Personal Injury Law

Car Accident, Cell Phone and Teenager - Any Connection?

By Ward & Caggiano

Car Accidents occur most often due to a distracted driver. As Orlando car accident lawyers we find that one common distraction is cell phone use. In the past , efforts to prohibit cell phone use for drivers has gone nowhere in the legislature. However, a state lawmaker thinks a narrower restriction makes sense.

Representative John Legg wants to ban drivers under the age of 18 from using cell phones. He has filed a bill that would prohibit minors from talking on a cell phone when they are driving. He thinks this tailored legislation makes more sense because minors are the drivers who need to be completely focused on the road. He is not alone.

Seventeen states currently have laws restricting cell phone use for teenage drivers, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Six states and the District of Columbia have banned all drivers from using handheld cell phones. Six more states allow local governments to ban drivers from using cell phones. Florida is one of eight states that prohibit local governments from issuing such a ban.

Whether our legislature moves forward with this bill to reduce car accidents is yet to be seen. Many will think this gives up to much freedom-and perhaps it does. Others may think it will not do much to reduce car accidents. However, no one can really dispute that most accidents occur when drivers are not focused on driving.

Full post as published by Orlando Car Accident Lawyer Blog on December 13, 2007 (boomark / email).