A study from the Highway Loss Data Institute finds that laws banning cell phone use while driving fail to reduce crashes
By Gabe Perna
An interesting study from the Highway Loss Data Institute suggests banning cell phone usage and text messaging while driving finds no reductions in crashes after bans take effect. The study compared data from 4 US jurisdictions before and after any kind of bans took effect, the researchers found steady claim rates compared with nearby jurisdictions without such bans.
HLDI researchers calculated monthly collision claims per 100 insured vehicle years (a vehicle year is 1 car insured for 1 year, 2 insured for 6 months each, etc.) for vehicles up to 3 years old during the months immediately before and after hand-held phone use was banned. The data was collected in New York (Nov. 2001), the District of Columbia (July 2004), Connecticut (Oct. 2005), and California (July 2008). Comparable data were collected for nearby jurisdictions without such bans.
"The laws aren't reducing crashes, even though we know that such laws have reduced hand-held phone use, and several studies have established that phoning while driving increases crash risk," says Adrian Lund, President of the HLDI. The Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) is an affiliate of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The study essentially says any kind of distraction has been the pinpoint reason for crashes. For instance, in the aforementioned states and areas with cell phone driving bans, many drivers might switch to hands-free phones because no US state currently bans all drivers from using such phones. In this case, crashes wouldn't go down because the risk is about the same, regardless of whether the phones are hand-held or hands-free.
"Whatever the reason, the key finding is that crashes aren't going down where hand-held phone use has been banned," Lund points out. "This finding doesn't auger well for any safety payoff from all the new laws that ban phone use and texting while driving."
For more: the complete study