WHEN ACCIDENTS ARE NOT ACCIDENTS
“ When someone is distracted by a handheld device and collides with someone or something else , it is no longer accidental .”
certainty . There was no bad weather causing dangerous road conditions . There was no equipment failure that made stopping impossible . There was no random impact by space debris that may have triggered the events .
My daily one-way commute is thirty kilometers . I drive that route two times a day , five days a week . I am becoming increasingly frustrated by the frequency at which I observe commuters and professional drivers alike texting and talking on hand-held devices . Concerning the events from this morning , I believe at least two drivers were distracted . I can ’ t say with certainty that there was a hand-held device involved , but I suspect that inattention and distraction were at play in both collisions .
I was late by 15 minutes . My fault - I slept in . But there are four insurance claims open today because of the vehicles involved in these accidents . Traffic was worse because four cars were off the road but too close to the lane of travel to allow a normal rate of speed for everyone else passing by and of course , everyone needed to have a look . Is it fair to suggest these two collisions were intentional or expected ? I guess if we do , it sounds awfully judgmental . But if they could have been avoided can we still call them accidental ?
I will say this . When someone is distracted by a hand-held device and collides with someone or something else , it is no longer accidental . It is absolutely dangerous driving , and the distraction is one of willful intent .
So , hang it up , stow it , or connect to the hands-free system in your car . With no intended disrespect to anyone , we are not that important , nor is the conversation . We should not put everyone on the road around us in danger .
If you own a fleet , or you are a business owner and you communicate with your employees while they are heading to a job site or meeting , you should be telling them ahead of time to safely pull off the road before they respond to you on a two-way device or cell phone . In fact , an employer that has a workforce that uses company cars or its own vehicles for work should be writing into the employee policies and procedures manual a standard for using a hand-held device while driving , period . You should get a sign-off from your employees that they understand they are not to be operating a vehicle while texting , emailing , phoning or googling . If you are the type of boss who demands an
instant response when you call staff while they are on the road , you could be endangering your staff and other motorists .
I have been very impressed to see how diligent the younger generation has been when dealing with drinking and driving . The idea of a designated driver or taking a bus or ride sharing when heading out on the town is not even a second thought for the twentysomethings I know . In fact , the younger generation are downright incensed when they hear of someone getting behind the wheel after just a couple of drinks . Unfortunately , 71 % of young Canadian drivers polled don ’ t consider using their phones while driving to be “ very distracting ” and the statistics bear this out . More collisions , injuries and fatalities are happening now as a result of distracted driving than from impaired driving .
Accidents that happen because we do not pay attention to our surroundings are avoidable . The truth is , those sorts of accidents should be expected , should be deemed intentional and really should not be considered chance incidents .
By definition , an accident involving a distracted driver is simply not an accident . +
DISTRACTED DRIVING
BY : TIM TOKRUD COMMERCIAL LINES MANAGER AND PARTNER AT GIFFORD ASSOCIATES
FALL 2016 | 31