More Videos
You can watch more videos about the dangers of distracted driving, and true stories from some of our agents:
Stop Texting Before it Stops You
Which is worse -texting & driving or drinking & driving?
It Can Happen In An Instant
Do you become more or less distracted as you get older?
Who’s Fault Is It?
Do you think you can talk on the phone and drive without distraction?
Contact Darrayl
Set a Good Example
Do as I say or say as I do?
Establish Clear Rules
Can establishing rules really work?
Startling Driving Stats for Teenagers
Startling Stat #1:
Every year, nearly 5,000 teenagers are killed in car crashes and about 375,000 are injured.
Startling Stat #2:
Texting results in car crashes that kill an average of 11 teens each day.
Startling Stat #3:
Texting and driving can take your eyes off the road an average of five seconds at a time. At 55 mph, that's like driving the length of a football field - completely blind.
Support the STANDUP Act
Help prevent nearly 5,000 teens from dying in car crashes this year—the number one killer of teens—with your signature.
The Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection Act of 2011 (STANDUP Act S. 528 and H.R. 1515) would establish minimum federal requirements for state Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws. The STANDUP ACT would work nationally by requiring the teen driver to go through three stages of licensing — learner's permit, intermediate stage, and full licensure.
Parent & Teen Contract
Four out of five teens said their parents would be the best influence in getting them to drive more safely. Allstate created the Parent / Teen Contract as an effective way for parents to talk with their teens about the preventable and predictable consequences of distracted driving.
Once teens have completed their driving courses parents often assume they know what they’re doing. The Parent / Teen Contract provides a framework for discussing driving distractions while becoming a tool that helps parents set driving guidelines for their teens.
Dangers of Distracted Driving
While texting behind the wheel is one of the most dangerous driving practices, many drivers feel they are fine as long as they use hands-free devices while driving. However, a study by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, using a brain scan, found just listening to someone on the phone decreased activity in the part of the brain that controls driving by 37 percent.
"Drivers need to keep not only their hands on the wheel; they also have to keep their brains on the road," said Carnegie Mellon neuroscientist Marcel Just. "Engaging in a conversation could jeopardize the judgment and reaction time if an atypical or unusual driving situation arose."
Other studies have found the level of distraction caused by texting or using a cell phone behind the wheel is equal to or worse than that caused by drunk driving, putting both the driver and others on the road at serious risk of injury.
Copyright 2011 – Action Against Distraction by Allstate