Distracted Driving Accidents

Were you injured in a distracted driver accident? Distracted driving is a big problem in the United States and in Pennsylvania in particular. Distracted driving occurs whenever a driver’s visual, manual or mental attention is not focused on the task of driving. A common example of distracted driving is texting while driving.According to the National Safety Council, a cellphone-related car accident occurs every 24 seconds in America or 1.3 million times a year. In 2011 alone, 3,331 individuals lost their lives in distracted driving collisions while 387,000 sustained injuries from these accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that using your phone while driving can increase your chances of getting in an accident by 23 times. Distracted driving is the number one cause of teen fatalities in America. The University of Utah found that “The impairment associated with using a cellphone while driving can be as profound as those associated with driving while drunk.”

Pennsylvania Cellphone Laws

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation statistics, there were 13,806 car accidents attributed to distracted driving in 2010. There is a ban on texting for all drivers in Pennsylvania. If you are caught texting in Pennsylvania, you will be forced to pay a $50 fine. More than 1,300 citations were issued the first year this law went into effect.

Types of Distracted Driving

Other forms of “distracted driving” include:

  • Eating, drinking and smoking
  • Adjusting the music
  • Talking on a cellphone
  • Using GPS navigators
  • Interacting with other passengers
  • Searching for a moving object
  • Reading/writing
  • Watching a video
  • Using a tablet computer
  • Personal grooming
  • Pets riding on the dashboard or front seat
  • Looking at people, objects or events happening off the roadway

Multitasking is not something that can be done safely behind a 2,500-pound vehicle. Yet while it is illegal to text or email while driving in Pennsylvania, an AAA survey found that one in four drivers admit to texting behind the wheel.

Were you hit by a distracted driver? Seek legal representation now!

If you were injured in a distracted driver accident or if you lost a loved one as a result of another’s negligent driving behavior, you should secure experienced legal representation. Once you secure a personal injury attorney, he/she will obtain phone records, speak with eyewitnesses, review police reports and gather all evidence necessary to prove that the other driver was driving distractedly. If you can prove that the other driver was distracted, you are more likely to obtain a larger settlement from the insurance company and might even be awarded punitive damages.

We will put our experience, investigative skills and advocacy to work for you. We can speak with accident reconstructionists, your doctor and other experts! If necessary, we can subpoena the driver’s cellphone records.

When you work with Balzarini & Watson, you can be confident that we will dedicate 100% of our resources so that you can obtain 100% of the compensation you deserve! When your life is turned upside down by a distracted driver accident, we can help you fight for medical costs, rehabilitation costs, lost income, pain and suffering, and more!

At Balzarini & Watson, we have over 135 years of combined legal experience. As a firm we have recovered more than $300 million on behalf of our clients. We work on a contingency basis, which means that if we can’t recover anything for you, we don’t get paid either! We have a proven record of success and have been ranked as one of the “Best Law Firms in the Country” by U.S. News & World Report. For a free consultation, do not hesitate to contact us today!

BALZARINI AND WATSON ARE READY TO HELP? CALL (412) 471-1200 FOR A CASE EVALUATION.

To schedule a free consultation with the lawyers of Balzarini & Watson, contact us by calling 412-471-1200 or 866-316-2111. As a contingency-based law firm, you will not owe us a penny if we cannot recover compensation for you. Home and hospital visits are available for your convenience.



To schedule a free consultation in Pittsburgh, call 412-471-1200 or 866-316-2111.