Many vehicle accidents happen nationwide, annually, because of distracted driving. For example, the South Carolina Department of Public Safety states that 18,900 crashes happen annually where distracted driving is involved. Distracted driving can include cell phones, eating and drinking, changing the GPS or radio, conversations with passengers, and more.
Always talk to a car accident attorney immediately if you think a distracted driver injured you. A car accident claim or lawsuit may result in compensation for your injuries.
Types of Distracted Driving
In many states, distracted driving is a significant contributor to car accidents, with various behaviors diverting drivers’ attention from the road. The Department of Public Safety, along with other sources, identifies three primary categories of distracted driving: visual, manual, and cognitive. Each type encompasses specific activities that compromise a driver’s ability to operate a vehicle safely.
Visual Distractions
Visual distractions occur when a driver takes their eyes off the road, even briefly, increasing the risk of a collision. One of the most prevalent visual distractions is texting or using a smartphone, which is particularly dangerous because it often combines with manual and cognitive distractions. For example, glancing at a text message for just five seconds at 55 mph is equivalent to driving the length of a football field blind.
Other visual distractions include looking at GPS navigation, reading billboards, or turning to check on passengers, such as children in the backseat. Many states have evoked hands free driving laws. States like South Carolina for example, have a Hands-Free Driving Act, going into effect September 1, 2025. The state aims to curb this behavior by prohibiting the use of mobile devices while driving, although hands-free navigation use is permitted.
Manual Distractions
Manual distractions involve taking one or both hands off the steering wheel to perform another task, reducing control over the vehicle. Common examples include eating or drinking, adjusting the radio or climate controls, or reaching for items like a phone or personal belongings. For instance, drivers may fumble with a coffee cup or snack while navigating a congested street, busy highway or rural road..
Grooming activities, such as applying makeup or fixing hair, also fall under this category, particularly during morning commutes. The Department of Public Safety notes that manual distractions contribute significantly to the state’s roughly 20,000 annual distracted driving crashes, as they impair a driver’s ability to respond to sudden hazards, such as a vehicle merging unexpectedly on I-85.
Cognitive Distractions
Cognitive distractions occur when a driver’s mental focus shifts away from driving, even if their eyes remain on the road and hands on the wheel. These are harder to quantify but are no less dangerous. Common cognitive distractions include daydreaming, engaging in heated conversations with passengers, or talking on a phone, even via hands-free devices. For example, a driver distracted by a phone call may miss a stop sign in a residential Columbia neighborhood.
Stress or fatigue, prevalent among the working population, can also cause mental lapses. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration highlights that cognitive distractions slow reaction times similarly to alcohol impairment, a critical issue in a state with high rates of distracted driving fatalities (6 deaths in 2021 alone, per SCDPS data).
These types of distracted driving – visual, manual, and cognitive – often overlap, amplifying their danger. For instance, texting while driving, a leading cause of accidents, involves all three: looking at the phone (visual), typing a message (manual), and thinking about the conversation (cognitive). With the states ongoing efforts to reduce distracted driving through laws and awareness campaigns, drivers are encouraged to minimize these behaviors to enhance road safety and prevent the thousands of annual collisions, injuries, and fatalities reported across.
How Does Distracted Driving Cause Car Accidents?
Visual distractions, such as texting or checking GPS, play a significant role in accidents, causing drivers to take their eyes off the road, even momentarily. In many states, texting while driving is particularly prevalent and dangerous. It takes about five seconds to read or send a text, equivalent to driving the length of a football field blind at 55 mph.
Looking At Cell Phones Cause Many Crashes
This brief lapse can result in rear-end collisions, lane departures, or failure to notice traffic signals, especially in high-traffic areas. However, visual distractions like billboards or passengers still contribute to crashes, particularly among teen drivers.
Taking Hands From the Steering Wheel
Manual distractions, where drivers remove their hands from the wheel, further exacerbate accident risks by reducing vehicle control. Common activities like eating, drinking, or reaching for a phone are frequent culprits. For example, a driver adjusting their radio on a congested Columbia Street may fail to brake in time, causing a chain-reaction crash.
As an example, In a recent year, Beaufort County, SC, alone saw 877 of its 3,726 collisions (23.5 percent) attributed to distracted driving, many involving manual tasks. These distractions are particularly hazardous on winding rural roads, where quick steering corrections are often needed to avoid obstacles like wildlife or uneven pavement. The combination of manual distractions with high speeds or heavy traffic amplifies the likelihood of severe accidents, contributing to the state’s high crash rates.
Daydreaming Is Also Dangerous
Cognitive distractions, which divert a driver’s mental focus, are equally dangerous, as they impair reaction times and situational awareness. Activities like daydreaming, engaging in intense conversations, or talking on a hands-free phone can cause drivers to miss critical cues, such as a slowing vehicle or a pedestrian crossing. In South Carolina, for example, cognitive distractions are a factor in the roughly two distracted driving crashes that occur every hour.
For instance, a driver distracted by a phone call might not notice a stop sign in a residential Myrtle Beach neighborhood, leading to a T-bone collision. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration notes that cognitive distractions can slow reaction times comparably to a blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent. Cognitive distractions significantly contribute to the frequency and severity of accidents by undermining a driver’s ability to process and respond to road hazards.
