Distracted driving is a concern everywhere, including in California and the Los Angeles area. Distracted driving is also a serious problem with a reported 80 percent of car accidents involving some type of driver distraction. Distracted driving-related car accidents cause up to 3,000 deaths each year. While talking on a cell phone or texting while driving are at the top of the list of distracted driving behaviors, a variety of additional activities drivers engage in are also considered distracted driving.
Distracted driving behaviors include cognitive, visual and manual distractions that can remove the driver’s mind, focus and attention or body, such as the driver’s hands, away from the task of driving. Simply talking on a hands-free cell phone is considered distracted driving because it removes the driver’s mental focus from the roadway. Texting while driving combines all three types of distraction, removing the driver’s mental, visual and physical focus from the roadway and making it one of the most dangerous distracted driving behaviors.
Specific distracted driving behaviors can include talking on a cell phone or using a cell phone; texting while driving; using various electronics while driving such as a navigation system or radio; eating and drinking while driving; grooming while driving; significantly engaging with passengers; and some additional types of behaviors. There are serious consequences for distracted driving including citations but additional consequences may apply as well. Distracted driving-related car accidents can cause serious injuries and death and a distracted driver may be responsible for compensating victims and their families for the physical, financial and emotional harm suffered in a distracted driving-related car accident.
Victims harmed by an unexpected distracted driving-related car accident can have their lives changed forever. Because of the serious nature of the harm caused by distracted driving, victims of an accident caused by a distracted driver should be familiar with the legal remedies available to help them recover compensation for the damages associated with the losses and harm they have suffered.
Source: CA.gov, “Distracted Driving,” Accessed Aug. 11, 2016
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