Cell Phone Bans Not Reducing Auto Crashes, Researchers Find 

NU Online News Service, Jan. 29, 12:23 p.m. EST

Laws banning the use of hand-held phones while driving have failed to reduce crashes, according to research conducted by the Highway Loss Data Institute.

HLDI, an affiliate of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), said its findings were based on a comparison of crash damage insurance claim rates in four U.S. jurisdictions before and after the phone use bans.

The research showed claim rates remained steady compared with nearby jurisdictions that have not passed such bans.

“The laws aren’t reducing crashes, even though we know that such laws have reduced hand-held phone use, and several studies have established that phoning while driving increases crash risk,” said Adrian Lund, president of the IIHS and HLDI.

In New York, HLDI noted, there was a decrease in collision claim frequencies relative to comparison states, but that trend began “well before the state’s ban took effect.” HLDI added that trends in the District of Columbia, Connecticut and California did not change.

Mr. Lund said, “So the new findings don’t match what we already know about the risk of phoning and texting while driving. If crash risk increases with phone use and fewer drivers use phones where it’s illegal to do so, we would expect to see a decrease in crashes. But we aren’t seeing it. Nor do we see collision claim increases before the phone bans took effect.

“This is surprising, too, given what we know about the growing use of cell phones and the risk of phoning while driving. We’re currently gathering data to figure out this mismatch.”

Mr. Lund said a possible reason for the finding may be that drivers are switching to hands-free phones, which presents about the same risk as hand-held phones.

“Whatever the reason,” he said, “the key finding is that crashes aren’t going down where hand-held phone use has been banned. This finding doesn’t auger well for any safety payoff from all the new laws that ban phone use and texting while driving.”

