Distracted Driver Awareness Month
April is Distracted Driver Awareness Month and new NSC estimates show that our roads are the most dangerous that they’ve been in years. On a typical day, eight people are killed and hundreds more injured in distraction-affected crashes.
This April, team with the National Safety Council (NSC) to spread the word that being a distracted driver, including hands-free phone use and infotainment systems, puts everyone at risk. Sign up for free, ready-to-use resources to create a distracted driver program that engages your workforce and reminds everyone to #JustDrive.
A distracted driver is not just someone using a cell phone! It can be anything from talking to other passengers in your car, eating or drinking in the car, reaching for a lost item under the seat, dealing with your kids in the back seat, changing radio stations, putting on new music or a DVD for you kids to watch. In short, any time you take your eyes and mind off the task at hand which is driving the car.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has found the most common distracted driver, causing 80% of the crashes, is the use of cell phones followed by drowsiness. However, cellphone usage was much less likely to cause near miss accidents. Distractions such as reaching for a falling object like a cup increased a near miss accident by 9 times. Whereas talking or listening on the cell phone only increase the risk by 1.3 times.
The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society concludes talking on a cell phone even the hands-free models are as dangerous as drunk driving. Drivers who used the hands-free models were 18% slower in braking and took 17% longer to regain the speed they lost when they braked.
The danger of cell phone use also affects pedestrians. Pedestrians who were texting were four time less likely to follow all safety rules than other pedestrians. It also took more time for pedestrians to cross a street who were texting or talking on their cell phones than those who were not and often they failed to look for oncoming traffic.
A distracted driver causes up to 80% of the accidents within 3 seconds of the distracted driving event. Pay attention while you drive, it could save your life.
Bancorp’s insurance agents are available to provide you with a free review and consultation of all your auto coverages to insure you are covered in the event of an accident. Contact Us – Bancorp Insurance Call 800-452-6826
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general information purposes and is not intended to be legal advice or in place of consultation with an attorney. Changes may occur in this area of law over time.
