| You may need to multi-task to get everything done | | | | While driving often becomes second nature for those |
| in your busy life, but when you are behind the wheel | | | | of us who have been driving for years, it is actually a |
| multi-tasking can spell disaster to your wellbeing and | | | | very complex operation that requires the coordination |
| your pocketbook. Since the best way to qualify for | | | | of physical and the mental parts of our body. That's |
| cheap auto insurance is to keep your accidents | | | | why it is very dangerous when drivers don't pay |
| down, it's wise to keep distractions to a minimum | | | | attention. |
| when you're driving, and concentrate on that one | | | | Solutions to the Problem of Distracted Drivers |
| task. | | | | What is the best way to keep the roads safe from |
| Risks of Cell Phones | | | | distracted drivers? That's a really good question |
| Distracted drivers aren't a new phenomenon; it's just | | | | without a really good answer. A number of states |
| that consumer electronics give us more ways to not | | | | have made it illegal to use a handheld phone while |
| pay attention to the road. According to the National | | | | driving. However, crash rates in these states have |
| Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), | | | | not gone down as a result of the bans, calling into |
| talking with another person is the most common | | | | question the effectiveness of using laws to keep |
| driver distraction, followed by grooming, using a | | | | drivers from multi-tasking. New software technology |
| handheld cell phone, and eating or drinking. Studies | | | | can block the use of cell phones in a moving car, and |
| show that cell phones cause or contribute to more | | | | voice-activated phones may help. But for every new |
| than 500,000 accidents a year-that's one half million | | | | electronic gadget that comes along, a technological |
| crashes due to cell phones alone! In fact, a driver | | | | way to get around it is sure to follow, especially for |
| who uses a handheld cell phone while driving is as | | | | tech-savvy young people. |
| much as four times more likely to get into a crash. | | | | Raising awareness of the dangers of distracted |
| Hands-free phones don't help much, and text | | | | driving may help make the roads safer. This may be |
| messaging is even more risky. All of which means | | | | particularly effective with young, inexperienced |
| that cell phone driving is about as dangerous as drunk | | | | drivers. Insurance companies may also play a role in |
| driving-and that is very dangerous. Amazing! | | | | influencing drivers to focus on the road. They can do |
| Driver Inattention | | | | this by offering training on safe driving habits, and by |
| Drivers cause 90 percent of all crashes. Bad roads | | | | making insurance cheaper for drivers who are safe. |
| certainly contribute to problems, as do mechanical | | | | Compare rates online and you will see that fewer |
| failures and poor weather conditions. But when | | | | accidents equal cheaper insurance. Cheap car |
| drivers focus exclusively on their driving they are | | | | insurance may be the best way to keep drivers' |
| more likely to use their skills effectively and make | | | | minds and hands on the one task they are |
| sound judgments, even in less than ideal situations. | | | | responsible for at the moment. |