Injuries Caused by Oklahoma Distracted Driving

Oklahoma Distracted Driving accidents are on the rise. The serious accident risks posed by drug and alcohol impaired drivers is widely acknowledged. But, the dangerous practice of Oklahoma distracted driving  has increasingly become the focus of traffic safety experts in both truck and car wrecks.

Serious Public Safety Issue:

Injuries caused by Oklahoma distracted driving has become a serious public safety issue.  Over a year ago the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) proposed a universal ban of all portable electronic devices.  This excludes emergency situations.  Distracted driving has long been the cause of serious car accidents resulting in catastrophic injuries and wrongful death.  Recently though, the ongoing development of more sophisticated portable electronic devices has created a whole new range of distractions.

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Distracted Driving by The Numbers:

The federal government website Distraction.gov provides insight into the scope of the problem:

• Approximately 3,300 people die in distracted driving accidents annually.
• Each year about 400,000 people suffer injury in distracted driving car accidents.
• Almost 20 percent of all car accidents are due to distracted drivers.
• The risk of an injury accident is 400 percent higher when a driver uses a portable electronic device.
• When drivers engage in text messaging, the risk of a collision is 23 times greater.

More Reasons For Distracted Driving:

While electronic devices like cell phones, tablet computers and iPods focus attention on the dangers of inattentive drivers. There are also many more traditional forms of distracted driving, such as:

• Reading a book, magazine and newspaper
• Handling beverages and dealing with spills
• Eating messy food
• Personal grooming like shaving, putting on makeup and brushing one’s hair
• Rubbernecking when passing disabled vehicles or auto accidents on the side of the road

When drivers operate a motor vehicle, driving distractions can take three forms: manual, optical or mental.  A manual distraction involves taking one’ hands off the wheel to reach for objects in the vehicle, adjusting the car sound system or engaging in other physical tasks that force a driver to multi-task with his or her hands.

An optical distraction (also called a visual distraction) involves diverting one’s eyes from the roadway.  Optical distractions may involve looking at the screen of a handheld electronic device, scanning the passenger compartment of one’s vehicle or focusing on activity on the side of the road.  Mental distractions can be particularly insidious.  A driver’s mind may wander to issues other than driving without the driver even realizing he or she is wandering.  When a driver is tired or fatigued, there is an increased risk of a driver’s concentration drifting.

Oklahoma Distracted Driving Attorney:

When involved in a collision with a distracted driver we can help you. Distracted driving accidents involve carelessly sideswiping  you, rear-ending you at a stop sign or T-boning you after running a red light, all caused by inattentive driving. Our personal injury accident attorneys are committed to representing  victims injured in accident cases.