When you’re driving in Missouri or any other state, it can be easy to feel the urge to flout the rules. After all, if other people are breaking them, why should anyone bother with seemingly arbitrary driving laws?
The reason you need to obey Missouri’s laws is because your safety depends on it. You can’t control the behavior of other drivers, but you can certainly control your own.
And if you were obeying all of Missouri’s driving laws and were ultimately hit by someone who wasn’t, then you may have the grounds to get compensation for your accident and injuries.
Specific Rules in Missouri
It’s important to know all of Missouri’s driving laws, but pay special attention to these ones.
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Seatbelts: The driver and passengers in the front seat have to be wearing a seatbelt, and so must children between the ages of 8 and 15 if they’re in the backseat. Children can wear adult safety belts if they are over 4 and either over 80 pounds or taller than 4’9.”
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Drunk driving: Nobody can legally drive in Missouri with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08 or more. That only applies if you are 21 or over; if you’re under 21, the limit is 0.02. If you are convicted on a DUI charge in Missouri, you won’t need to install an ignition interlock device (IID) on your first conviction. However, they are mandatory for repeat convictions.
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Open container laws: What’s interesting about Missouri’s open container laws is that while the driver can’t consume or handle open containers of alcohol, the passengers technically can. That being said, local municipalities might have their own open container laws, so when it comes to the open container laws in Missouri, it might be better to err on the side of caution.
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Distracted driving: Distracted driving is essentially any activity that compromises your attention while driving, but texting while driving tends to be the most well-known manifestation of distracted driving. In Missouri, drivers 21 and under are completely banned from texting while driving. However, all drivers are allowed to use handheld devices for phone calls while driving.
Distracted Driving Laws and Your Missouri Auto Accident
The driver rams into you at 65 MPH, crushing your left leg. You weren’t doing anything wrong, and later, it turns out that the driver was a 20-year-old who was texting while driving when he hit you.
Missouri is an “at-fault” state when it comes to auto insurance, and this basically means that the driver who was liable for the accident is the one who foots the bill.
This gives you the option of filing with the other driver’s insurance company or filing a personal injury claim. Making this kind of choice can be complicated, and having a personal injury attorney to help you with it may make you feel more at ease.
Hiring a Personal injury Lawyer
An experienced Missouri personal injury lawyer could be the difference between a successful and an unsuccessful claim, and this is why it’s so important to consider working with one.
Asking yourself to prepare a personal injury claim while recovering from a bad injury is simply too much; it’s perfectly okay to admit that. That’s why personal injury attorneys exist.
A personal injury attorney can give your PI case the time that it needs. He or she will argue on your behalf and put you in a good position to get the compensation that you need.
Contact a lawyer or get a free consultation as soon as possible--don’t put off the possibility of getting financial relief.
