Every day in the US, at least 9 people die and over 1,100 are severely injured in motor vehicle accidents that are caused by a distracted driver. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines a distracted driver as one who is driving while carrying out at least one other activity that takes the driver’s attention away from the task of operating the motor vehicle safely. Needless to say, distracted driving significantly increases the possibility of a car crash.
There are essentially three kinds of distractions associated with driving.
- Visual distractions that take the driver’s eyes off the road;
- Manual distractions that take the drivers hands off of the steering wheel;
- Cognitive distractions that take the driver’s mind off of the individual tasks of driving and off of driving overall.
There are a number of activities that qualify as distractions for a driver such as eating, putting on makeup, talking on a cell phone, and, arguably the most dangerous distraction, texting on a cell phone. Texting is particularly dangerous because it is one of the only distractions that combines all three distraction types. There were more than 3,300 people killed in car crashes that involved a distracted driver in 2012. The same year there were over 420,000 people severely injured in distracted driving crashes and in 2011, fully 17 percent of all car crashes in the US involved a distracted driver.
If you have been injured in a serious car accident with a distracted driver, and would like to best possible attorney team to work on your case, please immediately call Hastings, Cohan, and Walsh, LLP –(888) 244-5480. We are here to help.
