Distracted driving is a huge issue in this country. Whether you’re driving on the busy city streets or heading out toward the countryside, you need to ensure that you’re giving your full attention to driving. Unfortunately, your ability to remain safe while you’re on the roads also depends on others who are on the roads.
More than 2,800 people died in distracted driving incidents in 2018. The issue with this is that every death could have been prevented if the driver who caused the crash had just avoided all distractions. Some people don’t realize just how many things can distract them when they drive.
Texting is an obvious source of distraction, but there are many others that are just as bad. Talking to other occupants of the vehicle, changing the radio station, fixing the GPS and personal grooming are all possible distractions. Even eating and drinking or looking at a billboard can distract a driver enough to cause a crash.
The distractions that drivers have don’t have to last a long time. It only takes five seconds for a car to travel the distance from one endzone to the other of a football field if it’s going 55 mph. Reading or sending a text takes an average of five seconds, so you can imagine the risk of crashing within that time.
Anyone who is struck by a distracted driver should consider the possibility of filing a personal injury claim. This is done to shift the liability to the driver who struck you so that you aren’t left holding the financial responsibility of the wreck they caused.