• • 1/29/2010 12:53:10 PM
  • Don
  • Cell Phone Restrictions
  • Accidents aren't going down when cell phones are restricted because many people still use them when they drive. Fines are in the neighborhood of $50 with no suspensions. Put the penalties up there with DWI's if you want to see something change. Several studies have suggested the risk is every bit as high.
• • 1/30/2010 7:18:24 AM
  • c
  • Cell Phones
  • Accidents are not decreasing because the law is not enforced by police. Actually I see as police on the road using cell phones as motorists. Police look at people talking on phones and do not even pull them over.
• • 2/1/2010 9:46:25 AM
  • Jack Heismann
  • Cell Phone Bans Not Reducing Auto Crashes
  • As a society we've always been incredibly adept at finding witches to blame for our worries, then proceed to burn them at the stake, convinced we're pursuing a rational solution. When the problem fails to disappear as we had predicted, we either burn more witches, look for the next witch, or much like true fanatics, simply redouble our efforts with even more draconian solutions. We've never truly established a direct causal relationship between cell phone use and actual accidents. Yet, despite an ongoing decline in vehicle crashes, injuries and fatalities since cell phones were introduced, we have convinced ourselves we had found a witch. And when the inconvenient facts didn't support our beliefs, we've even directed our law enforcement officials to associate the presence of any cell phone with any accident, even if the cell phone user was parked. It's time to determine if cell phones actually cause accidents, or if the real problem with distracted driving lies elsewhere. My recommendation is to shun those fanatics who desperately needed a witch (or cause) and get back to the business of saving real lives.
• • 2/1/2010 10:19:53 AM
  • Scott Richardson
  • Cell phone deaths and injuries
  • I live in a small town in the last several months death while texting and serious injuries have occureed twice, just counting the crashes doesnt meant there isnt a reduction of text or phone incidents. I still see more people on cell phones violating the local law every day. Passing a law and enforcing it are two different things.
• • 2/1/2010 10:50:10 AM
  • Steve Perkins
  • cell phone use correlation to accidents
  • This new study result simply can't be accepted. I question the baseline and quantifiable information, and perhaps the limited span of the time period from which data has been grabbed. Regardless, personally and from others are many accounts of hazardous driving behaviors of persons in deep phone conversation or texting. Laws belong on the books with stiff penalties for violations.
• • 2/1/2010 12:11:19 PM
  • Amazed
  • Cell phones and driving
  • I'm amazed that so many still think the problem lies in a driver having a cell phone in their hand. It's the fact that people's minds, not their hands, are preoccupied when using a cell phone in any fashion while also driving a car. The ban needs to be on any usage, not just texting.
• • 2/1/2010 12:24:00 PM
  • BJ
  • Cell Phone Bans
  • In July of 2008, California banned the use of cell phones while driving for all persons under the age of 18 years. The State also banned the use of hand held cell phones for persons over the age of 18 while driving. All cell phone users have to utilize hands-free devices, either corded or cordless, such as Bluetooth, to be within the law and avoid fines. That law is a huge joke! Every day I watch dozens of people with their cell phones glued to their ears and yapping away. There are a number of possibilities for their idiotic behavior: * They don't care about the law * They don't care if they get caught * They would rather pay the fine than shut their mouth * They think whatever they have to say is more important than safe driving * They think they can talk and drive but they can't chew gum and walk So, brilliance aside, what did the lawmakers think these rocket scientists were going to do to dial their cell phones? Not all of them have voice dial, so here we now have motor mouth tethered to the cell phone by their new hands-free ear bud and microphone combo, holding it up in front of him or her, trying to see the keyboard and dial a number. Or, looking down, totally eyes off the road trying to do the same thing. Or, better yet, holding a piece of paper and a pen and the cell phone, while trying to write down a number that has appeared on the screen, and must be of utmost importance. Then our brilliant lawmakers impose a lax fine for the first offense not much more for subsequent offenses if you get caught on the phone while driving. No points on the license, just a minuscule fine. They should have made it hundreds of dollars! Leave it to our lawmakers to pass a law with no teeth in it! God forbid they actually create a law that would help improve safety on our highways and put some teeth into enforcement efforts by law enforcement agencies. No, not in California! Once again, it cements our title as the Granola State! To make this even more tragic, nobody though to ban texting at the same time! Until January 1, 2009, so as of that date people can no longer text on their cell phone, Blackberry, PDA or whatever, while driving. But you know they do anyway! Ever watch some idiot driving along trying to text and drive? It's scary to say the least! Their car weaves and bobs as their thumbs flit from key to key, the car rhythmically moving in tune to the miniature keystrokes from one side of the lane to the other. Like most abusers of any technology, cell phone users in vehicles may soon find they are totally prohibited from using the phones in vehicles. Period. On January 11, 2009, The National Safety Council advocated a total ban on cell phone use while driving, stating the practice is clearly dangerous and leads to fatalities. The group's president likens talking on cell phones to drunken driving. She says cell phone use increases the risk of a crash fourfold, and that hands-free cell phones are just as risky as hand held phones. The council examined more than 50 scientific studies before reaching its decision. One is a study by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis. It estimates 6% of vehicle crashes causing about 2,600 deaths and 12,000 serious injuries a year are attributable to cell phone use. Yet here we are, still not enforcing the ban. People still with phones glued to their ears or texting down the roadways. Or holding their phones in their laps, out of sight, so they think, on speakerphone, because they don't want to buy a $20 earpiece. Not much different than drunk driving. It will never end unless we strictly enforce the laws that are on the books. Don't allow multiple infractions to occur before getting tough. Because after someone dies, it's too late to tell the family something more stringent should have been done. Yes, I have a cell phone. No, I don't use it in the car. I turn it off most of the time unless I have a need for it. It has voice mail so if I get a call and I don't answer, someone will leave a message. If not, the call wasn't important enough for me to answer anyway. That's the nice thing when you become the master of technology, rather than let technology become your ruler!
• • 2/1/2010 1:52:34 PM
  • Bob
  • A possibility
  • Thanks to Jack Heismann for your reasoned, non-emotional response. There are plenty of potential explanations for the results of this study. The most likely is that we simply attribute a higher percentage of crashes to cell phone use, while the overall number of crashes remains unchanged.
• • 2/1/2010 3:34:10 PM
  • Tom Bourdage
  • use of cell phones in vehicles
  • Do you really believe that these laws are going to be obeyed when we still see highway patrolmen, police officers, deputies, and border patrolmen still yakkin' and drivin'? C'mon be serious, unless the change is made at their level no serious changes will be seen out here. And what's with those folks driving with their left hand while talking on their cells in their right hand and held to their left ear? Yikes! I mean to say, C'mon folks!!

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