Flying Ice from Cars and Trucks Can Cause Serious Injury

February 04, 2020, Kitchener, Ontario

Posted by: Robert Deutschmann, Personal Injury Lawyer

The cycle of freezing and thawing that this winter has brought means that there is more ice than we are used to on our cars many mornings. People are in a hurry, they are lazy, or simply don’t think about clearing off more than their windshields.

Daily in the winter after it snows drivers get on the roads and highways with barely or poorly cleared vehicles. Most think the wind will blow it off, or it’s not worth clearing it their cars. They don’t consider the impact of the flying snow and ice off their cars on those driving behind them. Ice can fall from overpasses as well in the days following weather events and can pose the same hazards.

You only need to get onto the 401 any morning after an icy evening or snow fall and you know what’s going on. Large chunks of ice fly off cars and trucks, vans and transports. The snow and ice can obstruct the view of the highway for following drivers, or can hit the cars damaging them, or they can even smash through the windshields.

Earlier this winter Martin Burger was driving on highway 17 when he saw a chunk of ice coming towards him. It smashed through the windshield and hit his face. Fortunately, he was able to pull over with the caved in windshield and did not crash. His passenger was not injured.

The driver however, ended up with significant injury. He had a large laceration from the temple across his face and both sides of his eye, two black eyes and significant stitches. He posted the image on Facebook of his recovery.

Two windshields were smashed in the Orillia area two weeks ago by flying ice. OPP have put out bulletins looking for the suspect vehicles. The offending drivers did not remain at the scene of either accident. This image courtesy of OPP Central Region Twitter. "Want to make a real difference in someone's day? Clear the snow and ice off your vehicle! #IceStorm2020 #DriveSafe #CaledonOPP ^in" .

OPP recommend that the best strategy to avoid being struck by ice is to keep a safe distance behind other vehicles. This will give you time to see the snow or ice and hopefully room to react.

If you see someone being struck by ice, try and get the licence plate of the driver who didn’t clear their vehicle. This is a crime and they can be held liable for the accident. If you are struck by ice and snow, remember that you are insured for personal injury and for damage to your car.

Call or message me today if you’ve been injured in this sort of accident. I’ll help you get the settlement you deserve from your insurance company.

About Deutschmann Law

Deutschmann Law serves South-Western Ontario with offices in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Woodstock, Brantford, Stratford and Ayr. The law practice of Robert Deutschmann focuses almost exclusively in personal injury and disability insurance matters. For more information, please visit www.deutschmannlaw.com or call us at 1-519-742-7774.

It is important that you review your accident benefit file with one of our experienced personal injury / car accident lawyers to ensure that you obtain access to all your benefits which include, but are limited to, things like physiotherapy, income replacement benefits, vocational retraining and home modifications.