UM ◊ Uninsured Motorist ◊ Underinsured Motorist ◊ Auto Insurance Coverage ◊ Consumers cutting back on insurance coverage.

In these current economic times many consumers are reducing their automobile insurance coverage. While reducing insurance coverage may mean instant savings, in the long run it’s proving to be problematic for some people. Consumers cutting important coverage like uninsured motorist (UM) coverage places them in compromising situations to face huge monetary losses should they or…

OSHA investigating deadly Pinellas crane accident ♦ Palm Harbor ♦ Paramedics ♦ Deputies on the scene ♦ Home Port Marina

PINELLAS COUNTY— An investigation is expected to continue today into what caused a crane to topple over Monday in a deadly accident in Palm Harbor. The crane fell over at the Home Port Marina just before 6 p.m., killing the 71-year-old operator. Preliminary details indicated that the crane fell over on its side, throwing the…

CPSC policies seen as resulting in improved child safety ◊ Injuries reduced ◊ Death rate falls ◊ Safety laws ◊ Baby walkers ◊ Crib accidents ◊

NATIONAL – USA Today reports that thanks to research and good public policy, children are benefiting “from a wealth of new research, as well as the safety laws and better products based on those research findings.” Nationwide, the “death rates from unintentional injuries among children under 19” fell “nearly 50% in 1981, from 27 deaths…

Howard Frankland Bridge ♦ I-275 ♦ BAYFLIGHT LANDS ON BRIDGE ♦ Accident with injuries closes NB lanes of the bridge ♦ Truck rear ends Semi truck

Last week an accident involving a truck and a semi-tractor trailer on the Howard Frankland Bridge resulted in serious injuries. The accident blocked the northbound lanes of traffic on the Tampa side. Reports are that a 60-year-old man driving a small pickup truck rear-ended a semi tractor trailer hauling a boat, said Lt. Joel Granata…

Manatee County Man charged with leaving injured woman ♦ Wanted to avoid DUI ♦ FHP arrested him

BRADENTON – A Manatee County man told authorities he left a woman who fell off the back of his pickup because he didn’t want to get a DUI. The Florida Highway Patrol says a 54-year-old man was driving his truck Thursday night when a woman standing in the bed pounded on his cab. When the…

GOLF CARTS ON CITY STREETS ♦ ARE THEY INSURED? ♦ ARE THE COVERED? ♦ PUBLIC ROADS ♦ LOCAL POLICE ♦ PROOF of INSURANCE REQUIRED

Many golf cart owners mistakenly believe their homeowners insurance, covers them for liability in event of any accidental occurrence with their golf cart. THIS IS NOT ALWAYS TRUE!! Many homeowners polices only cover golf carts for liability purposes, “as long as they are used for golfing purposes.” Should you use your golf cart for any…

Elderly woman injured in Sun City Center golf cart accident • SUN CITY CENTER • Hillsborough County Sheriff’s office investigating

SUN CITY CENTER – A recent golf cart accident in a Publix Super Market parking lot put an 82-year-old woman in the hospital with a leg injury, deputies say. The 82-year old woman had just parked her cart and was walking into the grocery store at 4860 Sun City Center Blvd., when a 76-year-old’s golf…

Broadway Ave and 70th Street • 3-vehicle collision • Car • Van • Tanker truck • East Tampa

TAMPA – Traffic is now back to normal on Broadway Avenue after a multi-car collision this morning. The crash occurred just after 6 a.m. at the intersection of Broadway Avenue and 70th Street. The crash involved a tanker truck, an SUV and a white passenger van transporting eight work-release inmates. The initial investigation by Tampa…

FLORIDA LAW Now Requires Kids Riding Horses to Wear Helmets • ALL children under 16 while riding on public roads

Florida’s governor has ceremonially signed a law requiring children under 16 to wear a helmet while riding a horse on public roads. Gov. Charlie Crist signed the bill last week, but re-enacted it at a ceremony earlier this week at a park in Loxahatchee. It is named for Nicole Hornstein, a 12-year-old Palm Beach County…

RECENT TESTS find microcars have HIGH REPAIR COSTS for low-speed collisions • SERIOUS INJURIES can also occur •

Recently, The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported, “the cost for repairing damage to microcars in low-speed crashes of 3 to 6 miles per hour could cost anywhere from $474 to $3,701.” Institute senior vice president Joe Nolan said bumpers should protect cars so that damages from such collisions “should cost less than the typical…