Distracted Driving

Published on: May 28, 2025

Smartphone Tech Could help Prevent Distracted Driving Car Accidents

Using a smartphone while behind the wheel of a car significantly increases your risks of being involved in an auto accident. However, your smartphone is also likely to come with technology that actually reduces the risks of a car accident, but most motorists do not use this important technology.

Many smartphones now come with technology that reduces the distractions that come with using a smartphone in the first place. For example, many smartphones now come with “Do not Disturb” features that drivers can activate when they begin driving to avoid having to deal with answering phone calls and replying to text messages while driving. Such technology is proving to be very useful. In fact, a new study published by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety finds that this technology can be very helpful in reducing distractions and preventing auto accidents.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety conducted the survey and found that younger drivers, who are much more likely to use smartphones while driving, are also the most likely to be aware of such technologies in their smartphones. Older drivers are not as likely to be familiar with Do not Disturb features and other apps that can help eliminate distractions at the wheel. However, far too many drivers continue to drive without activating these technologies in their smartphones.

Published on: February 20, 2025

Study Confirms Link Between Sleep Apnea and Increased Car Accident Risk

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

A new study confirms a direct link between sleep apnea and an increased risk of being involved in car accidents. Of course, car accidents are a major cause of catastrophic personal injuries.

The study was published recently in the journal Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery. Sleep apnea is a condition in which a person’s respiratory airways are blocked several times during the night. The muscles of the throat can become relaxed while the person is asleep, blocking the flow of oxygen into the lungs. This can cause the person to wake up over and over again, and can contribute to decreased and disturbed sleep. Persons who suffer from sleep apnea may find themselves very fatigued and drowsy the next day because of the interrupted sleep the previous night.

In the new study, researchers focused on more than 2.8 million people who suffered from sleep apnea. The study sample included at least 700,000 persons who used CPAP machines to cope with their symptoms and another 12,000 people who had undergone surgery to correct their symptoms. The researchers found in their analysis that out of the persons who had surgery to correct their sleep apnea, approximately 3% ended up being involved in a car crash. Among the persons who used CPAP machines, at least 5% were involved in auto accidents. Approximately, 6% of the persons who took no treatment at all for their sleep apnea were involved in car accidents. Being untreated for sleep apnea was linked to a higher chance of being involved in a car accident with people who underwent no treatment for sleep apnea having a 21% higher risk of being involved in car accidents.

Published on: November 24, 2024

Most Motorists Neglect Dangers of Drowsy Driving

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

While most motorists arrange to take alternate means of transportation when they are too intoxicated to drive, they may not be as cautious when they are sleepy and not in any condition to operate a vehicle. Unfortunately, this lack of caution results in a significant number of car accidents.

The results of a new study by the National Sleep Foundation reveals the cavalier attitude that most Americans continue to have towards drowsy driving. This is in spite of the fact that driving while sleeping or fatigued contributes to thousands of car accidents every year. Many of these car accidents are fatal while others may result in severe or catastrophic personal injuries.

The National Sleep Foundation survey found that as many as 7 out of 10 American motorists were likely to seek out alternate needs of transportation when they found themselves to be too intoxicated to drive. However, the approach to drowsy driving was markedly dissimilar. Only four out of every 10 American motorists, who had not had enough sleep and were too sleepy to drive, admitted to finding alternate modes of transportation.

Published on: November 1, 2024

GHSA Launches New Initiative to Prevent Distracted Driving

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The Governors Highway Safety Association is collaborating with a major insurer to make it more accessible for Americans to prevent distracted driving auto accidents. A new website is part of this effort to help reduce the incidence of distracted driving on our streets.

The Governors Highway Safety Association recently announced a collaboration with State Farm Insurance. The initiative includes a website called GenerationDistractionfree.org, and the aim of the initiative is to empower parents and guardians to raise a new generation of motorists who will be less addicted to technology and distractions at the wheel.

Parents have a huge role to play in molding their children’s driving skills. Distracted driving is a major killer on American roads, and contributes to more than half of all car accidents recorded in Georgia every year. These are alarming statistics, and it is clear that government- led initiatives and legislation have limited impact in reducing the incidence of distracted driving. This is why the Governors Highway Safety Association Highway is bringing the topic of distracted driving into American homes.

Published on: October 17, 2024

Drivers Prone to Misusing Accident Safeguards in Cars with Partial Automation

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Motorists driving cars with partial automation soon learn to adapt to the various safeguards that are present in these systems, possibly increasing their car accident risks.

According to a new study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, drivers are very quick to learn ways to circumvent the limits or safeguards set by the partial automation systems in their cars. Vehicles with partial automation systems require motorists to continue to pay attention to the task of driving and step in when there needs to be an intervention. However, an analysis of several partial automation systems in automobiles show that this is not always the case.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety researchers focused on a number of partial automation systems, including Volvo’s Pilot Assist System and Tesla’s Auto Pilot system. In the Volvo system, the researchers found that drivers were often distracted by snacking and checking their phones while the system was at work. They were also likely to get more distracted as they became use to the system and as they learned to get around the limitations imposed by the system. Drivers using Tesla’s Auto Pilot found ways to get around the warning system before it escalated into a full blown intervention. They continued to engage in distracting behaviors only stepping in to take minimum actions to stop warnings or alerts issued by the system.

