Distracted driving is a leading cause of motor vehicle accidents, including fatal crashes. In fact, around 10 percent of all fatalities that occur today are caused by driver distraction. This is down from a peak of 15 percent of collisions attributed to drowsy driving, according to Arts Technica, but the rate of accidents caused by distracted driving has held steady in recent years and does not appear to be falling any more. Distracted driving is dangerous for lots of reasons, and drivers who do it should be held accountable by those who they hurt if a crash occurs due to driver distraction. New York City motor vehicle accident attorneys can provide help to victims in pursuing a claim for compensation when a drowsy driving accident happens. Unfortunately, while most people know that distracted driving significantly increases risks on the road, Arts Technica indicates that many people choose to continue to engage in distracting behavior that takes their focus off the road.
Drivers are Distracted, Even Though They Know It’s Dangerous
According to Arts Technica, there have been ample efforts to try to educate the public on the dangers of distracted driving and to try to reduce the risk. There are texting bans in most states; many phones have implemented Do Not Disturb Features including those that can turn on automatically; and in-car technologies have aimed to reduce interaction with telephones while driving. Unfortunately, even with all of the public education on distracted driving, the tech advances, and the changes to the law, people continue to find their smart devices distracting in the car. Out of a survey of 1,000 respondents, more than 90 percent indicated that using apps, texting, and emailing on their phones was distracting while behind the wheel. Despite acknowledging that doing these things took their focus off the road, most people admitted to doing them anyway. In fact, more than half of all people who commute daily said that they engage in distracting behavior behind the wheel. The longer the commute time of survey respondents, the more likely it was that those respondents would indicate that they are distracted by their phone while driving. While a small percentage of drivers responding to the survey said they personally were rarely distracted behind the wheel, delving deeper into their behavior patterns indicated that they were actually engaging in some pretty distracting behavior on a regular basis, including talking on the phone or looking at maps on a GPS. Drivers clearly know that it is dangerous for them to use their phones and other devices – they admitted as such in the study. Yet, motorists seem to be unable to stop themselves from making a dangerous choice by looking at their electronics. If a driver gives into the urge to drive while distracted and that motorist causes an accident to occur, New York City motor vehicle accident attorneys can provide representation to victims who wish to pursue a claim for compensation for crash losses.
