According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 80% of car crashes can be attributed to some type of distracted driving. While we hear a lot today about texting – or using a cellphone in any capacity – when driving, smartphones and electronic devices aren’t the only distractions drivers fall prey to. Anything that takes your eyes and your mind off the road is distracted driving. As is anything that takes your hands off the steering wheel.
Any handheld use of a cellphone has been prohibited in the state of California since 2008. Since 2009, there’s also been a ban on texting while driving. Yet, per the California Office of Traffic Safety, distracted driving accidents in California continue to climb year to year.
This begs the question, have we perhaps put too much emphasis on texting while driving and cellphone use when defining distracted driving?
In this blog post, the Los Angeles distracted driving car accident attorneys at M.R. PARKER LAW, PC look at some other types of driver distractions that contribute to crashes. Distractions not necessarily associated with any sort of device but just as dangerous to you and those sharing a vehicle or road with you.
DAYDREAMING WHILE DRIVING
Yes, believe it or not, being stuck in your head is the most common driver distraction responsible for crashes. In 2013, Erie Insurance published an analysis that cited daydreaming as the cause of 62% of distracted driving accidents. Cellphones, by comparison, were only tied to 12% of distracted driving accidents.
We’ve all been there. You’re driving but you’re also replaying a conversation or something that happened at work in your head. Maybe you’re making out a grocery list in your head or the song playing on the radio has you fondly reminiscing about that crush you had at 16.
You’re looking at the road but your focus is consumed by your thoughts. This means you’re slow to react to the car in front of you suddenly braking, the driver about to blow a stop sign, or the pedestrian in the crosswalk.
EATING WHILE DRIVING
A 2016 study of 1,000 drivers conducted by Exxon Mobil found that 70% of drivers eat while driving and 83% drink beverages. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has estimated that roughly 65% of near-miss collisions can be attributed to people eating or drinking behind the wheel.
According to a study by Lytx, drivers eating food or drinking a beverage are almost four times as likely to wreck their car. Researchers at the University of Leeds found that drivers distracted by food or drink were much slower to react.
Unlike drinking alcohol and driving, or even texting and driving, having a snack and a non-alcoholic beverage while driving isn’t illegal. But, if you’re eating a burger and fries after a drive-thru stop, or sipping your morning coffee, and you wreck your car or hit someone, you’re very likely to be tagged as negligent and at-fault.
It would set a very dangerous legal precedent to prohibit or restrict drivers from having a snack or quenching their thirst while driving or sitting in traffic. But the state of Washington has introduced a new law prohibiting motorists there from eating or drinking beverages while driving. This, understandably, has many drivers in the state up in arms. It remains to be seen whether California and other states will go this far to eradicate distracted driving.
REACHING FOR AN OBJECT WHILE DRIVING
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health found that teenagers reaching for objects like food, bottles, makeup, or their phone increase their risk of crashing by roughly seven times.
This is another thing all of us – even adults – are guilty of. Your phone or a bottle of water falls onto the car floor or slips between seats. Your groceries in the back seat take a spill or you’re reaching to snack on something you just bought. Your child drops something in the backseat and it rolls underneath the front seat.
Whatever it may be, when you reach for it, you’re momentarily taking your eyes off the road and your eyes off the steering wheel. Inadvertently putting yourself and others in danger.
DRIVING WHILE DROWSY
Sleep-derived driving – also referred to as tired driving, drowsy driving, or fatigued driving – can impair the human brain just as much as being inebriated. It is a MAJOR cause of motor vehicle accidents. 54% of drivers surveyed by the National Sleep Foundation confessed to driving while drowsy within the past year. More than 25% admitted to falling asleep momentarily behind the wheel.
A tired or sleep-deprived driver has impaired judgment, coordination, and memory. They also have a longer reaction time. Their focus fades as their eyelids become heavy, they repeatedly yawn, have difficulty keeping their head up or feel the need to constantly rub their eyes. Their thoughts wander. They miss exits or traffic signs. They can nod off momentarily and drift from lane to lane, tailgate another vehicle, or coast into a guardrail or shoulder.
LOOKING AT SOMETHING ELSE BESIDES THE ROAD
It’s easy to be distracted by our surroundings. Most of us are guilty of people watching or sightseeing while we drive. We fuss over everything from a dashboard navigation system to the radio to temperature controls. Or, even if we don’t have a cellphone in our hand, we may have it located somewhere within the car where we can still look at incoming texts or calls.
This negatively impacts our visual targeting. We lose the ability to survey the road. With our eyes off the road, we’re likely to miss highway signs, traffic signals, and more importantly, other cars, pedestrians, or animals that cross our path.
DRIVING WHILE APPLYING MAKEUP OR GROOMING
Although women get stereotyped as the main perpetrators of this, men are just as guilty of engaging in grooming behaviors behind the wheel.
Women today are busier than ever. They’re tending to their family and household, working 40- hour plus weeks, often in high-stress careers, and rushing around from one task to another. Needless to say, over 46% of women confess to applying makeup on their commute to work. Most often at a traffic light or while sitting in a gridlocked rush hour.
Similarly, men can often be seen in cars running an electric shaver over their morning stubble, combing their hair, grooming their facial hair, or putting on their tie.
Of course, all this preening is a distraction when you’re behind the wheel. Again, your mind and eyes are momentarily taken off the road. This is why car accidents caused by someone grooming or applying makeup continue to be a problem. Play it safe. Either give yourself a few extra minutes in the morning or wait until you’ve reached your destination.
SMOKING & VAPING WHILE DRIVING
Over 34.3 million adults in the United States smoke cigarettes. Another estimated 10.8 million use electronic cigarettes or vapes. Smoking or vaping while driving is very common. And so are car accidents caused by it.
A cigarette smoker may be distracted reaching for their pack of cigarettes or lighter while behind the wheel. Even the act of lighting a cigarette is enough to distract a driver. As is smoking it (one hand off the steering wheel) or safely disposing of the cigarette. Many smokers have that story of tossing a cigarette out the window only for it to come back into the vehicle.
A vape is something else a driver may fumble around for or constantly hold in their hand while they drive. Vaping devices often involve pressing a button and reading/changing temperature settings or looking at battery power. Not to mention that e-juice can leave a heavy residue on the inside of your car window and greatly reduce visibility.
TALKING TO PASSENGERS WHILE DRIVING
Today we’re always hearing about the dangers of talking on a cellphone while driving. But talking to family members, friends, or co-workers who are passengers in your car can be just as dangerous. Your mind gets taken off the task at the hand.
This is particularly dangerous when engaged in a conversation with a passenger while performing a more complex driving task. For example, merging onto a highway or turning out into traffic. Car accidents while talking to a passenger are more common than people think.
HAVE YOU BEEN INJURED IN AN ACCIDENT CAUSED BY A DISTRACTED DRIVER IN LOS ANGELES?
The Los Angeles distracted driving attorneys at M.R. PARKER LAW, PC has represented clients injured in accidents involving distracted drivers. We get to the bottom of what happened to get our clients the compensation they deserve. If you’d like a free consultation, please contact us today at (818) 334-5711 or complete our online form and we’ll get back to you ASAP. Let’s discuss your accident and see if you have a case!
