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Several states have banned the use of cell phones while driving due to reports that using a cell phone while driving may be linked to an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents.
In the United States, six states have completed banned cell phone use while driving, and 19 states have banned texting and driving in effort to reduce the number of car accidents related to distracted driving. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reported that more than 20 percent of drivers admitted texting while driving. The Foundation is committed to banning texting and driving in all 50 states as part of a larger project to reduce the number of auto accidents nationwide.
Most cellular phone bans effect drivers under the age 18, although some states have restricted all drivers. Youth drivers are three times more likely to be involved in a fatal car accident, and coupled with the fact that people under the age of 25 also dominate the cell phone market has made legislators concerned that cell phones will further distract the new drivers.
The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute published a study that finding 80 percent of car accidents and 65 percent of near crashes were result of driver inattention within 3 seconds of the car accident. Driver inattention is cause primarily by cell phones and drowsiness, according to the study.
Driver inattention can also result in a car accident lawsuit, where the driver involved in a auto accident where the other party was using a cell phone at the time can consider contacting an auto accident attorney to advise them on the best course of legal action.
Although the laws vary by age, state and location as some states restrict cell phone use in school zones and near construction sites, most experts agree that it’s the conversation that distracts drivers, rather than the device itself. Future studies may cause the potential ban of hands-free devices as well. For some drivers, conversing on a cell phone while driving may make a drive as prone to having an auto accident as if they were drunk, according to University of Utah psychologist, David Strayer.
Currently, the auto insurance industry has not stated whether traffic tickets related to cell phone use while driving will impact an individual’s insurance premium; however the tickets themselves may carry a tremendous fine in many states. The insurance industry has not stated whether a cell phone ticket will impact insurance rates, however; as pointed out by Bob Passmore of the Property Casualty Insurers Associate of America, if an accident occurs while a driver is using a cell phone, premiums will rise as result of the accident.
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Source by Katie Kelley