Most of the entire population of the nation has at one time or another picked up food, coffee or donuts at a drive-through window. They then proceed to eat while driving. “The results could be deadly,” said Emery Ledger, an auto accident attorney.
What does a drive-through window have to do with a personal injury auto accident attorney? Think about that for one second and it will likely hit you – eating while driving. Sure, most people start opening their burger or coffee while they are still in the line, but they continue to eat or drink while on the road.
Did you know that eating or drinking while driving could be deadly? It’s a driver distraction and all it takes is just one split second of inattention to the road to cause an auto accident. Ask a good auto accident attorney about the number of personal injury cases handled a year that involved a distraction of one kind or another. Food ranks right up there, just behind using a cell phone. Only a good auto accident attorney is able to assist the victims of a collision caused by driver inattention, a form of negligence.
While that may be hard to believe, one of the biggest distractions while handling a car is trying to eat a sandwich or wrap that keeps dripping on your lap. How many of times have you had to try and pick up the stray lettuce or dropped pieces of meat and sauce off your lap and seatbelt? “Every time someone looks down and away from the road is a window of chance for an accident to happen,” added auto accident attorney Emery Ledger.
This one action is so common that people just don’t give it much thought; they just do it, and no matter how good a driver you happen to be, how safe you are, eating or drinking while driving could get you in hot water and cause an accident. An auto accident attorney knows this and many are proactive in their communities to educate people about things like this.
This very thing happened to my neighbor’s son. He was driving from school to work, eating a sandwich and trying to adjust his MP3 player at the same time. He ran a red light and slammed into a pickup truck and seriously injured not only himself, but the passenger in the pickup truck. His citation? Reckless driving. It’s something to think twice about, and something your auto accident attorney will tell you in person when discussing the case.
Another very common thing to see these days is people texting on their cell phone while driving. In fact, this problem is so persistent and dangerous, that many states are looking at banning drivers from texting, as well as using a cell phone while driving. It’s dangerous and there are documented cases of the deadly results. Think smart. “Save the texting and calling for later, nothing is more important than your life and the lives of others you may injure or kill,” added auto accident attorney Emery Ledger.
Although this other common habit isn’t always related to texting or cell phone use, it has happened when another driver is trying to do two things at once. Ever been driving and seen the person next to you texting and then try to make a lane change at the same time? This is a story many an auto accident attorney has heard countless times. Unsafe lane changes may be the result of driver distraction and may also be because someone is in a tear to get somewhere. Either way, they often result in fender benders or worse.
