Disability Law

Many parents would love to give their teenagers a cellphone that couldn't be used while driving. Some inventors say they have ways to make that possible. But they may be relying on wishful thinking.

One product, $10-a-month software by Dallas-based WQN Inc., can disable a cellphone while its owner is driving. It uses GPS technology, which can tell how fast a person is traveling.

But it can't know whether the person is driving ? and therefore it can needlessly lock a phone.

The DriveAssistT system will disable a phone at driving speeds and send a message to callers or texters saying the person they are trying to reach is too busy driving.

But because that person could be a nondriving passenger, the approach is a blunt tool.

Other product concepts that don't involve GPS systems have their own flaws. As a result, Parry Aftab, who advises families on technology and safety, suggests that worried parents find another way to stop their kids from calling or texting while driving. Parents are better off taking away a child's cellphone if it is used improperly, she said.

Concerns are mounting that driving while gabbing or text-messaging on a cellphone, even if it is not handheld, is unacceptably dangerous.

The National Safety Council said this month that there should be a total ban on cellphone use while driving, citing the higher risk of accidents and deaths.

At least 18 states restrict cellphone use ? talking or texting ? for some or all drivers, according to the insurance industry-funded Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Yet even in those states, motorists and especially young drivers are hardly deterred.