Houston Personal Injury Attorneys – Smith & Hassler

A man crossing in the 11000 block of W. Little York near Overlook in Houston was hit by a vehicle and killed around 5:00am on Thursday February 17, 2011. Harris County Sheriff‘s deputies said the 55-year old man was rushed to Ben Taub General Hospital where sadly he was pronounced dead. Because the man’s next of kin have not yet been notified the man’s name has not been released. The man was struck by a vehicle that was headed eastbound on W. Little York; so far no charges have been filed in the case.

The death of a loved one due to an accident is a tragic, terrible and life-altering event for any family. Smith & Hassler partner and board-certified personal injury trial lawyer Al Hassler knows this only too well having suffered the death of his sister when her car was hit by an overloaded 18-wheeler in Florida.  If you have lost a family member due to an accident, contact the Houston wrongful death attorneys at Smith & Hassler for expert advice.

Honda Motors is issuing a recall of tens of thousands of cars in the U.S. because of a potentially dangerous or even deadly problem that can cause the engine to stall.  The recall is being announced as more and more drivers are reporting problems with their cars. The recall is for the Honda Fit, specifically models manufactured and sold in 2009 and 2010. The problem the recall addresses is that the Fit‘s engine will stall while the vehicle is in motion and cause the car to decelerate. in a KTRK local news story, one Honda Fit owner reported driving on I-10 with her sister late at night when the car suddenly lost acceleration and started to slow in the travel lanes: her Honda Fit would not respond to her pressing the gas pedal and sensing she was in danger she quickly got out of the travel lanes.

On Thursday February 17, 2011 Honda announced it is recalling 97,000 Honda Fit cars made in 2009 and 2010. The purpose of the recall is to replace lost motion springs. Honda Motor Company says the motion springs are within the engine valve train: the spring may bend or breaking resulting in engine noise and potentially engine damage and stalling. Honda says it will mail recalls notices to drivers whose Honda Fits are affected in early March. If you own a Honda Fit and are unsure if your vehicle is part of the recall you can check by either visiting a Honda dealership or by checking Honda’s recall web site by clicking here. You will need to have the VIN for your Honda Fit if you use the recall web site.

The Honda Fit is a 5-door, hatchback subcompact car and is pictured below:

2009 and 2010 year models of the Honda Fit are being recalled by Honda to address engine stalling problem

It is encouraging that Honda is acting now to address this potentially dangerous even deadly problem.  If a vehicle suddenly loses all power stranding the driver and passengers in a travel lane during heavy traffic, there is a potential for the occupants of the car to be hit and injured in a car accident. If you or a family member have been injured in a car accident because your Honda Fit experienced engine stalling or sudden loss of power, call the experienced personal injury lawyers at Smith & Hassler for a free consultation regarding your legal rights. Smith & Hassler has handled products liability cases for injured clients against many large manufacturers, such as with the Toyota sudden acceleration incidents.

Police are working to figure out what caused a woman to lose control of her SUV and crash through the wall of a Bank of America in northeast Harris County Thursday afternoon. Authorities have said that the 40-year old woman driving the SUV did not suffer from any unanticipated medical condition such as a heart attack or blackout that would explain the car accident. The SUV was completely inside the building, breaking desks and computers as it plowed through the bank. Skid marks were also visible inside. Fortunately no injuries were reported to the driver or to customers inside the bank.  Perhaps the driver misunderstood what’s meant by “drive-through banking” (who said lawyers don’t have a sense of humor).

No injuries reported when 40-year old woman drives through front of a Bank of America

If you’ve been injured by an out-of-control vehicle, call Houston personal injury attorneys Smith & Hassler. We’ll give you a free consultation, in person or by phone, and explain the steps involved in seeking compensation for medical costs, lost wages, physical pain, mental anguish, physical impairment and any other damages that may apply in your case.  Don’t assume your Houston car accident injury claim will work out great just because you want it to: expert advice from an experienced Houston personal injury attorney early on will make all the difference.

Hockey fan Richard Marsh accepted a challenge to shoot a puck the length of the ice rink and through a tiny hole in a cardboard cut out placed over the goal at the Pepsi Coliseum in Indianapolis, Indiana. Before he took his shot Mr. Marsh very generously decided to donate the $50,000 prize to St. Vincent’s Cardiovascular and the American Heart Association. He took his shot and, incredibly, the puck traveled the length of the ice and passed through the tiny hole. The event was sponsored by Allstate Insurance Company.

Incredibly, a third party insurance company later voided Mr. Marsh’s shot because he was standing the wrong side of the line when he pushed the puck. The insurance company said Mr. Marsh was “standing in the wrong place.” As you can see from the video below, Mr. Marsh was a few feet past the goal line when he took his shot the length of the ice rink. The owner of the Indiana Ice hockey team Paul and Cindy Skjodt later made an unsolicited donation in recognition of Mr. Marsh’s incredible feat.

Go figure that an insurance company would refuse a charitable donation to some very worthy causes over a totally meaningless technicality. Disgraceful.