Philadelphia Texting-While-Driving Accident Attorney

The privilege of driving comes with some pretty hefty responsibilities. You are supposed to be very careful of your safety and the safety of others every time you get behind the wheel of a car. If you aren’t cautious, you could seriously injure other people.

That same responsibility applies to everyone on the road. And it is extremely disappointing when another driver ignores that responsibility and texts while driving. It is especially unfair if you are the person who was injured by another irresponsible driver.

One of the worst ways that modern drivers can be irresponsible is by texting while driving. This behavior is outlawed in almost every state because it is nearly as dangerous as driving under the influence. Unfortunately, that doesn’t prevent countless people from doing it anyway.

If you have suffered a serious injury due to the carelessness of a texting driver, you deserve compensation for the harm you endured. Contact a Philadelphia texting-while-driving accident attorney at Morgan & Morgan today to schedule a free case evaluation and learn more about your legal options.

Texting While Driving in Pennsylvania

It is against the law to text and drive in Pennsylvania. This means that you can’t send messages or read messages. And this applies to any type of text-based communication you might be using.

If your device has text-to-voice capabilities (and vice versa), you can legally use these devices, but only if you avoid looking at the screen.

These laws don’t just apply while your vehicle is moving, either. They apply any time you are behind the wheel, even if your vehicle is stopped for some reason. Thus, it is equally against the law to stop at a traffic light and read your text messages.

The reason these laws exist is that distracted driving is one of the biggest causes of car accident injuries. If you are harmed by someone who is texting while driving, you should contact a Pennsylvania distracted driving attorney right away.

How to Avoid Getting Into a Texting-While-Driving Accident

The easiest way to avoid getting into a texting-while-driving accident is to never text while driving. When you text and drive, you take your eyes off the road. This significantly increases your chance of getting into an accident.

Unfortunately, playing it safe won’t guarantee that you avoid getting into accidents. You also need to keep a close eye on other drivers.

If you see a driver who is actively looking at any type of electronic device, slow down or pull over to keep your car away from them. They are more likely to brake suddenly or drift out of their lane, which could cause an accident.

Sometimes other drivers won’t be so obvious about texting. Even if you don’t see another driver holding a device, they may be texting and driving if they are:

• Looking at their lap or the passenger seat
• Swerving for no apparent reason
• Driving more slowly than the rest of the traffic
• Constantly reaching down for no obvious reason

If you see any of these signs, you should respond the same way you do if you know someone is texting and driving. Pull over, slow down, or take an alternate route.

What to Do if You Get Into a Texting-While-Driving Accident

If you have been hurt by another driver who was texting while driving, you need to do what you can to protect yourself. The first step in protecting yourself is contacting a lawyer from Morgan and Morgan who handles texting-while-driving accident cases.

Once you retain our services, the first thing we will do is investigate your accident. We will interview witnesses and track down traffic cams or dash cams that have footage of the accident and the moments that preceded it. Our goal is to find proof that the other driver was texting.

Furthermore, we will research your insurance policy. Pennsylvania has a complicated tort system. Depending on what type of insurance policy you have, you may be limited in your ability to sue another driver. If you have the cheaper limited tort policy, you can only sue for economic damages and only if you suffered serious injuries.

However, if you have a full tort policy, you have more options. With this type of policy, you can sue regardless of how severe your injuries are and you can also sue for non-economic damages. Because this difference will affect your compensation, we contact your insurance company immediately to understand your insurance policy.

There are other reasons why it is important to quickly prove that the other driver was at fault. If you weren’t responsible for the accident, your insurance company can’t increase your premiums due to your claim. We will present your insurer with enough evidence to prove that you aren’t responsible.

Protecting Your Health

Your priority after any accident should be protecting your health. If you have been badly injured, you will need medical attention. But if you are like most people in the U.S., you don’t have great medical insurance. This might make you wary of going to a doctor or the emergency room.

That is another way our texting-while-driving lawyers in Philadelphia can help. Due to our experience with these types of cases, we can determine what kind of compensation you qualify for and how likely you are to get it. With that information, you can feel comfortable seeing a doctor, knowing you are likely to get compensation for those costs.

Even before you have received our legal evaluation, you should get medically evaluated as soon as possible. The earlier you get medical treatment, the more likely you are to recover quickly.

Also, if you get medical attention immediately after the accident, it is more difficult for an insurance company to deny your claim. Seeing a doctor right away links the medical treatment more directly to the accident, thus making it something your policy should cover.

The Dangers of Texting While Driving in Philadelphia

Texting while driving is dangerous because you take your eyes off the road, but the danger of looking away from the road varies depending on where you are driving.

Highway Texting

Philadelphia is one of the largest cities in the United States. It has two interstate highways running through the city: I-95 and I-76. One thing that stands out about the portions of these highways that run through Philadelphia is that they are not very straight.

Both highways follow the contour of the nearby terrain. They bend and twist as they travel along the Delaware River or the Schuylkill River.

This bending means that drivers need to constantly adjust to stay in their lane while traveling at fast speeds. Drivers who are texting are likely to swerve into another lane and sideswipe you at high speeds.

Texting in Downtown Philadelphia

Even though the outskirts of Philadelphia seem almost randomly designed, downtown Philadelphia is incredibly well planned. It is a grid of roads that run parallel and perpendicular to each other, and there are traffic lights at every corner.

This structure can make a careless driver feel that it is safe enough to text and drive. Unfortunately, even though the roads are straight, that doesn’t mean there aren’t still hazards.

When drivers text and drive downtown, they are taking their eyes off the traffic. This causes accidents when lights change or when a driver slows down for some other reason. It also puts pedestrians at risk when a texting driver fails to give them the right-of-way in a crosswalk.