2. Cell Phone Use “Use of cell phones is the number one cause of distracted driving whether talking on the phone or texting or using it as a GPS device,” said Deanna Wukovits, Public Affairs Coordinator for GEICO in Buffalo, NY. Even using hands-free devices can take your attention away from the road reducing a driver’s ability to foresee a crash. A growing number of jurisdictions are making cell phone use against the law.
3. Drowsiness Being sleepy at the wheel “increases the risk of a crash nearly 4 times,” said Wukovits. Government studies have shown alarming statistics regarding drowsy driving. 37 percent of drivers in the United Stated have either fallen asleep or had a brief period where they dozed off while driving.
4. Distraction by Passengers Once they get their license teens are often excited to have the ability to drive their friends around. However, having people in your car creates distraction. This is true “especially with younger people,” said Wukovits. “The more people in the car the more things they ask you to do or talk to you.”
5. Eating The American population are always on the go. Eating while driving is therefore a common occurrence. Drivers risk their lives every day just to save taking a few minutes out of their day to have a meal. “Using your hands to eat makes reaction times slower hence increasing the risk of crashing,” said Wukovits.
6. Multi-Tasking Multi-tasking can take many forms and encompasses a range of activities that drivers should save for when they are not behind the wheel. Some are extremely common like “trying to find a song on your iPod or adjusting the stereo,” said Wukovits. These take your eyes off the road for too long and can cause a crash. If you want to change the music, have a passenger do it.
7. Multi-Tasking “Painting your nails or doing makeup also comes under the category of multi-tasking. It is any of those weird things that people do while driving,” said Wukovits.
