Recently, we’ve been looking at the issue of driver distraction, and the statistics make sobering reading. Taking your eyes of the road, even for a couple of seconds, can have dramatic – and sometimes fatal – consequences.
Take a look at the infographic below on driver distraction:
The statistics
The World Health Organisation estimates that worldwide, around 12million people die in road crashes every year. And notice we’re calling them crashes rather than ‘accidents’ here.
The word ‘accident’ suggests that nobody is to blame for the event. However, the truth is that driver error is cited as the mitigating factor in around 90% of road traffic incidents, so these are no ‘accidents’. And one of the biggest causes of driver error is becoming distracted.
Getting into bad habits
When we start driving, we’re utterly focused on the road in front of us. It’s a new environment, it’s challenging and there’s a lot to think about when driving a car. But once drivers pass their test and become more experienced they ‘relax’ into driving.
Many of the responses become automated, giving the driver some mental ‘me’ time to think about other things, especially when driving on familiar roads. And that’s where mistakes happen.
What distracts us on the road?
There are three main types of distraction:
- Visual – when we take our eyes off the road
- Manual – when we take our hands off the wheel
- Cognitive – when our focus on driving wanes and we lose concentration
All kinds of things can distract a driver. From drinking or eating while driving, to ‘rubbernecking’ at crashes on the opposite side of the road, putting on makeup while driving, texting, and making or receiving phone calls. A recent survey found that an astonishing 16% of drivers admitted to texting while driving, and when you consider that to read or send a text you will take your eyes off the road for 4.6 out of every 6 seconds, it’s immediately obvious how hazardous this action can be.
Could it affect your car insurance?
The simple answer is yes, it could. If you are involved in a road collision and it can be proven that you were distracted while driving, you car insurance may refuse to pay out.
This is particularly true if you were using a mobile phone at the time of the incident, as operating a mobile phone while driving (unless it’s a hand’s free) is illegal.
You are also more likely to have a rear-end ‘shunt’ if you are distracted, and the default position for most insurance brokers is that if you hit a vehicle from behind you are responsible for the incident.
So it’s time to put your mobile phone away, wait until you get home to eat that sandwich, or turn the radio or your iPod off for a while and focus back on the road.
The challenge of driving may get easier as you become more experienced, but the unexpected can and does happen every single day on the UK’s roads. By focusing your attention back on your driving not only are you minimising your chances of being hurt or even killed in an incident, but you’re also ensuring that your car insurance provider doesn’t leave you out in the cold financially.