Everything You Need to Know About a Lawsuit Against a Distracted Driver

If you think being distracted while driving isn’t that big of a deal, we have news for you. There were more than 50,000 vehicle crashes, from 2015 to 2019, because of distracted drivers.

Distracted driving alone causes around 40 deaths and 195 life-altering injuries in a year. There are other issues responsible for deaths on the road as well. There is proof that multitasking is not one of the activities you need to be indulging in when you are in the driver’s seat.

Additionally, driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol is also responsible for many deaths in road accidents.

After all, a majority of head-on collisions and even near misses that occur are an outcome of not paying enough attention to the road. Globally, countries lose 3% of their gross domestic product through road accidents every year.

If you aren’t careful when driving a vehicle, you can end up with citations for traffic violations.

In extreme cases, recklessness on your part, when you have evidence against you, can throw you into an injury lawsuit which means you will have a legal lawsuit on your hands.

The general distractions that can disturb concentration

There are several general and obvious parameters in place to let a driver know the kind of activities they should not indulge in. All in all, drivers face three significant distractions.

Manual distractions: Manual distractions are when you take your hands off the steering wheel, like if you are reaching out to the passenger seat to retrieve something, or trying to put on your seat belt while the car is moving.

Visual distractions: Visual distractions occur when you take your eyes off the road, such as when you turn around to check on your children. Another common, new-age issue that we are dealing with is people using their phones while driving, which can cause accidents.

In India, around 31% of road traffic accidents are connected to drivers using their phones while driving.

Cognitive distractions: Cognitive distractions are the accidents that take place when you let your mind wander and focus on things other than the task at hand.

A study concludes that around 80% of crashes took place because of the driver’s inattention just three seconds before a crash.

General distractions that can wreak havoc

Driving with a pet: 17% of drivers permit their dogs to sit on their lap while driving. Only 16% use systematic safety restraints to take their dogs to and from places.

Moreover, 60% of drivers are distracted while their dogs sit in the passenger seat. Pets are unpredictable, and if they are not caged or harnessed, they can be a distraction.

All it takes is for them to jump on the steering wheel or the windscreen to cause a ruckus.

Eating and drinking: You may think that eating while driving can help you save time, but it can prove very costly. Drinks and food can also make steering a car difficult.

Then there is also the risk of liquid spilling, which can cause fatal driving accidents. A study shows that performing tasks while driving can result in the same issues as driving intoxicated.

Other distractions: Adjusting mirrors or touching the AC or heater, putting on makeup, switching music, taking calls, managing navigation is all ways to increase the chances of mishaps.

If a 2009 study of real-world driving is anything to go by, reading a map when driving increased the chances of being in an accident by at least seven times. Furthermore, a person who texts and drives is six times as likely to have a car crash than someone who drinks and drives.

It is best to turn off your cell phone, deal with the temperature in the car, and pick your favorite music beforehand. If a passenger is present, have them answer calls or help with directions.

If you are unsure of how to reach a place, study the map beforehand. Additionally, drivers can always pull over if they want to restudy the map.

While these elements can seem like common distractions, they have the potential to escalate into catastrophic events.

What is the process of filing a lawsuit?

After filing a lawsuit, the attorney needs to prove four elements.

• The duty involves the driver owing it to people on the road to keep their vehicle and people safe.
• The breach involves the driver breached their duty through distraction.
•  Causation involves the proximate cause of the accident.
• Damages involve the damages that have occurred.

In case you cause grave personal injury to an individual because you were breaking one of the rules or were distracted, the concerned person who sustained the injury can file a lawsuit.

In this case:

The police check your cell phone records to gain an account of whether or not your cell phone was responsible for the accident.

Officials look into traffic video footage from the traffic cameras to gain an even clearer idea.

Your attorney sits with you to recreate the incident, examine the driving history, and look over medical records.

Your lawyers interact with any witnesses, and if the distracted driver happens to be on the job, they can file a lawsuit against the employer of the distracted driver.

The victim can obtain punitive damages. They can recover from an employer-provided attorney who can prove that the company is to blame for careless driving as some employers want their employees to be accessible over the phone whenever they need them.

According to a recent study, the number of road accidents dropped significantly in 2020 because of the Coronavirus pandemic and a large number of people spending most of their time at home.

When working on the legal counsel team assisting with road accidents, there are a couple of factors to account for. While getting a law degree is quite challenging and has multiple steps, beginning out is not a breeze either.

With the massive changes that took place through the pandemic, employers were now working on getting background checks on the people they were working with.

Their main concern is to make sure that the person they were hiring did not have a criminal record, which could be proved through a background check.

Multiple agencies assist with the process and provide one in a couple of weeks and in some cases, coordinate with the police department depending on the position that they were applying for.