National Safety Month: Week 4

Week 4: Dangers of Cell Phone Use While Driving

Currently 38* states have some version of a law limiting or banning the use of cell phones while operating a vehicle and many others have bills on their way to being signed.  It is clear that the use of cell phones while driving is dangerous.  Approximately 1.6 million car crashes per year are caused by drivers who were using their cell phones.

The National Safety Council promotes avoiding using cell phones completely while driving but, for some of us, that just isn’t possible.  Fortunately, many states have completely banned the use of cell phones (calls and text messaging) with the exception of using a hands-free device.  Hands-free devices can be a head-set that comes with the phone (usually looks like headphones with a mic) or a Bluetooth head-set.  When purchasing a head-set for your phone, make sure you know which ones are compatible with your phone (this goes for both wired head-sets and wireless Bluetooth head-sets) because not all phones are the same.

To learn about what the specific cell phone law in your state is, visit www.DrivingLaws.org.

*Georgia’s law effective July 1, 2010, Connecticut’s law effective Oct 1, 2010

Week 1: Prescription Drug Overdose Prevention
Week 2: Teen Driving Safety
Week 3: Preventing Overexertion at Work and Home

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