You know how annoying it is—the stoplight turns green, and the car in front of you doesn’t move until after you lay on the horn. Almost nine times out of 10, you see that the reason the car in front of you was so slow to respond was because that driver was looking at their smartphone. This phenomenon is not just annoying, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal, it’s causing a rise in auto insurance rates. And not just for the smartphone junkies, but for everyone.
This is because distracted driving caused by smartphones is causing an overall increase in traffic accidents. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, fatal accidents increased by 7.2 percent in 2015. More accidents means the increase in payout costs is outpacing premium amounts for many insurance companies, forcing them to raise their rates across the board.
Bill Caldwell, Executive Vice President of Property and Casualty at Horace Mann Insurance, puts it this way: “Distracted driving was always there, but it just intensified as more applications for the smartphones became available.” Mr. Caldwell expects his company’s rates to rise 8 percent this year, on top of the 6.5 percent increase from 2016. A spokesman for auto insurance company Cincinnati Financial Corp. has said its investigators have noticed a marked increase in “no skid crashes.” This indicates that the driver is paying no attention to the road at the time of the accident.
Traffic accidents are no laughing matter; they can result in property damage, serious injury, and even death. You shouldn’t end up suffering, grieving, or paying when someone else acts irresponsibly by using their smartphone while behind the wheel. If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one due to a distracted driver in Southern California, contact the San Diego offices of Jurewitz Law Group Injury & Accident Lawyers. For over 15 years, the San Diego cell phone car accident attorneys at Jurewitz Law Group Injury & Accident Lawyers have been successfully representing injury victims, getting them the compensation they deserve. Call (888) 233-5020 for a free consultation.
