Texting While Driving Accident Attorneys

More than 220 million people nationwide subscribe to wireless services. It’s estimated that as many as three out of every four of those wireless subscribers use their cellphones while driving. Texting is the most dangerous form of cellphone use to engage in while operating a moving vehicle.
 
Reading or sending a text on a cellphone is one of the major causes of vehicle crashes and can cause serious harm to the occupants of other cars, bicycle riders or pedestrians. The average five-second span that’s required to focus on reading or sending a short text message in a car traveling at 55 mph is enough time to travel across the entire length of a football field. In a form of mental distraction that’s become known as the “Hangover Effect,” It can also take as long as 27 seconds for a driver’s focus to fully return to the road after using a cellphone.
 
Drivers who text while driving allow themselves to become distracted in three ways:

• Visually: They’re not looking at the road ahead — they’re looking at their cellphones.
• Manually: They’re not able to hold the steering wheel with both hands while sending or responding to a text message.
• Cognitively: They’re taking their mental focus away from their driving, during which time something disastrous could occur.

 
Studies indicate that using a cellphone to send a text message can affect a driver’s reaction time in a way that’s similar to downing four beers before getting behind the wheel of a car or truck.

More than 90% of drivers surveyed in 2022 stated they believed texting while behind the wheel is dangerous. Over one-third of the drivers surveyed also admitted they read an email or text message while driving during the previous month. More than one-quarter of the surveyed drivers admitted they typed a text message while driving.
 
Drivers don’t usually volunteer that they were using a cellphone when a vehicle crash occurred, and a post-accident investigation team would need to request phone records to determine actual wireless use. It appears, however, that a significant number of drivers will at least respond to an incoming text message while operating a vehicle in spite of the severe penalties they may incur if doing so causes harm.
 
In addition to becoming a defendant in a personal injury lawsuit, a distracted driver who causes an accident could face criminal charges when his or her actions cause harm to another person. The loss of a driver’s license could also follow when texting behind the wheel causes a vehicle crash.

According to the U.S. DOT figures released in 2022, almost 30,000 people suffered injuries during  vehicle accidents in 2020, caused by a driver’s cellphone use. Close to 10% of all vehicle accidents that same year involved a driver using a cellphone. A study conducted by the American Auto Association showed that the most common source of distraction for teenage drivers was some form of an electronic device.

During 2020, the U.S. DOT figures also showed that almost 400 people died as a result of someone texting while driving. That same year close to 60,000 vehicle crashes involved some form of cellphone use while driving. In the following year, the number of injuries that occurred as a direct result of texting while driving remained in the tens of thousands.

State-enacted laws make it illegal to text or talk on a cellphone while driving

Although a few states allow drivers to talk on a cellphone, texting while driving is illegal in 49 states. Penalties can range from fines to a loss of driving privileges. If the harm caused to others by texting while driving is severe enough, some time spent in jail could be in store for the at-fault driver.

Because texting while driving is illegal in almost every state, a driver who breaks the law provides an advantage to a harmed individual who files a personal injury lawsuit. A driver who operates a moving vehicle while texting demonstrates sufficient negligent behavior to entitle a harmed person to sue for damages and obtain compensation. Proving that another party’s negligence caused you harm is a key issue in pursuing a personal injury lawsuit.
 

Obtaining evidence to prove a driver was texting when an accident occurred

Proving that someone was texting while driving when an accident occurred can rest on evidence such as:

• Surveillance camera video footage
• Eyewitness testimony and visual confirmations
• Cell Phone records

 
Wireless phone records can carry a great deal of weight when showing proof of a driver’s negligence and liability for the harm caused. Phone records can indicate the precise time that a wireless subscriber sent or received a text message. If the cellphone records coincide with the time the accident occurred, it can be hard for a defendant driver to dispute that his or her negligence resulted in the plaintiff’s injuries.

When you can prove that another individual’s negligence, such as texting while driving, caused you to suffer harm you may obtain compensation for the cost of your recovery. The compensation provided could include coverage for medical bills, physical therapy sessions and any home medical devices your injuries might require.

If you are unable to work during the time needed to complete your recovery, you may also obtain compensation to make up for your loss of income. When severe injuries cause an individual to become permanently injured and unable to work, the court could award compensation to cover the loss of future earnings.

You may also sue for noneconomic issues such as a loss of your former quality of life if the accident left you with a permanent or long-term disability. The court could also award compensation for your pain and suffering and the mental distress the accident caused. In some cases, the court will consider compensation for a loss of consortium, which is the loss of companionship and spousal intimacy that could accompany a serious disability.

If the at-fault individual’s actions displayed a particularly reckless type of negligence, such as watching a movie on a mobile device while traveling on a highway, the court may award punitive damages. The intent of a punitive damages award is to serve as a deterrent to others who might also engage in equally reckless actions while driving. This type of award, however, is usually reserved for the most extreme cases of reckless behavior.

If it appears that texting while driving caused the crash, an experienced vehicle accident attorney would include a request for the driver’s wireless phone records in the post-accident investigation. Checking to see if the driver had any previous citations for cell phone calls or texting while driving could help determine if the driver has a history of similar offenses. The police accident report would be carefully reviewed.

Visiting the accident scene and interviewing witnesses could also play important roles in the investigation. Local surveillance camera footage may show the at-fault driver focused on his or her cell phone at the time the accident occurred. An experienced attorney may contract the services of expert witnesses to provide their input and testimonies. This could include an accident reconstruction specialist and medical professionals who can provide a jury with compelling assessments of the physical harm the accident victim suffered.

An experienced vehicle accident attorney would also instruct the injured victim to maintain a daily recovery journal. The journal entries detailing the day-by-day post-accident recovery could help persuade the court to award an appropriate amount of compensation for the pain and suffering endured.

One of the most important functions a skilled vehicle accident attorney covers is to effectively negotiate with insurance company representatives. An appropriate amount of compensation could result from a well-negotiated settlement offer that doesn’t cut any corners. A seasoned attorney will, however, remain well-prepared to take the case to court if that’s what’s needed to secure the deserved settlement amount.