Although drivers who multi-task while driving present as significant a threat of causing collisions as intoxicated drivers, many motorists who condemn the practice of driving drunk fiddle with their vehicle’s “infotainment” center or text on a cell phone. One study that reflects the disconnect between attitudes and actions involving distracted driving found that 36 percent of respondents considered texting or talking on a cell phone to pose the greatest roadway safety risk. Nonetheless, almost half of those drivers (45 percent) admitted to having made a serious driving mistake while talking on their phone. Inattentive drivers who divert their concentration, eyes, and hands from exclusively focusing on the safe operation of their vehicle are responsible for a growing number of crashes, permanent disabling injuries, and wrongful deaths. While distracted driving is dangerous to occupants of all types of vehicles, motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable to injury from this unsafe practice.
The national scope of the distracted driving epidemic can hardly be overstated given the overwhelming popularity of portable electronic devices and their frequent use by motorists. The study referenced above found that 7 in 10 drivers reported having been hit or nearly hit by a motorist who was talking on a cell phone. These reports indicating the scope of the distracted driving problem are supported by actual injury-accident data. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that approximately nine people die and another 1,153 people are injured in distracted driving crashes daily throughout the U.S. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that nearly one in five crashes on a national basis is caused by a driver who is dividing his or her attention while driving.
While multi-tasking drivers present a danger to occupants of all types of vehicles, the risk to motorcyclists is greater than individuals traveling in passenger cars. Motorcyclists face a much greater risk of being involved in a collision because bikes are less visible given their relatively small size. The more diminutive size of a bike permits riders to travel in areas of the roadway that a passenger car driver might not expect a vehicle to fit, which also contributes to the tendency of drivers not to notice a motorcyclist. When a driver is looking down to read a text message or rubbernecking at an accident on the shoulder of the roadway, this tendency not to observe the presence of a motorcycle significantly increases.
Distracted motorists also magnifies the vulnerability of riding enthusiasts related to the natural limitations of a bike. When motorists reach over to mop up a spilled beverage, the tendency to drift into an adjacent lane occupied by a bike can force a motorcyclist’s response that cannot be completed safely because of the lack of stability associated with operating a two-wheeled vehicle. Since motorcycles lack the protection from injury associated with passenger cars, such as a reinforced passenger compartment, safety restraints, and air bags, the severity of injury caused by drivers who are inattentive also tend to be more serious than those suffered by occupants of cars, trucks, and SUVs.
Although distracted driving often constitutes a basis for determining a driver is negligent, most drivers who cause accidents while diverting their attention from the road do not admit to their unsafe driving practice. Our Mississippi Motorcycle Accident Lawyers routinely subpoena phone records to investigate possible phone texting and talking activity immediately prior to and during a collision. Contact our firm today at 800.707.9577 to schedule your free consultation, so we can evaluate your situation and discuss your right to financial compensation.