The U.S. Department of Transportation categorizes driver distractions into three groups: visual distractions, which cause a driver to take their eyes away from the road; manual distractions, which cause drivers to take their hands away from the steering wheel; and cognitive distractions, which cause drivers to take their minds away from what they’re doing.
According to experts, texting is the most endangering activity a driver can perform because it involves all three kinds of driver distractions. A recent opinion piece in The Huffington Post posed the question of whether driving with kids is more distracting to drivers than driving while texting.
Somewhat satirically, the author of the piece noted how he is distracted in all three driver distraction categories while driving with his infant daughter, who cries and throws her pacifier constantly. However, he raises a good point-one study found that 60 percent of parents who drove alone with their infant in a car seat in the backseat were “very distracted.” Roughly 80 percent worried it would lead to a traffic accident. The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported in 2001 that having young children in a motor vehicle was one of the leading causes for driver-distraction accidents for people between the ages of 20 and 29.
In the United States, 37, 423 people lost their lives in motor vehicle accidents in 2008. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, almost 20 percent of crashes that year involved some sort of distraction. They report that almost 6,000 people died and more than half a million were injured in traffic accidents that involved a distracted driver.
While there aren’t statistics regarding accidents involving parents distracted by their children, it is understandable that children pose a distraction when they are occupants in motor vehicles. Parents need to be extra careful when driving with their children to ensure the safety of all motorists on the road.
Those injured in a Pennsylvania car accident by a distracted driver should consult with a Philadelphia auto accident lawyer to discuss their legal rights and options. At Anapol Weiss, our injury attorneys have dedicated years to protecting the rights of accident victims. Call us today at 1-866-735-2792 for a free consultation.