Distracted driving is a major cause of accidents every year in the United States. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 3,447 deaths and 3901,000 injuries due to distracted driving in the year 2015 alone. Among all types of distracted driving, texting is considered the most dangerous, since sending or reading one text can take your eyes off the road for a full five seconds. While texting is the most common and most dangerous type of distracted driving, there are many activities that can take your attention away from the road, including:
- Eating
- Grooming
- Adjusting temperature controls
- Adjusting radio controls
- Talking on the phone
If you have been involved in an accident with a distracted driver, one of the challenges you will face is proving that the driver was distracted at the time of the accident. After all, as the plaintiff, the burden of proof in your case rests on your shoulders. Below are a few of the most common methods you can use to prove that the driver who hit you was distracted.
Phone Records
If you suspect that the driver who hit you was texting or talking on the phone at the time, an easy way to prove that fact is to obtain the person’s phone records. If the records show that they were either talking on the phone or sending texts right around the time of the accident, you can use this information to bolster your case.
Eyewitnesses
While eyewitnesses aren’t quite as reliable as cell phone records, they can be useful to you, especially in cases in which the driver was not distracted by his or her phone. For example, if the driver was applying her makeup at the time of the accident, an eyewitness will be helpful, since there will be no official record of that fact.
Video Footage and Photographs
If your accident occurred in a busy urban area, then there’s a pretty good chance that video footage or at least a photograph exists of the incident. It’s often possible to collect information about distracted driving accidents from surveillance cameras, red light cameras, or even other drivers who use dash cams.
Expert Opinion
If the police who investigated your accident conducted an accident reconstruction, you might be able to use the investigator’s findings to bolster your claim. If there are no phone records or videos of the incident, your accident investigator may determine that the only explanation for the accident was that the driver who hit you wasn’t paying attention to the road.
Contact an Atlanta Distracted Driving Car Accident Attorney
When you’re injured in a car accident, finding out that the driver was not paying attention to the road can make the situation seem even worse. If you have been involved in an accident with a driver who you suspect was distracted, you may be able to seek compensation, so long as you can prove your case. Contact the attorneys at Slappey & Sadd for a free consultation to discuss your case by calling 404-255-6677. We serve the entire state of Georgia, including the following locations: Rossville, Loganville, and Dalton.