled that step yet, it needs to happen before any legal claim can move forward.
The deadline matters too. Alabama gives families two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit. Two years sounds like a long time when you are grieving. But the evidence that supports these cases, accident reconstruction data, witness accounts and vehicle records, does not stay available forever.
What actually affects the outcome of these cases
Not every fatal accident case looks the same. Several factors shape what happens legally:
Whether the other driver was cited or charged, which affects but does not determine the civil case.
Whether a commercial vehicle or employer was involved, which can add other liable parties to the claim.
Whether road conditions, vehicle defects or a third party played any role in the crash.
Each of these factors can change the direction of a case entirely.
What to do if you are not sure where to start
You do not need everything figured out to take a first step. If someone close to you died in a car accident in Alabama and you are wondering whether a legal claim makes sense, talking to an attorney who handles these cases is a reasonable place to start. They can look at the specific facts, explain what applies and what does not and help you decide whether moving forward makes sense for your situation. That first conversation does not commit you to anything.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[Tips for a safe and memorable Easter]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=488622026-03-31T22:28:28Z2026-03-31T16:41:57Z in Alabama brings packed church services, family cookouts, egg hunts and road trips. Whether heading to a sunrise service on the Gulf Coast, driving across Birmingham to see relatives or taking the back roads to a community celebration, a little planning can make the difference between a smooth arrival and a stressful delay. The following practical tips can help you get to your Easter celebrations safely.
Common Alabama risk factors during holiday travel
Holiday weekends bring predictable patterns. Speeding rises and drivers are more likely to engage in aggressive driving when trying to make it to planned events on time. Drives also often experience increased fatigue after early services, late meals and long return drives. Each factor can increase the risk of a crash.
Tips to reduce the risk of a car crash during Easter
The following proactive measures can better ensure a safe journey:
Plan departure times to avoid peak congestion near churches, malls and interstate interchanges
Set navigation, playlists and calls before the vehicle moves
Make sure everyone uses seat belts and secure children in age appropriate restraints
Leave extra following distance to account for other drivers fighting the same risk factors noted above
Assign a sober driver, arrange rideshare or stay overnight if alcohol is involved
These steps reduce the likelihood of a crash even during busy holidays.
What to do after a crash on the way to Easter events
If a crash occurs and there is damage to the vehicle or injuries, call 911, request law enforcement and medical assistance. Move to a safe location if possible and turn on hazards. If the crash involves another vehicle, exchange identification, insurance information and vehicle information. If possible, take some quick photographs of vehicle positions, damage, plates, roadway, signage, skid marks and weather conditions. This can help in the event of future legal action. A safe Easter does not happen by chance — it happens because you plan for it. When you leave early, buckle everyone in, stay alert and give other drivers extra room, you lower your risk of a crash and keep the day focused on what matters: time with family and community. If the unexpected happens, you protect yourself by calling for help, moving to safety and documenting the scene. Use these steps to travel with confidence and make your Easter in Alabama memorable for the right reasons.]]>On Behalf of Lowry, Herren & Cline<![CDATA[Safe driving tips every new driver in Cullman should know]]>https://www.griffithlowry.com/?p=488612026-03-30T15:44:20Z2026-03-30T15:44:20ZStarting to drive in Cullman can bring both freedom and responsibility. As a new driver, you may face situations that test your judgment, from busy highways to unexpected weather. Each decision behind the wheel not only affects your safety but can also have legal consequences, from traffic tickets to more serious liability if accidents occur. Understanding how habits influence both safety and legal standing can set the stage for a confident start on the road.
Building safe driving habits early
Safe driving begins with consistent habits that protect you and others on the road. Research shows that younger drivers (ages 15–20) are disproportionately affected by distraction in serious crashes. Among them, roughly 9% of fatal crashes involve distraction at the time of the incident. That is why paying attention to your surroundings, practicing caution and anticipating potential hazards can reduce risks that often lead to legal trouble.For instance, regularly checking mirrors, leaving extra space between cars and anticipating traffic signals can prevent collisions and citations. Similarly, staying alert while adjusting your music or handling your phone can prevent distracted driving violations. Each careful choice contributes to creating a safer driving environment and establishes responsible behavior that matters legally if an incident arises.
Core habits to rely on
Focusing on a few key habits can make driving safer and help you build confidence on the road. Before your routine becomes automatic, you might try:
Keeping a safe distance from the car in front so you have time to react
Using turn signals to let other drivers know your intentions and reduce the chance of accidents
Following speed limits, especially near schools or construction zones
Buckling up every time, which can reduce injuries and provide legal protection if a crash happens
Avoiding distractions like texting, eating or adjusting music while driving
Using these habits regularly can lower your chances of accidents and traffic tickets. If an accident or citation does happen, having a legal professional review the situation can make it easier to understand your choices and handle the process without extra stress.
Staying prepared keeps you protected
Even with good habits, driving will present unexpected challenges. Sudden weather changes, construction zones and other drivers’ mistakes can test your skills. Approaching each trip with alertness and caution can prevent injuries and safeguard your legal rights. Pairing careful driving with awareness of your responsibilities under the law creates a stronger foundation for long-term confidence behind the wheel.]]>