How Common Is Distracted Driving?

If you are driving, doing your best to keep yourself, your passengers, and others around you such as pedestrians or other occupants of cars safe should be the goal. Getting to and from every location you must go to anytime you get behind the wheel in the safest manner is critical. Car accidents are widespread across the United States. And, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the USA far surpasses other similarly developed nations with the many numerous car accidents that take place on the country’s heavily traveled roads. There are many causes of car accidents, but as high as 99% happen as a result of some type of human error.

If you were injured in a car accident in Georgia, you may be able to recover financial compensation for the harm you endured. This could include damages such as medical costs, property damages, your pain and suffering, and more. To learn about what legal options you have to secure compensation for your losses after a crash, please reach out to the talented and knowledgeable Fulton County personal injury lawyers at Hawkins Spizman Trial Lawyers.

How Big of a Problem is Distracted Driving?

When a crash happens because of the distraction of a driver, the driver’s behavior, not paying attention to the road and to the act of driving is considered a type of driver error. No one forces a driver to keep their concentration off of driving and their environment, this is a mistake that a driver makes alone. When it comes to distractions, there are several things that can easily cause a driver to divert their attention, making them a danger to themselves and others on the road. Some of these distracted driving actions include:

• Eating
• Putting on makeup or doing one’s hair/grooming
• Speaking on a cellphone
• Texting or emailing on a cellphone
• Zoning out

This list is not an exhaustive one by any means but does illustrate how easy it is to allow other things around you to take your attention away from driving. For example, if you have kids crying or fighting with each other in the backseat you may be focusing on getting them to calm down and finding snacks or toys to soothe them. But if you are driving, doing this limits your focus on operating your automobile. Here, you are a distracted driver.

Distracted driving happens so often it is the leading cause of driver error that leads to crashes happening in the United States. Distracted driving is dangerous. Anything that takes your eyes and minds off of the act of driving and your hands off of your car’s wheels means you are being distracted. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that in 2020 alone there were 3,142 lives lost as a result of deadly crashes where distracted driving was a factor.

Speak to a Georgia Personal Injury Attorney Today

After a crash where you were harmed or if a loved one was hurt, please call the Georgia personal injury attorneys at Hawkins Spizman to schedule a free consultation to discuss your accident experience at 770-685-6400.

Hawkins Spizman Trial Attorneys represent individuals in Georgia including Atlanta, Dunwoody, Alpharetta, Cobb County, Fulton County, Gwinnett County, Johns Creek, and Sandy Springs.

Source:

nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/distracted-driving