Quote:
Originally Posted by 3pugguy
may i ask what statistics you have to back up that assertion? i would be very interested if there is empirical data. that asked, i would say if a person is not using handsfree, including voice dialing, that is just plain stupid and could be an issue.
but so could fiddling w/a car radio or cd player...as others has noted, common sense cannot be legislated and our LEOs are already over-taxed. more "feel good" laws won't change or fix the lack of basic safety (don't people take driver's ed anymore?). Or maybe some HS physics and understand how much force is imparted by a moving vehicle hitting another object.
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I believe I stated that it was "just my opinion". I also believe that is the intention of these forums, to voice our opinions. It is a fact that my insurance rates have increased and I have no violations that would justify such increases. I am a technical and safety instructor for a company that has literally thousands of vehicles on the highways nationwide. Defensive Driving is one of the courses I instruct. I am passionate about safe driving. I also have a steel rod from my knee to my hip as a result of being hit by a distracted driver.
Here's some statistics I was able to quickly locate at:
Car Accident Cell Phone Statistics & Driver Text Message Facts
And this doesn't include teen driver statistics involving cell phones while driving.
Adult Driver Cell Phone, Texting, and Car Accident Information
- Talking on a cell phone causes nearly 25% of car accidents.
- One-fifth of experienced adult drivers in the United States send text messages while driving.
- A study of dangerous driver behavior released in January 2007 by Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. found that of 1,200 surveyed drivers, 73 percent talk on cell phones while driving.
- The same 2007 survey found that 19 percent of motorists say they text message while driving.
- In 2005, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that ten percent of drivers are on handheld or hands free cell phones at any given hour of the day.
- A study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Motorists found that motorists who use cell phones while driving are four times more likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves.
- In 2002, the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis calculated that 2,600 people die each year as a result of using cellphones while driving. They estimated that another 330,000 are injured.
- According to the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, drivers talking on cell phones are 18 percent slower to react to brake lights. They also take 17 percent longer to regain the speed they lost when they braked.
- An estimated 44 percent of American drivers now have cell phones in their automobiles.
- Of cell phone users that were surveyed, 85 percent said they use their phones occasionally when driving, 30 percent use their phones while driving on the highway, and 27 percent use them during half or more of the trips they take.
- 84 percent of cell phone users stated that they believe using a cell phone while driving increases the risk of being in an accident.
- The majority of Americans believe that talking on the phone and texting are two of the the most dangerous behaviors that occur behind the wheel. Still, as many as 81% of drivers admit to making phone calls while driving.
- The number of crashes and near-crashes linked to dialing is nearly identical to the number associated with talking or listening. Dialing is more dangerous but occurs less often than talking or listening.
- Studies have found that texting while driving causes a 400 percent increase in time spent with eyes off the road.
As stated above, insurance companies pay close attention to these statistics. To think this would not impact our insurance rates would be naive.
All this said, I agree with your statements wholeheartedly.