Author: Rosenberg & Gluck, LLP
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for teenagers. Teen drivers between ages 16 and 19 are more likely to crash than older drivers. Teenage drivers simply lack the driving experience and judgment that older drivers have. And when you combine this vulnerability with the fact that teens and drivers under the age of 25 are more likely to text while driving than older drivers, you have the perfect storm.
According to the Boston Globe, a new study indicates that one third of teenagers admitted to texting while driving. For some, the texting pandemic has gotten completely out of control.
Senior Research Specialist, Amanda Lenhart at the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project co-authored a report based on surveying 800 teens from the ages of 14 to 17 and their parents or guardians along information from nine focus groups in four U.S. cities composed of teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18. She stated that teenagers understand the dangers of texting while driving, but their desire to text and stay connected often overrides safety considerations. Teens believe they can multi-task and are on “auto” when it comes to texting. While in this mind frame, some do not give a second thought to the fact they are texting while driving. After all, their thumbs are constantly in motion no matter what else they are doing.
Certain scientists and psychologists are calling texting an addiction. They say some teenagers cannot stop texting or put down their cell phones. Psychologists have even reported teenagers who sleep with cell phones under their pillows so they can answer texts in the middle of the night.
If you are injured in an accident where a teenager was texting and driving—whether a passenger in the teen’s car or another car—talk to a lawyer. Rosenberg & Gluck, LLP’s Long Island Car Accident lawyers can discuss grounds for recovering damages through a lawsuit.
