How Does Talking on My Cell Phone Increase My Chance of a Wreck? | DENENA | POINTS

How Does Talking on My Cell Phone Increase My Chance of a Wreck?

One study attributes at least 25% of vehicle crashes to drivers using smart phones while behind the wheel. But that’s not the only kind of distracted driving that can cause an accident. You may have seen drivers on your way to work from Pearland, TX reading the newspaper, putting on makeup, having a meal, or engaging in animated conversation with a passenger. Dealing with unruly children or pets can also distract you from the road. Police incident reports blame distracted driving in up to 30% of accident cases. This figure does not include fatal accidents where police can’t determine the cause or accidents without witnesses where no one will admit to distraction.

A study commissioned by the Governors Highway Safety Association reported results regarding 100 drivers who were observed continuously behind the wheel for one year. They observed distracted driving between 25% and 50% of the time. Two thirds of surveyed drivers admitted to using cell phones while driving. One third admitted routinely using cell phones while driving. Slightly over 12% of these drivers admitted to texting while driving.

The IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) states that drivers using cell phones while driving face chances of injury accidents four times greater than those of drivers not using the devices. The DOT (Department of Transportation blames distracted driving for 16% of fatal accidents. That’s almost 1 in 5 of all fatal accidents. And a study out of the University of Utah found that drivers using cell phones while driving behaved in about the same way on the roads, and suffered the same chances of accidents, as drivers with a BAC (blood alcohol content) of .08% (the legal limit). According to the University study, the driving of a Pearland, TX commuter using a cell phone would be virtually indistinguishable from that of a drunk driver.

NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) data shows that between 3,000 and 4,000 people die each year in fatal accidents with trucks and approximately 100,000 receive injuries. The data suggests that at least a third of these injuries and fatal accidents could have been avoided by not driving distracted. So as difficult as it is to turn off the technology behind the wheel, all the data tells us that we should just put away those cell phones while we’re driving in from Pearland, TX.

And if you experience a crash and get injured, call us for help and a free legal consultation. We’re experienced Pearland, TX accident attorneys, and you may well need our skill to obtain fair compensation from obstinate insurers and defendants following your accident. If they can blame you for distracted driving, they may be able to dismiss your claim because of your comparative negligence. You’ll need our experience to help refute their arguments and to show where the true negligence in the wreck really lies.