“Distracted driving is any activity that takes your eyes off the road, your hands off the wheel, or your mind off your primary task of driving safely,” said Doug Smith, senior vice president of personal lines at Erie Insurance.
“We looked at what law enforcement officers across the country reported when they filled out reports on fatal crashes and the results were disturbing. We hope the data will encourage people to avoid these high-risk behaviors that needlessly increase their risk of being involved in a fatal crash.”
Erie Insurance says the numbers are difficult to verify and may, in fact, under-represent the seriousness and prevalence of driving distractions because FARS data on distraction is based largely on police officers’ judgment at the time of the crash and also because some people may be reluctant to admit they were distracted when being interviewed by police after a fatal car crash.
Below are the top 10 distractions involved in fatal car crashes:
In addition to encouraging drivers to avoid the distractions above, Erie Insurance offers the following tips to avoid cell phone distraction:
• Let incoming cell phone calls go to voice mail.
• If someone calls you while they’re driving, ask them to call you back later and hang up.
• If you must talk or text, pull over.
• Lead by example; if you want your children to drive safely, show them how it’s done.
edited from Insurance Journal
