Teen auto insurance: Are cellphone bans justified?

Kamlesh Desai — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 04:20:16 +0000

Robert Patterson (Los Angles): Do you agree that teenagers will get cheap car insurance quote on account of cell-phone bans? Is this ban justified?

Tenn auto insurance rates and bans

Response: As an insurance person, parent and a social well-wisher I totally agree with the cell-phone usage ban. Secondly, it will certainly benefit all the insurance company and the people, since the lives would be saved and also it will prevent accidents. Yes, cheap car insurance quotes would be possible for all, since auto insurance rates are directly related to the auto insurance expenses.

One study indicates that driving while talking on the phone increases the risk by four. Another study shows that driving while distracted, such as adjusting the radio, engaging in a heated discussion with a passenger, or talking on the phone, may cause between 20 and 30 percent of all United States automobile accidents. Other studies, based on driver simulation tests, conclude that people have difficulty multitasking.

Automobile accidents are a major cause of death in the United States and are the single most common cause of death among children and young adults. According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), over 6 million police-reported automobile accidents occurred in 2001, which constitutes 1 every 5 seconds. On average, a person was injured in one of these crashes every 10 seconds and a person was killed every 12 minutes. The NHTSA estimates that the annual cost of automobile accidents is $230 billion.

Cell phone usage has skyrocketed in the United States during the last 20 years. There were only a few thousand cell phones in 1983.6 According to the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA), cell phone usage has shown a steady increase as follows.

9 million in 1992

38 million in 1996

97 million in 2000

134 million in 2002

NHTSA estimates that 73% of the people use cellphones when driving. This would mean that cellphones are a big source of distraction. This distraction, which leads to accidents must be stopped. Almost 70% of the accidents in youth have been attributed due to distraction and it is undoubtable that today cell phones are one of the biggest distraction.

Robert, I am sure now you know why this ban was necessary. I can give you more data and example of teen auto accidents which were caused by use of cellphones, if you want them.

Happy motoring.

Teen Auto Insurance Quote

Teen auto insurance: Are cellphone bans justified?

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