Did you know that distracted driving is a major cause of road accidents? This means that a lot of injuries and fatalities on the road could be avoided. When you're in a car crash and it's not your fault, it makes sense to speak with a personal injury lawyer - like this Lafayette personal injury lawyer. If you're no longer able to work or provide for your family then you shouldn't have to pay for the mistakes and negligence of someone else. 

So, why do people drive whilst distracted? Surely they realise that they're putting themselves and others in danger, right? The truth is that even the smallest distraction can cause an accident which means most of us don't actually realise we're not giving the road our full attention. 

Read on for some examples of distracted driving.

Eating and drinking

You're running late for work and don't have time to sit and enjoy breakfast, so you decide to eat whilst driving and sip your coffee whilst pulling into traffic. As common and as innocent a task as eating and drinking behind the wheel seems, you're incredibly distracted. Not forgetting the added risk of burning yourself on hot drinks or even choking on your food!

Using your smartphone 

Whether you're talking to someone, texting, checking your social media notifications or even using the handsfree option, if you're using your phone behind the wheel then you're more likely to have a crash, hurt yourself or kill someone else. If you do drive with your phone in the vehicle with you, keep it out of reach and out of sight to remove temptation.

Adjusting parts of your vehicle 

Whether you're finding the right radio station, turning up the volume, or adjusting the heating, your mirrors or the A/C, fiddling with knobs and switches behind the wheel prevents you from focusing on the road ahead and could leave you with little time to react to a sudden change on the road. 

Falling asleep

Driving whilst tired is incredibly dangerous. Your reactions are much slower, you're likely to close your eyes and not see what's coming up ahead, drift onto the other side of the road or even fall asleep! If you feel tired behind the wheel it's always a good idea to pull over safely and get some rest before continuing further.

Passengers

Whether your children are fighting in the back seat, or your friends are messing around and causing a huge distraction, if you're finding it difficult to drive due to your passengers then you should pull over and ask that they quieten down! 

Conclusion...

If you believe that you're the victim of a car accident that wasn't your fault, due to distracted driving or otherwise, then speak with a PI lawyer today.