According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly 43,000 people lost their lives in car and truck accidents last year, an increase of 10.5% over 2020, which itself had the highest death rate in fifteen years. In comparison, during 2019, car accident death rates rose nearly 20 percent, which was the highest rise since the mid-1940s. Trying to determine the reason for the dramatic increase is difficult, but researchers believe it is a deadly combination of faster reckless drivers using their phones while behind the wheel.

Not surprisingly, Florida is a top state for distraction-related automobile deaths, according to data from MoneyGeek.The Sunshine State had over 500 distracted driving deaths during the years 2019 to 2020. The only state with more distracted driving deaths during that time was Texas. In hopes of changing the path of deadly crashes in Florida, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) and the Florida Highway Patrol started a campaign, during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, to teach Florida motorists about the importance of avoiding distracted driving. According to FLHSMV data, distracted driving crashes resulted in 333 fatalities in 2021 – the highest recorded in Florida in at least 8 years. On average, there were more than 1,000 distracted driving crashes every week across Florida last year.

In addition to distracted drivers causing deadly crashes, increases in the number of electric cars, which are faster than internal combustion vehicles, led to greater risks for pedestrians and bicyclists, who may not hear the approaching electric vehicle. The number of heavy vehicles with greater horsepower on the roadways is also at an all-time high. Heavy fast vehicles dramatically increase the likelihood of death or serious injuries from a crash. The EPA found that vehicle’s average horsepower has nearly doubled over the last 20 years.

Also, large trucks and SUVs, given their weight, are especially dangerous for pedestrians. Data shows that these vehicles pose a deadlier threat to pedestrians as compared to cars when making turns. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that while a vehicle with a higher ride height can help with down the road visibility, they cause the driver to have a greater blind spot in the areas immediately in front of the high vehicle. Increasingly bigger vehicle is a reason why more than seven thousand pedestrians died in traffic accidents last year, a rise of more than thirteen percent from the prior year. Although we drove the least number of miles during the Covid-19 lockdowns, because those on the road drove more carelessly, there was actually an increase in the number of pedestrian deaths per mile driven. In order to turn the tide against the rising number of roadway traffic deaths, there needs to be greater regulatory changes, in combination with drive behavior changes – particularly making sure drivers and passengers use their seatbelts. The NHTSA’s data shows the number of unrestrained drivers and passenger who have died in car accident rose more than twenty percent over the last two years.

Having helped too many families deal with the tragic death of a loved one after a Florida car accident caused by a distracted or reckless driver, we again tell your fellow Floridians, please put your phone down when you’re behind the wheel. Even a quick glance at your phone while your vehicle is moving puts everyone else on the road, and all passengers in your vehicle, in danger.

The rise in deadly crashes, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration determined that the increase to nearly 38,000 victims last year, is due to a number of reasons including speeding and the lack of seat belt use. The steady increase in accident deaths reverses what had been a steady drop from 2007 through 2014. While the researchers expected deadly car accidents to decrease given the increased use of so-called autonomous driving being installed in many vehicles, what they did not anticipate was that distracted driving, caused by drivers’ use of advances in vehicle technology are actually making it easier for drivers to be distracted.

Also, speeding and driver carelessness were responsible for a nearly 5% rise in deadly car accidents. Sadly, pedestrians being struck and killed by drivers rose nearly 10% over the past year. As expected, drunk driving accidents were to blame for nearly a 2 percent rise.

The government copes that the inclusion of automatic braking, rear cameras, lane departure warnings and better air bags will eventually help stem the tide against the rising number of deaths by making vehicles safer. But as the AAA determined in a recent study, giving drivers access to more technology, particularly touch screens, with their dozens of driver assistance features, actually results in motorist taking their eyes off the roadway for dangerous and prolonged periods of time. Those distracted motorists alone accounted for nearly 9% of the deadly car accidents. The AAA believes that vehicle manufacturers should restrict driver access to many features while a vehicle is in motion.

