Florida Senior Urges Action on Distracted Drivers

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on October 15, 2009

A Florida retiree has had enough of distracted drivers who text while driving their vehicles at 70 mph and more on Interstate 95.

“I think that a law should be passed that it is a major offense for any phone or texting to be done while driving,” said the man who does not believe motorists should so much as munch a sandwich behind the wheel.

Driving while distracted is a growing problem in Florida and throughout the rest of the country as some drivers answer cell phones and text messages instead of concentrating on driving their vehicles safely. The Obama administration recently banned federal employees from texting and driving. Members of Congress have said that law enforcement officials and the American public must team up to discourage distracted driving for everyone’s safety.

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently convened a meeting to discuss ways to reduce drivers’ ability to use mobile telecommunication devices. The DOT reported in the meeting that almost 6,000 people died and 500,000 injured in cell phone auto accidents in 2008 caused by distracted drivers who were texting and talking on cell phones. The DOT also found that distracted drivers were involved in 16 percent of all fatal auto accidents, and drivers from the ages of 16 to 20 were most likely to be involved in cell phone car accidents.

“To put it plainly, distracted driving is a menace to society,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said. “Distracted driving is an epidemic and it seems to be getting worse every year.”

Currently, the state of Florida has no laws that restrict drivers from talking on cell phones or texting while driving, according to information provided by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. While many other states have aggressively enacted new legislation over the last year or two to penalize distracted drivers, Florida legislators are lagging behind, and drivers in Florida are hurt and killed every day in cell phone car auto accidents.

If you or someone you care for has been injured or killed in a cell phone auto accident caused by a distracted driver, call today to schedule a free consultation with Orlando cell phone car accident attorney James O. Cunningham. Since 1977, he has been helping people injured by negligent drivers receive the compensation they deserve to help pay for expensive medical care, lost wages and other accident-related costs.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.