Published on: October 14, 2024

Why You Should Care About Pedestrian Safety

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

At some point, in our day, we are all pedestrians. Negligence by pedestrians places them at risk of being involved in an auto accident, not just when a the person is walking on the road, but also when he or she is exiting their car, jogging, leaving an office building or engaging in other activities. There can be no safety for motorists unless there is safety for pedestrians.

Next month, the Department of Transportation celebrates National Pedestrian Safety Month, and transportation safety organizations as well as pedestrian safety advocates around the country will focus on raising awareness about the rights of pedestrians and ways of keeping them safer. The Halloween holiday towards the end of October also increases the overall risk of auto accidents for pedestrians, especially children, which makes the month of October an even better time for safety organizations to raise awareness about the car accident risks facing pedestrians.

The need to spread awareness about the rights of pedestrians has become even more dire in 2024, with a steady increase in the number of pedestrians being killed in car accidents recorded over the past 2 years. Pedestrian wrongful deaths now account for some of the highest numbers of wrongful deaths in car accidents nationwide. In 2022, according to statistics by the United States Department of Transportation, there were more than 7,500 pedestrian accident wrongful deaths. That translated into an average of 21 pedestrians dying daily in auto accidents. It also means that an average of 70 pedestrians were killed in auto accidents every minute in the United States that year. Pedestrians accounted for 18% of all traffic accident wrongful deaths in 2022.

Published on: September 9, 2024

Study Finds Behavior Interventions can Help Reduce Distracted Driving

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The use of interventions including financial incentives, goals and social competition can significantly help reduce the incidence of distracted driving on our streets.

Distracted driving causes thousands of car accidents in the metro Atlanta region every year. A new study proves that different interventions could be used to help bring about changes in driver behaviors, resulting in motorists being less likely to reach out for their cell phones while driving.

The study was conducted by an insurance provider and divided more than 1500 participants into 5 groups. The first group was the control group which only received information about the dangers of using a handheld cell phone while driving. Group 2 was given a free phone mount, while group 3 was given habit formation tips over a period of several weeks. Groups 4 and 5 were sent text messages about their performance on handheld cell phone use goals, and were given the chance to win or lose points based on their usage. Participants in group 5 were also given the chance to share in a $2000 prize if they met their goals.

Published on: September 4, 2024

More than Half of all Auto Accidents in Georgia Involve Distracted Drivers

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Distracted driving is now one of the biggest auto accident causes in Georgia with a new study finding that more than 50% of all car accidents in the state involve a driver who was distracted at the wheel.

That information comes from the Governors Office of Highway Safety and the Georgia Department of Public Health’s Crash Outcome Data Evaluation System, which included car accidents that occurred in 2022. The data was is in the Georgia Traffic Safety Fact Sheet, and according to the data, 53% of all car accidents in Georgia in that year involved a confirmed or suspected distracted driver.

The data does not define whether these distractions involved electronic distractions like the use of cell phones while driving. The term “distractions” can mean different types of activities while driving including having conversations with passengers, snacking and drinking, reaching out for things and other types of distracting activities. Any type of distraction that is manual, physical or cognitive can take a person’s attention away from the task of driving and cause an auto accident.

Published on: August 27, 2024

Five Tips to Prevent Driving While Drowsy

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, car accidents caused directly by drivers who were drowsy at the wheel caused 693 wrongful deaths in 2022.

Drowsiness due to lack of sleep could be because of overwork, a new baby, stress, or a hectic social life. Whatever the reason, the consequence is fewer hours of sleep. Sleep advocacy groups, including the National Sleep Foundation, recommend 8 hours of sleep for the average American adult. Unfortunately, far too many drivers are getting less sleep than the recommended amount, which means that many of them are driving at less than optimum levels of wakefulness and alertness in the morning.

Even getting one hour less sleep a night can affect a person’s ability to drive safely. Drowsiness can mean irritability which, in turn, can affect your judgment and reasoning behind the wheel. It can also mean an inability to pay attention to visual cues on the road, and failure to respond appropriately to stop signs. It can mean getting lost while driving the wrong way, or driving at high speeds.

Published on: July 22, 2024

Study Explores Drowsy Driving Car Accident Risks of Teen Motorists

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

As many as one in 6 teen drivers in the United States admits to driving while drowsy. This indicates that the problem of drowsy driving among younger motorists is far more complex than we believe.

Those findings came from a recent study that was conducted by the National Sleep Foundation. The findings of the study were presented at a conference of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies and published in the Sleep journal. The researchers estimate that 1.7 million teenagers have driven while drowsy, and more than 400,000 have done so at least once in a week. The researchers believe that these findings are troubling because we are dealing with teenage motorists or novice drivers with very little experience in driving safely and avoiding auto accidents.

According to the study, teen drivers are aware that drowsy driving is dangerous and can increase their chances of being involved in a car accident. In the study, as many as 95% of them admitted that they believed that drowsy driving was dangerous, but most of them did not believe that it was as dangerous as driving under the influence of alcohol or even driving while using a cell phone. Clearly, the dangers of drowsy driving are not as apparent to teen drivers. Teenagers who had jobs were twice as likely to drive while exhausted or sleepy compared to those with no jobs. Most teenage motorists in the study blamed their work and study schedules for their lack of sleep.