You surely see them all the time on Dalton’s roads and highways: people driving and using their cellphones at the same time. Distracted driving is an epidemic throughout Georgia and the rest of the country. It kills thousands of people and seriously injures many more every year.
If you think that’s an exaggeration, think again. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that distracted driving killed 3,522 people in the U.S. in 2021. Splitting your focus between driving and another task like reading or typing text messages can impair your ability to drive just as much as alcohol or drugs, and the effects don’t go away the instant you put your hands back on the wheel and your eyes back on the road. Research shows that it can take several seconds until your brain is completely focused on driving again.
How distracted driving causes auto wrecks
Distracted driving impairs your ability to observe what is going on around you and your ability to react to it. For example, someone distracted by their phone or something else is more likely to rear-end a stopped car in front of them than a driver who is paying attention. Distracted drivers also frequently drive through red lights and stop signs, crashing into another vehicle that had the right of way.
Who are distracted drivers?
Young drivers tend to be the worst offenders. According to NHTSA, of all drivers aged 15-20 who were involved in fatal car accidents in 2019, 9 percent were distracted when it happened. But drivers of all ages and years of experience behind the wheel choose to distract themselves. That reckless decision puts the driver and everyone around them in mortal danger.
If a distracted driver is responsible for your injuries, you can hold them financially responsible. Personal injury litigation can compensate you for your lost wages, the cost of medical care, pain and suffering you are experiencing and more.
