Distracted Driving Causes Auto Accidents

Car accidents are often caused by the simple act of distracted driving

Eating. Drinking. Texting. Talking on the phone. Shaving. Checking e-mail. The list of reasons as to why a driver might be distracted behind the wheel goes on and on and on. And the frequency at which the aforementioned things are done is alarming. According to a study conducted in 2011 by HealthDay:

Over 85 percent of drivers admitted to eating or drinking behind the wheel, more than half of who admitted to doing it either “sometimes” or “often.”
One out of every five drivers admitted to combing their hair in the car, about 10 percent admit to doing it often.
Fourteen percent of all female drivers have admitted to putting on makeup in the car.
Over one-third of drivers have admitted to sending text messages while driving. It’s estimated that 18 percent still do it frequently.
Over one-third of all drivers have admitted to reading a map while driving and over 40 percent have adjusted GPS coordinates and settings while behind the wheel.

And most alarming of all, the HealthDay study found that a vast majority of those surveyed said that they know distracted driving is dangerous, yet do it anyway. And distracted driving is dangerous: Statistics from 2009 state that almost 5,500 people were killed and 448,000 injured, in the U.S. alone, due to some form of distracted driving.

While studies state that distracted driving is higher among drivers under the age of 20 (especially concerning texting and cell phone use), adults are just as likely to engage in such behavior with similar and other distracted mediums. It’s partially why Michigan passed a law in April 2010, becoming the 24th state in the union to ban motorists from texting and driving. The punishment for those who violate it: a civil infraction ticket that costs $100 for first-time offenders and $200 for repeat offenders.

Yet, studies show that despite such restrictions, teens and adults alike largely ignore them and text anyway. What’s more is that police officers that pull over a suspected texting driver, although they can ask, are unable to demand that the driver turn over his/her phone to validate the offense, making it a somewhat difficult law to enforce.

Such has led Michigan municipalities to pass their own versions of distracted driving measures to keep local roads safe. Troy, MI, for example, passed a distracted driving ordinance in 2010, which stated, in general terms, that police have the right to pull over any driver they deem is not paying full attention to the road. The ordinance describes three types of distracted driving offenses that can result in police action. They are:

Type 1: Texting and driving, which is prohibited by the state of Michigan.
Type 2: Use of cell phones – This phase doesn’t apply for emergencies, but makes it illegal for motorists to use a cell phone to talk, check e-mail or browse the web.
Type 3: Other types of distracted driving including eating, drinking, reading, grooming, etc. are offenses (i.e., any activity that motorists are engaging in that potentially takes at least one hand off the steering wheel.

While such legislation is a noble effort on behalf of the state of Michigan and the city of Troy, the fact of the matter is that such laws and ordinances do more in terms of raising awareness on the dangers of distracted driving than they do to enforce it. So just because you live in Michigan or in Troy’s city limits doesn’t mean that you won’t encounter drivers texting and/or eating, e-mailing, grooming, etc.

There’s certainly not enough police officers to fully enforce the law. But in terms of raising awareness on the dangers of distracted driving, many motorists are taking matters into their own hands. It’s not uncommon these days for drivers to honk at or get the attention of a distracted driver to tell them to pay attention to the road, so it can be argued that such measures police themselves to a certain extent. However, so long as technology persists, there will always be something that can be deemed as a distraction to drivers who let it.

That’s why if you’ve been injured in a car accident in the Great Lakes State, you should contact a Michigan car accident lawyer to see what your rights are. Being the victim of a car crash is never fun, especially when injuries continue to linger long after the incident itself. But what’s even more frustrating is when the car accident could have easily been avoided if the at-fault driver was paying attention to the road and not to a cell phone, a cheeseburger, a map or a book.

That’s where we as car accident attorneys come into play. We’ll carefully review your situation and work with you on the next steps and what options you have in terms of being compensated. So if you or someone you know has been the victim of a distracted driving auto accident, don’t wait – call us today for more information and let our Michigan car accident lawyers go to work for you.

You owe it to yourself to take all your possibilities into account if you've been the victim of a distracted driving auto accident. Call us today to see how we can help you.

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