In this day and age, distracted driving is everywhere, putting you and your loved ones at greater risk of injury. If you are the victim of distracted driving, it’s important to contact a Chicago personal injury attorney to secure legal counsel.
Distracted driving can be hard to prove in many cases. But with the right legal representation, you can get the compensation you deserve. Chicago continues to be a hotbed for a number of distracted driving instances.
Keep reading to learn about the different types of distracted driving and how much of a problem it’s become throughout Chicago.
Types of Distracted Driving
Before the widespread technology that’s used in everyday modern life, distracted driving used to be largely confined to changing the radio station or looking in the rearview mirror. Today much has changed, with distracted driving including any of the following scenarios:
- Scrolling through music
- Posting on social media
- Pulling up a digital map
- Looking for directions
- Talking on the phone
- Watching videos
- Checking email
- Texting
That’s quite the departure from the distracted driving of yesteryear. But unfortunately, it doesn’t end there. As a matter of fact, there are outside sources that can account for and cause distracted driving, such as:
- Conversing with passengers
- Eating drive-thru food
- Putting on makeup
- Reading billboards
With so much to take drivers’ eyes off of the road, it’s no wonder that distracted driving rates have gone up in recent years, and not just in Chicago.
By the Numbers
Distracted driving results in injuries and fatalities every year. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA), a study conducted in 2022 revealed some harrowing statistics due to distracted driving:
- 498 deaths (pedestrians)
- 681 deaths (passengers)
- 2,006 deaths (drivers)
- 87 deaths (bicyclists)
- 289,310 injuries
That’s a total of 3,308 deaths related to distracted driving. Moreover, teens and young adults are at greater risk of being victims of or causing distracted driving. A large part of this is due to texting while driving.
Even though laws have been put into place in an attempt to curb texting while driving, they appear to do little to prevent it from happening, especially among the younger crowd. In a recent survey, it was revealed that one in every three teenagers admitted to texting while driving.
With so many distracted drivers on the road at any given time in Chicago, it’s no wonder why there are more accidents associated with this activity than ever before.
Take Action
If you are the victim of distracted driving in Chicago, it’s important that you take the appropriate action right away. Contact the personal injury attorneys of Hale and Monico to start your claim. You should also get in touch with your insurance company and make a report of the accident if you haven’t already. If you need guidance on what to do, your attorney will walk you through the proper steps to ensure that you do all that’s required of you. Get in touch with our office today.