ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. successfully represented a golf professional injured when the golf cart in which he was a passenger rolled over. The number of people hurt in golf carts has more than doubled, researchers say. Part of the problem is that the carts are faster than they used to be. But they are also being used in ways they were not necessarily intended for and are carrying more and more people with the rising costs of gas and the spread of “cart friendly” retirement and other communities. Writing in the July issue of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine, the researchers said that from 1990 to 2006, the injury rate had doubled. The lead author was Daniel S. Watson of Ohio State University and the findings were picked up in the July issue of the Insurance Journal.

Over the period studied, the researchers counted injuries in almost 150,000 people ages two months to 96 years. The study found that many of the injuries were caused by falls, which can occur at speeds as low as 11 miles per hour when the cart turns. It was pointed out that newer carts can hit 25 mph. They often lack safety equipment, according to a co-author of the study, Tracy J. Mehan, a researcher at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. For example, the majority of the carts in use do not have seat belts. A lack of front brakes makes the vehicles prone to fishtail, the study said. In addition to being injured by falling out, riders are hurt when the carts turn over, as was the case of our Virginia client, whose arm was fractured at a famous Maryland golf course. SEE The Athletes Lawyer site for more.