3 ways distraction impacts driving in California

You know that California has laws against distracted driving, but you also know that it still happens. You can see plenty of news stories about accidents, and you can often see drivers using their phones if you simply glance at them on the highway. Laws or not, it’s an issue, and it definitely impacts safety.

There are three main ways that distractions take shape. The first is a visual distraction. Say the driver coming toward you gets a text message and decides to look down at the phone. Now they’re not looking at the road, and they don’t realize that they’ve drifted right into your lane.

The second is a manual distraction. It also happens in the example above if the driver picks up the phone, leaving just one hand on the wheel. This is why talking on the phone, which gets less press than texting, is still dangerous. Drivers need to hold the wheel with both hands at all times so that they can react properly to the road around them.

The third issue is a cognitive distraction or a mental distraction. This one is a bit harder to spot because it just means that someone who is actively driving a car isn’t thinking fully about what they’re doing. It’s important to note that this distraction lingers. Even after that driver reads the text and puts the phone down, they could still be distracted if they’re thinking about what it said and not where they are driving.

If you get hit by that distracted driving coming into your lane, you may be able to seek financial compensation.