All seems fine and dandy as you cruise along the county road or highway on your way home from everyday business as usual. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a deer sprints into middle of roadway. There is no time to stop or slow down. You know it is coming. You see it is coming. You panic, but there is literally nothing in your human power to do. Then, the thud of the animal and crunch of the impact against your car you expect tells you that the worst has occurred. Shaken, you check yourself for any injury. Miraculously, you’ve escaped this accident without getting hurt. Not a single scratch. Your vehicle and the deer, however, have succumbed to the inevitable losses and damages: the deer lies dead and your car is what the insurance companies describe as ‘totaled’.
Undeniably, this collision could have resulted in far greater general liability and other damages. Nonetheless, you will definitely be filing an auto insurance claim through your insurance agency. Thankfully, all those premium payments you have dutifully been submitting have come around to your benefit: you have good coverage under your particular policy and you will be protected by it.
“How could this actually have happened to me?” you wonder incredulously.
According to government officials, the disturbing experience can happen to anyone! Oftentimes, wild deer leave the adjacent forest or wilderness to roam the roadside. And it’s not too unusual for them to jump into the danger that oncoming traffic presents. If a car has its headlights on, the deer crossing the roadway can become mesmerized and statue-like. With no other recourse, oncoming cars collide into the animal. As it seems, both are victims.
With the proper care, though, motorists can avoid risky confrontations with deer (and other big forest animals).
Four Points to Avoid an Auto – Deer Accident
• Motorists are most prone to meet up with a deer during the poor visibility hours between dawn and dusk; drive exceedingly carefully at this time.
• Official statistics say the majority of deer collisions occur in October, November and December – the pre-breeding juncture.
• If you spot a deer positioned at the roadside, slow down and drive very, very carefully; deer can abruptly change route and run into traffic flow.
• Look out for and pay close attention to deer crossing symbols and markers: the reason they are placed there is because there have been deer incidents at the site.
