texting

Many US states have taken action against the dangers of texting and driving by enacting statutes that make certain types of cell phone use illegal while a driver is operating a vehicle. Florida’s approach is contained within the Florida Ban on Texting While Driving Law, which took effect in July 2019. Police now have primary enforcement to pull over a motorist if they observe violations of the law, and there are penalties for getting a ticket. However, if illegal cell phone use is linked to an injury-causing accident, victims cannot always rely on law enforcement observations when pursuing their right to compensation. Unlike a drunk driving accident where the motorist’s chemical rests reveal a blood alcohol content over the legal limit, there are issues of proof with a distracted driving crash.

You cannot expect the responsible driver to admit to texting, so you – through your Miami car accidents attorney – will need to explore other options to get essential evidence. An overview of the key issues may help you understand the importance of proof in texting and driving collision claims.

Florida Law on Texting While Driving

You have probably seen it time and again – a driver on a busy road or highway looking down at his or her phone or staring intently at a GPS device instead of focusing on the road. The clarion calls to not text and drive appear to fall on deaf ears. In 2013, over 3,000 people were killed in car wrecks involving a distracted driver. In addition, over 420,000 people suffered serious injuries in distracted driving-related accidents, according to distraction.gov. Our team of Miami car accident lawyers find these statistics to be quite troubling.

On a bright note, some companies are taking action to combat distracted driving. For example, AT&T created advertisements for the “It Can Wait” campaign. Also, AAA released videos taken of distracted drivers causing serious wrecks.

Here is some shocking data – sending or receiving a text takes a driver’s eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds. If you are traveling at a speed of 55 miles per hour, that is the equivalent of driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed, according to CBS Miami. When you text and drive you are 23 times more likely to be in a car crash.

Articles Tagged with texting

Proving a Miami Texting and Driving Car Accident Claim

Distracted Driving Can Lead to Deadly Accidents