Arizona Traffic Laws: The Top Five Areas  of Personal Liability

If you have an Arizona driver’s license, you may be familiar with the rules of the road in this state. They are all important to know and to follow. However, when it comes to civil liability and what you can recover in a personal injury lawsuit, some are more important than others.

Here, we cover the five ways drivers get into trouble on Arizona roads: collisions or traffic citations. 

If you are wondering whether you have a cause of action for a personal injury lawsuit after a traffic accident, the traffic attorneys at Stone Rose Law can help you. You can reach us 24 hours a day, every day of the year at (480) 498-8998 to talk with one of our Arizona traffic law lawyers and set up a free consultation to evaluate your case.

How We Made Our Decisions

Based on our review of 2023 statewide data gathered by the Arizona Department of Transportation, there are five most common ways that Arizona drivers break laws that can lead to traffic accidents:

Speeding

Multiple Arizona laws make it unlawful to drive too fast. You can find them in Title 28, Chapter 3, Article 6 of the Arizona Revised Statutes. The two main ways a driver can get into trouble for speeding in Arizona are exceeding the lawful speed limit and driving too fast for the existing road conditions, I.e., weather, traffic congestion, and visibility conditions.

Excessive Speed

Under Arizona’s revised statutes, excessive speed is defined as:

• Approaching a school crossing faster than 35 miles per hour
• Driving in a residential or business district by more than 20 miles per hour or if no speed limit is posted, exceed forty-five miles per hour
• Exceeding the posted speed limit by more than 20 miles per hour in any other location

In addition to the general rule on excessive speeding, driving faster than is reasonable and prudent under the circumstances, conditions, and actual and potential road hazards that exist at the time is another common traffic law violation. This is the most common cause of crashes in Arizona.

Unreasonable Speed

Unreasonable speeding is the act of driving faster than road conditions would make safe. For example, This could include:

• Driving at night
• Driving in heavy rain or fog
• Driving faster than the cars that you can’t see around you
• Driving at an excessive speed when approaching school, business, and/or residential areas.

Failing to Yield Right of Way

After driving too fast for the prevailing conditions, failure to yield is Arizona’s second-most common cause of vehicle collisions.

Yielding the right of way typically involves one of the following situations:

• A traffic sign requires a driver to yield
• You and another vehicle arrive at an intersection at the same time, requiring both to stop 
• One vehicle is approaching an intersection when cross traffic does not need to stop
• Emergency vehicles are approaching when their emergency lights are on
• Vehicles in a funeral procession are approaching

Failing to yield the right of way usually results in a driver being found responsible on a prima facie basis for any collision that occurs.

Improper Turns

Two common ways that Arizona drivers can get into accidents include turning left at an intersection, or making a U-turn. These accidents often occur in combination with a failure to yield the right of way or but failing to properly signal your intention to turn.

Disregarding Traffic Signals and Stop Signs

Running stop signs and disregarding traffic signals result in thousands of traffic accidents in Arizona annually.

Some common reasons drivers fail to stop at stop signs include driving too fast to stop in time, misjudging how much time is left on a yellow light, distracted driving, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI). 

Lane Keeping Violations

Crossing the centerline or median, making unsafe lane changes, and passing in a no-passing zone are the third-most common sources of Arizona car accidents.

Similar to running stop signs and traffic signals, leaving a lane illegally usually involves contributing factors such as distracted driving, bad visibility, and driving under the influence.

Aggressive Driving Behaviors

Under Arizona law, a driver is required to drive in a way that is reasonable given the conditions. This means driving in a way that puts others in jeopardy because of a loss of emotional control. It also involves avoiding behaviors like tailgating, “brake checking,” and getting involved in “road rage” incidents.

Following too closely is the cause of thousands of Arizona car accidents annually. Just like driving at an unreasonable rate of speed, getting into a rear-end collision as the following driver can easily lead to being considered presumptively liable for causing the accident.

Losing control over one’s better judgment behind the wheel is never a justification for an accident. 

Honorable Mentions

The areas we have covered above are the most frequent ways that drivers who disregard Arizona traffic laws can get into a car accident, get a traffic ticket, or both. However, they are not the only ways.

Here are some other traffic laws that drivers who get into accidents also frequently violate:

• DUI laws. Drunk driving and driving under the influence of drugs is a major contributor to violating other traffic laws, like speeding, improper lane changes, blowing through traffic signals, improper turns, failure to yield, aggressive driving, and even driving the wrong way down the road. 
• Cell phone laws. Driving while talking on a phone or texting while driving is a major distraction that is not only illegal by itself but is also a significant source of distracted driving that leads to other traffic law violations.
• Leaving the scene of an accident. “Hit-and-run” are not the originating cause of accidents in Arizona. However, they can expose a driver to additional charges if that person does not stop at the scene, provide medical assistance when needed, and exchange information with the other driver or others involved in the accident.

How to Improve Your Chances of Avoiding Counterclaims

Although we are a personal injury law firm that represents plaintiffs, civil lawsuits often involve a mix of your claims as the plaintiff and counterclaims by the defendant against you. The purpose of these counterclaims is to either shift fault for the accident to you or to reduce your award.

Here are some things you can do to reduce your risk of being involved in an accident, to reduce the possibility of counterclaims being brought against you, and to maximize your recovery if you have to seek compensation against another driver after a car accident:

• Give yourself time. Leave for your destination with enough time to avoid driving at an excessive rate of speed.
• Don’t drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you have to go somewhere but have had too much to drink, call a cab or get a friend or relative to drive you where you need to go.
• Stay alert. Don’t talk on your portable wireless communication device or text while driving. Do not let passengers, your children, or your pet make you take your eyes off the road and be on the lookout for traffic signs, signals, intersections, and school crossings.
• Slow down when driving conditions are bad. There is no shame in driving below the speed limit in bad weather, at night, or on bad or twisting and winding roads.
• Pass with caution. Getting into a head-on collision with another car or truck when passing is easily avoidable if you exercise caution, wait until a passing lane is available, and don’t cross a solid yellow line.
• Keep your head and hold your temper. The object of your drive is to get to where you are going, not to compete with other drivers. Avoid road rage by resisting the temptation to retaliate if another driver deliberately or inadvertently does something to make you angry or provoke you. Do not brake-check and do not tailgate.

Call Stone Rose Law if You Get Into an Accident

Our Phoenix auto accident attorneys at the Stone Rose Law firm proudly serve car accident clients throughout Arizona. We do everything we can to ensure you obtain the compensation you deserve. Contact us online or call (480) 498-8998 to schedule your free consultation to discuss your car accident case.

If you are unsure of what to do after getting into a car accident, and have a question about your legal rights in a personal injury case, call us.

You can also contact our team if your insurance company has denied your policy claim after you are in a car accident or a moving violation.Do you prefer to communicate with us online? You can reach us here to schedule a free initial consultation or to ask a question to one of our dedicated Phoenix car accident lawyers.