New York seems to flourish in the summer and fall months between wedding season, tourism, and locals taking advantage of the many sites worth seeing through the state. Due to tragic events that occurred in 2018, officials and safety advocates are urging lawmakers to take crucial steps to prevent catastrophic injuries.
The state Senate approved a package of limousine safety bills that include new insurance requirements and a measure that would take unsafe limousines off the road as well as the requirement that rollbars be included in stretch limos.
The safety proposals were made after a crash last October of a stretch limo killed 20 people in Schoharie. The Assembly last week approved two bills that match what the Senate did: measures that require seat belts in new stretch limos starting January 2020 and an insurance measure.- Spectrum Local
Until the approved safety proposals are in place, safety officials worry innocent individuals are still at risk for sustaining life-threatening injuries. As explained in a previous blog, limousine structural issues are likely to arise when they are made using transformed cars or SUVs. Often times safety features are not implemented or are ineffective due to design updates. How owners of stretch limousines test whether or not their vehicles are structurally stable is questionable at best.
In a CBS article, state inspector Dave Lipsky explains why current regulations desperately need to be updated, He says lacking tighter regulations, custom builders sometimes cut corners, prioritizing luxury over safety. “So what they would do is put a beautiful bar in there, beautiful seating, and all the amenities to have the niceness, and put the weakness in the infrastructure,” Lipsky explained.
We hope that lawmakers will do everything in their power to prevent future limousine crash injuries and fatalities. If you or a loved one have been injured in a limousine crash contact us today.
Mr. Finkelstein is the Managing Partner of Finkelstein & Partners, LLP. He has become a noted consumer activist through his representation of injured individuals against corporate wrongdoers and irresponsible parties.
An accomplished litigator, Mr. Finkelstein has represented Plaintiffs in wrongful death and catastrophic personal injury cases. He has successfully handled dozens of multi-million dollar cases.