In particular, the AAA would like manufactures to limit use of social media and communications such as email and text. Unlike rather routine use of vehicle controls to change the air conditioning or change a radio station, never vehicles have become so sophisticated that drivers must take their hands of the steering wheel, and eyes off the road for a dangerous amount of time in order to accomplish tasks such as using a car’s navigation system or check a text message.

In fact, testing revealed that all vehicles required a high degree of driver attention to use their infotainment systems. Given prior research shows that when drivers are distracted, even by two seconds, their risk of being in a collision nearly doubles. So, when manufactures allow drivers to text while a vehicle is in motion, they are condoning an activity they know is likely to result in a crash.

We agree with the AAA that motorists should only be able to use vehicle technology for legitimate emergencies or urgent, driving-related purposes, which clearly does not include texting.

Considering the increasing number of car accident related wrongful deaths, it is imperative that all motorists understand how dangerous any smartphone while behind the wheel is. The AAA’s study revealed that a driver’s mind remains distracted for nearly half a minute after simply sending a text while their vehicle is stopped. The driver’s mind remains focused on the message they just sent, rather than on driving their vehicle. The researchers refer to the post cellphone use as inattention blindness, and essentially blocks out other stimulus, such as other cars, traffic signs and even pedestrians.

This finding is concerning, particularly since car manufacturers and technology companies are rapidly making “advances” in allowing motorists to more readily remain on-line, such as with heads-up displays. While allowing motorists to see information on their windshield, rather than looking at the dashboard or phone, sounds safer, that motorist is equally as distracted. The AAA is actually recommending that all vehicles have technology which prohibits a driver from using smartphone technology with the car is moving. And, while voice activated technology may aide motorists, not all vehicles have seamless technology integrated into them, which may actually cause a well intending motorist to become more distracted.

While most states, including Florida, have laws which punish motorists who text while driving, too few have similar laws to prevent drivers from talking into a hand-held phone. As anyone driving along South Florida’s roadways, particularly I-95, the turnpike or I-595 knows, far too many drivers are driving with one hand on the wheel, while their other is holding a phone; often times, directly in front of them, using the speaker, and actually looking at the phone too.

Needless to say, we agree with the AAA, that Florida’s legislature needs to take more aggressive action to keep up with the pace of technology and keep those of us on the road safer.

The actual statistics are truly concerning. The AAA’s study revealed that sixty percent of Millenial drivers actually admit to sending a text or email while operating a motor vehicle. That admitted rate is nearly twice as high as all other age groups of drivers. Also, almost 50% of Millenials admitted to running a red light, one they could have easily stopped for, a rate that is almost 25% greater than other age groups.

Millennials also admit to regularly driving more than 10 m.p.h. over the posted speed limits in school zones. That behavior which endangers children and demonstrates a disregard of some of the most costly traffic ticket consequences is a rate which is more than double that of all other age groups of drivers. We, as Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers, share the same concerns as the AAA; that a large population of drivers is willing to regularly take unnecessary risks which needlessly increase the chance of being in a deadly car accident. Considering fatal car accident deaths rose more than 7% over the last year, this accepted recklessness should be truly concerning to Florida drivers.

The most frustrating part of the AAA’s study is that while almost all drivers agree that aggressive and distracted driving is not acceptable behavior, they themselves regularly drive in such a reckless manner. In fact, while 80% of motorists feel that texting while driving is completely unacceptable, more than 40% of those same drivers admit to sending a text while driving within the past month. A similar percentage holds true regarding drivers’ feelings about those who operate a vehicle while sleepy, with 80% of those in the study calling the behavior unacceptable; but, nearly 30% of those same drivers admitting to driving while having trouble keeping awake within the last month.

Finally, while a majority of drivers agree that the legal limit for drunk driving should be reduced from .08 to .05%, almost three percent of those same drivers admitted, unbelievably, to smoking pot or drinking and the getting behind the wheel of a car.

As a Miami car accident lawyer who helps seriously injured victims of distracted driving crashes, we hope our fellow motorist start to practice what they preach, but not doing the dangerous driving behavior they believe and know they should not.