A study by Erie Insurance was reported after researching the nationwide car crash database known as the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). The insurance company learned that over the last five years there were over 170,000 fatal traffic-crashes where 10% or more of the victims were distracted while behind the wheel. Even more disturbing was in over 60% of these deaths at least one of the drivers was thinking about something other than road in front of them. If you’ve ever left work and after arriving home wondered “How did I get home” you can relate. It’s happened to all of us at some point in time and that makes daydreaming the number one driver distraction.
Many drivers get lost in thought while driving due in part to how the brain works. Humans experience countless sensations and stimulus every second, and our brains works diligently on prioritizing what it deems to be important. Excessive stimulation all at once overloads our senses so a trade-off is made. That trade-off at times makes for a smaller attention span that has a tendency to wander. When this happens behind the wheel in can result in a driver not seeing the car they’re about to crash into as they attempt to take an exit. Ask yourself if you’ve ever found yourself slowing down when approaching a green light while thinking about something else. This can lead to a potentially serious crash.
Most people understand the dangers of texting while driving, but daydreaming while driving is an almost invisible distraction – people do it automatically without even realizing the risk. The Insurance companies analysis of police data from 2012-2016 showed the majority of drivers who were distracted were “generally distracted” or “lost in thought.” In fact, police report that 61 percent of distracted drivers were daydreaming at the time of a fatal crash, compared with 14 percent of drivers who were distracted by cell phone use. Erie Insurance did a similar analysis five years ago and revisited the data to see if the types of distractions had changed over the years. The analysis found the distractions were largely the same.
We represent people who are injured because of the careless and reckless acts of others. At the end of the day your case can only be settled one time and you need to know all of the facts beforehand. The reason that insurance companies have paid our clients in excess of $157,000,000.00 is that we get the facts and are not intimidated at the prospect of going to trial when insurance companies fail to offer full compensation. We help with serious injuries that require serious representation. We are the Law Offices of Guenard & Bozarth, LLP. Our attorneys have more than 60 years of experience specializing in only representing injured people. Call GB Legal 24/7/365 at 888-809-1075 or visit www.gblegal.com We would be honored to represent you!
