The preponderance of texts that are sent on a daily basis in the United States is staggering, and a sizeable portion of these texts are sent by drivers of motor vehicles. As of December 2014, there were roughly 169.3 billion texts sent every month in the United States and its territories. That number has surely only increased since then. Add this to the fact that 3,179 people were killed and another 431,000 were injured in distracted driving accidents in 2014, and the problem is clear.
Distracted driving is here to stay, whether we like it or not. Maybe in the future there will be an app or a self-driving car that makes cellphone use while driving history, but until then, we are stuck with distracted, texting and cellphone-using drivers.
In the state of Virginia, measures have been taken to curb this behavior. All bus drivers and novices drivers in the state (novice drivers are considered to be anyone under the age of 18) are forbidden from using their cellphones while driving. And all drivers are banned from texting while driving.
These laws, though helpful, still don’t necessarily prevent someone from making the negligent decisions to use their cellphone while driving. But should someone make such a reckless decision, it makes them liable for any accident that they may cause. The victims of distracted driving accidents need to consider their legal options in such a case, and prepare for the next steps — whatever they may be.
Source: Distraction.gov, “Facts and Statistics,” Accessed June 28, 2016