Fort Walton Beach Personal Injury Law Blog

You know that distracted driving is a significant safety problem. In fact, you probably notice it everyday as you drive to work or run errands, seeing Florida drivers do things like eat a meal, talk on the phone, look at their phone or even put on make-up. Distractions can come in many forms, and they are all dangerous.

Anything that takes a driver's attention from the task of driving safely and paying attention to what is going on outside of the vehicle is risky. Technology is the source of various types of distraction, but it may also be a very important component of preventing it as well. Developers and automakers are working on ways to implement technology so that it actually improves safety and reduce the chance of an accident.

Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for teenagers in Florida and around the country, and distraction is often a factor in collisions involving young drivers. A recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Michigan suggests that parents are aware of these risks and are encouraging teenagers to develop safe habits both when they are behind the wheel and when they are passengers. The researchers based their findings on a survey of 900 parents with children between the ages of 14 and 18.

The most common road safety concerns parents had were cellphone use, loud music and trips with two or more teens in a vehicle. Six out of 10 of the parents surveyed said that their children had at least one friend who was prone to distraction while driving. Half of the parents told researchers that they addressed this problem by placing limits on trips with two or more teens. Four out of 10 said that they lowered the risks by restricting highway driving.

Drunk driving poses a serious threat to people on the roads in Florida. Each day of the year, around 30 people lose their lives in collisions linked to drunk driving. In 2017 alone, one person was killed every 48 minutes by someone driving under the influence. Widespread public awareness campaigns have raised attention to the dangers of drunk driving, which has become increasingly socially unacceptable. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limits have been lowered over the years. As a result, drunk-driving fatalities have declined by over 33% in the past 30 years.

Even so, motor vehicle accidents linked to drunk driving kill over 10,000 people each year and cause over $44 billion in damages. Alcohol is fundamentally dangerous when driving because it impairs judgment and reasoning, both of which are important when behind the wheel. Studies have shown that at a BAC of 0.08, the risk of accidents goes up significantly. In most states of the country, 0.08 is the legal limit. Individuals found driving above that limit can face drunk driving charges. However, even lower amounts can cause impairment for some people, and drivers with lower alcohol levels were involved in 1,837 deadly crashes in 2017.

Florida residents may drive drowsily on occasion, but they should be aware that this can be as dangerous as driving while drunk or impaired by drugs. Fatigue can easily cause drivers to lose focus, make bad judgment calls and react slowly to dangers. Residents should be aware that drowsy driving is not only dangerous but also the cause of more car crashes than was previously thought.

Previous government studies estimated that 1% to 2% of all auto accidents involved drowsy driving. In 2018, AAA conducted a study that analyzed dashcam footage of 3,593 drivers who were involved in crashes. After discerning which drivers were drowsy based on the percentage of the time they spent with their eyes closed, researchers came to believe that something more like 9.5% of all car crashes involve drowsy drivers.