How Does A Car Accident Lawyer Prove Distraction?
Suppose a driver rear-ended you, and you suspect the driver was distracted. You can only get compensation if you prove fault, so how does your car accident attorney prove your case?
Cell Phone Records
One primary method attorneys use is obtaining cell phone records to show whether the driver was using their phone at the time of the crash. In the states where texting while driving is illegal, phone records can reveal calls, texts, or app usage, such as social media or GPS, during the incident.
For example, a car accident lawyer might subpoena records showing a driver sent a text seconds before a rear-end collision. These records are time-stamped and can be correlated with the accident’s timeline, providing concrete evidence of distraction. However, accessing these records often requires filing legal motions, as privacy laws protect such data, and attorneys must demonstrate the relevance of the information to the case.
Witness Statements
Witness statements are also vital in proving distracted driving. Eyewitnesses, such as other drivers or pedestrians, may have observed the at-fault driver looking at a phone, eating, or engaging in other distracting behaviors. For instance, a witness on a Charleston, SC, street might report seeing a driver applying makeup before running a red light.
Police reports often include officer observations, such as items found in the vehicle, which can suggest distraction. Attorneys use these accounts to corroborate other evidence, strengthening the case by showing a pattern of inattention consistent with high distracted driving crash rate (about two per hour).
Camera Footage
Camera footage provides visual proof of distracted driving, capturing the driver’s actions leading up to the crash. In urban areas like Columbia or Greenville, traffic cameras at intersections may show a driver looking down at a phone or turning to a passenger.
Dashcam footage from the victim’s vehicle or another nearby car can similarly document distracted behavior, such as swerving or delayed braking. Attorneys analyze this footage frame by frame, often with the help of forensic experts, to pinpoint moments of inattention. In distracted driving cases, visual evidence is particularly persuasive in court or insurance negotiations.
Accident Reconstruction Specialists
Accident reconstruction experts and forensic analysis further bolster a case by recreating the crash and linking it to distracted driving. Experts can analyze skid marks, vehicle damage, and road conditions to determine if the driver’s reaction time was delayed, as is often the case in distracted driving scenarios.
For example, a lack of braking before a collision on a rural road might indicate the driver was cognitively distracted, such as by a phone call. Forensic analysts may also forensically examine the driver’s phone to recover deleted messages or app activity, even if the driver denies using the device. This scientific approach helps a car accident lawyer establish causation, which is critical under the modified comparative negligence rule observed by some states. This is where the victim’s compensation can be reduced if they share fault. A vehicle accident attorney can protect you from being unfairly blamed.
Finally, car accident attorneys may leverage admissions or social media activity to prove distraction. Drivers sometimes admit to police or others at the scene that they were distracted, such as saying, “I was just checking my phone.” Social media posts, like a Snapchat posted moments before a crash, can also serve as damning evidence. In South Carolina, for example, where distracted driving led to 6 deaths and 1,948 injuries in a recent year, attorneys meticulously gather such admissions to demonstrate liability.
What Is Your Distracted Driver Claim Worth?
Several factors will influence the value of your distracted driver case. First, the worth of a distracted driving case hinges on the severity of injuries, the extent of damages, and the evidence proving the driver’s distraction.
For instance, a rear-end collision in South Carolina caused by a texting driver might result in minor injuries like whiplash, yielding a lower settlement, while severe injuries like traumatic brain injuries or spinal damage can lead to settlements or verdicts in the hundreds of thousands or millions.
Economic damages, such as medical bills and lost income, are calculated based on actual costs, while non-economic damages, like pain and suffering, are more subjective and vary widely.
The strength of evidence—such as phone records or witness statements proving the driver was distracted—significantly impacts the case’s value, as stronger evidence increases the likelihood of proving liability.
Second, victims of distracted driving accidents can seek compensatory damages, which include economic and non-economic losses. Economic damages encompass tangible costs, including medical expenses (both past and future), lost income, reduced earning capacity, and property damage.
For example, a victim in a Charleston, SC, crash requiring surgery and months of lost work can claim tens of thousands in medical and income losses. Non-economic damages compensate for pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of quality of life, which are harder to quantify but can significantly increase a settlement, especially in cases involving permanent disability.
In rare cases involving gross negligence, such as a driver watching videos on their phone while driving, punitive damages may be awarded to punish the driver and deter future reckless behavior. Wrongful death claims, if a loved one is killed, may include funeral expenses and loss of companionship, with values often reaching six or seven figures, depending on the circumstances.
Contact A Car Accident Lawyer Now
Distracted driving accidents happen every hour nationwide. If you or a loved one were injured in an accident caused by a distracted driver you should always call a trusted car accident attorney as soon as possible. Speak to a car accident attorney in your community today, they know the local laws and jurisdictions and can be your best ally during this challenging time.
You may be entitled to compensation for your medical bills and pain and suffering. A personal injury lawyer near you can assess your case and help you understand your best options and next steps. Don’t delay, call today.
