I was a huge Monkees fan when I was a kid.(What? I was 8!) I loved the song Daydream Believer. But who would’ve ever thought that daydreaming was so dangerous?
According to a recent study, daydreaming drivers are even more dangerous than texting drivers. In fact, daydreamers are five (5) times more dangerous. According to the study, 65,000 car accidents were researched over the last two years. An amazing 62% of car accidents which resulted in death were caused by drivers who were daydreaming. By comparison, only 12% of driving deaths were caused by texting drivers. (Can’t you just see Governor Phil Bryant calling a special session to ban daydreaming while driving?)
Over the last 18 plus years, I have represented numerous car accident victims. Long before texting, we had drivers who would run stop signs, red lights, drive off the road, etc. and cause accidents. These drivers were distracted by something and not paying attention. According to the study, here are other forms of distractions and the percentage of accidents each caused:
Rubbernecking, 7 percent;
Kids or other vehicle occupants, 5 percent;
Reaching for an object elsewhere in the car, 2 percent;
Eating or drinking, 2 percent.
Other, more minor factors included operating vehicle controls, such as the heater or radio, and even reaching for an ashtray. Pets were also a problem blamed for 1 percent of all fatal distracted driving incidents.
Ok there are several activities that didn’t make the list which apparently means they are safe, right? First, I noticed that neither air guitar or air drumming caused any accidents. These are two of my favorite driving activities. I am extremely partial to late 70’s and early 80’s rock songs, specifically AC/DC and Van Halen. I’m gonna be rockin’ out on the way home today!
Secondly, singing seems to be fine as there were no reported incidents of singing drivers causing any accidents. I tend to cover Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'”. My wife Wendy swears she can nail just about any Lady Gaga tune in her car but I can tell you from personal experience she can’t find the right pitch when she’s out of the car or when someone is in the car with her. Strange how that works isn’t it?
Lastly, even though I don’t partake, smoking in your car seems to be safe as there were no reports of smokers causing accidents. However, I specifically do remember a very gnarly accident several years ago in California caused by smoking. It seems this fella, we’ll call him Dude, was tokin’ away singing some Creedence (heck, he appeared to be air drumming as well!) when he dropped his smoke in his lap and crashed. Fortunately no one was injured. It should be noted that Dude was also drinking while driving, the dangers of which we have blogged about numerous times, most recently here, here, and here. . By the way, I like your style Dude, but do you have to use so many cuss words? I digress.
Car accidents are no laughing matter. A person’s life can literally change in the blink of an eye. Distracted driving, whether it’s caused by daydreaming, texting, drinking, etc. is something that can be avoided. When you are in a car, please keep your mind focused on the task of driving. To learn more about car accidents, please visit our website.
Disclaimer: This blog is intended as general information purposes only, and is not a substitute for legal advice. Anyone with a legal problem should consult a lawyer immediately.