A: daydreaming
When it comes to being involved in a fatal car crash, even worse than driving while texting or talking on your cell phone is driving while daydreaming. Being distracted or lost in thought accounted for a whopping 62% of fatal accidents caused by a distracted driver, followed by a very distant second of 12% caused by cell phone use, which includes not only talking, but also texting, according to a survey by Erie Insurance. Of the more than 65,000 people killed in car crashes over the past two years, one in 10 were in crashes where at least one of the drivers was distracted, according to police report data analyzed by Erie Insurance in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), a nationwide census of fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes maintained by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The top 10 driving distractions involved in fatal car crashes are:
- Generally distracted or lost in thought, daydreaming: 62%
- Cell phone use (talking, listening, dialing, texting)
- Outside person, object or event, such as rubbernecking: 7%
- Other occupants (talking with or looking at other people in the car): 5%
- Using or reaching for a device brought into the vehicle, such as navigational device or headphones: 2%
- Eating or drinking: 2%
- Adjusting audio or climate controls: 2%
- Using other device/controls integral to the vehicle, such as adjusting rear view mirrors or using OEM navigation system: 1%
- Moving object in the vehicle, such as a pet or insect: 1%
- Smoking related, including smoking, lighting up, putting ashes in the ashtray: 1%
