Smart Auto Insurance Blog

According to the article “Texting While Driving Ban: Texting While Driving Laws Do Not Reduce Accidents” found on khabrein.info/news, a recent study shows that the recent bans on texting has not effectively brought accidents down in California.

The research was conducted by Highway Loss Data Institute, which is a non-profit organization supported by the auto insurance industry.  The research shows that the rate of accidents before and after laws were enacted in California have not significantly changed.  The study also pointed out that accidents in CA haven’t shown any significant changed in comparison to Arizona and Nevada where there are no bans on texting while driving.

The Automobile Club of Southern California finds the research interesting but they do not plan on accepting the study, citing that the samples were not large enough and the study is inconclusive.  It’s still known that any distraction while driving will put you at a higher risk of being in an accident, whether it’s texting, changing the radio, or programming a GPS.

According to the article “How Does Cell Phone Use Affect A Cheap Car Insurance Quote?” by Sharon Gibson on youronlineinsurance.com, cell phone safety is a major concern for law enforcement.  More and more traffic incidents are caused by people talking and texting on their cell phones.  Cell phone usage is a huge distraction and directly affects your driving.

More and more auto insurance companies are offering discounts to drivers who are willing to drive safer.  You may get a discount for having a cell phone disabling system which is a device which blocks calls as well as text messages while you are operating the car.  Some companies will flat out ask you what your driving habits are in regards to cell phones.  Your answer may directly affect your car insurance quotes.

In today’s busy world it is becoming increasingly harder to put down the cell phone or personal digital assistant.  It’s important to realize the impact driving while using your phone can have.  Not only are you more likely to be an unsafe driver but it could end up costing you hundreds of dollars in insurance premiums over the years.

We all know that driving while texting while talking on a cell phone is dangerous, studies have shown that it is nearly as dangerous as drunk driving.  Consequently many states have inacted legislation to make various types of cell phone usage unlawlful, and in some cases using a cellphone while driving can earn you a moving violation called “careless driving” or something similar, which can impact your auto insurance rates.

To date

• 6 states have enacted a jurisdiction-wide ban on cell phone usage while driving including:  California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Utah, and Washington) and the District of Columbia
• 6 other states have authorized localities to ban cell phone use including: Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio, and Pennsylvania
• Texting while driving is banned in 14 states & DC

The complete article as well as interactive maps which summarize these laws can be found here: http://www.iihs.org/laws/cellphonelaws.aspx