Driver distraction is a major contributing factor to vehicle crashes. About 3,000 people lose their lives because of it each year, and many more are injured.
So it’s clear that a lot of drivers are distracted. However, when crashes occur, a lot of the drivers will claim they were not, and that they were paying attention. Often they cannot explain what went wrong, but they will swear it was not their fault.
Many drivers do not realize they are distracted
People often assume being distracted means being on their phones. Yet it is possible to be distracted even when you are staring straight ahead at the road.
Distraction works in three ways:
Visual distraction: Just because someone was looking forward does not mean they were focusing on what was happening. They might have been staring at an approaching restaurant billboard to see if the deal on offer made stopping for lunch worthwhile.
Cognitive distraction: You thought the driver had seen you. They appeared to be looking straight at you and had both hands on the wheel. Yet they did not stop. They just drove straight into you. It’s likely their mind was not on the task. They were lost in a daydream or deep in concentration on another matter. Whatever they were thinking about, they were not thinking about driving and so they did not register you.
Physical distraction: Maybe the driver did see you, but could not steer their car to avoid hitting you because they had a hot cup of coffee in their hand.
If you cannot work out why another driver crashed into you, getting help to investigate the possibility that they were distracted in some way could help you to get the compensation you deserve.