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• Car and Motorcycle Accidents
• DUI and Criminal Defense
• Big Truck Accidents
• Medical Malpractice
• Serious Injuries:
  Slip and Fall | Dog Bites

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Florida Laws on Passing Other Vehicles

Passing can be a dangerous task, especially on two-lane, rural roads or at night when visibility is not the best. In this article, accident attorney, Jeffrey Meldon, summarizes the law on how and when is the best time to pass another vehicle on the road in order to be as safe as possible in Florida. Florida Statute 316.083 governs passing and overtaking other vehicles traveling the same direction as you on the road. Here is a summary of the info:

1. Give the Appropriate Signal: When passing another vehicle, you must use your blinker to signal to the other driver that you are going to pass. If you do not have a working blinker, you must use your arm to indicate that you are going to pass.

2. Pass on the Left: When passing, you must pass on the left and must wait until you are safely past the vehicle you are overtaking before returning to the right lane. It is very important to have a complete visual on the road ahead so that you know if you have enough time and distance to safely remain to the left of the vehicle you are passing before reentering the right lane.

3. Bicycles and other Non-Motorized Vehicles: You must pass these vehicles no less than 3 feet between your vehicle and the bicycle or non-motorized vehicle in order to maintain a safe distance.

4. Give Way to the Overtaking Vehicle: The vehicle being passed should give way to the vehicle doing the passing by moving into the right lane if possible. This is not necessary when passing to the right is allowed. The vehicle being passed should also use a signal to show movement to the right and should not increase speed in order to block the passing vehicle from passing.

Violation of passing laws in Florida results in a noncriminal traffic violation with punishment similar to a moving violation under Florida Statute 318.

Accident attorney, Jeffrey Meldon, strongly believes that public education is the first step in the prevention of and/or recovery from a serious accident. 

He and his Office take pride in their work, and in results they get for their clients.  

The Law Office of Jeffrey Meldon and Associates is a regional law firm that is located in Gainesville, Florida. They are personal injury lawyers, litigators and trial lawyers that have been working to get accident victims the justice they deserve for over 37 years throughout North Florida and all over Florida. Accidents involving a car crash, truck wreck, and motorcycle, bicycle, or pedestrian accidents, dog bites, slip and falls and medical malpractice are all included in their practice as accident attorneys.

They have been proudly representing injured victims in Gainesville, Ocala, Lake City, Inverness, Daytona Beach, Dunnellon, Palatka, The Villages, and the counties of Alachua, Marion, Columbia, Citrus, Volusia, Sumter, Putnam  and the entire North and Central Florida since 1971.

For more information on how they can help you, or any other question you may have, feel free to contact their office at 1 800 373 8000

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