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Cell Phone Ban Aims to Reduce Car Accidents

By Katie Kelley

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 10Jan2010 Word count: 448 Viewed: 489 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Recent studies linking cell phone use while driving to an increased rate of car accidents have prompted many states to enact cellular phone bans restricting the driver's use of a cellular device while operating a motor vehicle.

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. Recent surveys show that 21 percent of drivers admit texting while driving, according to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. 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.

Although several states have banned cell phone use for all drivers, most cell phone laws have specifically targeted drivers under the age of 18. 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. The study stressed that cell phones and drowsiness are the main causes of driver inattention.

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. Although there are not direct costs associated with a cell phone ticket, Bob Passmore of the Property Casualty Insurers Associate of America pointed out, if someone is using a cell phone while driving and gets into an accident, insurance premiums will ultimately be affected.

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