Distracted driving is incredibly dangerous and regularly leads to severe accidents on the roadways of Pennsylvania. If you or somebody you love has been injured in an accident caused by a distracted driver, you should be entitled to various types of compensation for your losses. However, proving that the crash was caused by the distracted driving of the other motorist can be challenging. Here, we want to discuss the various types of proof that can be used to show that another driver was distracted when they caused your crash.
Gathering the Proof of Distracted Driving
Even if you are sure that you have been involved in a vehicle accident caused by another driver’s distracted driving behaviors, proving that could be difficult.
What is to keep the other driver from simply saying that they were not distracted?
Evidence is needed to prove fault for any vehicle accident, including those that occur as a result of suspected distracted driving. There are various types of evidence that you or your personal injury attorney in Pennsylvania can gather in an effort to determine exactly what happened.
- Police report. It is crucial that you call the police to the scene of any vehicle accident that you think was caused by distracted driving. By law in Pennsylvania, most vehicle accidents have to be reported anyway. The police will conduct a preliminary investigation of the incident, and they will often notate whether they think the crash was caused by distracted driving. Sometimes, an at-fault driver will even admit to driving while distracted.
- Eyewitness statements. There may be other drivers, passengers, or bystanders who witnessed the crash that may have seen the driver operating while distracted. If there are any witnesses standing around after a vehicle accident occurs, you should get their names and contact information so they can be reached by phone at a later date by the insurance carriers or your attorney.
- Vehicle “black box” data. Most modern vehicles have some sort of electronic control module that records vehicle data leading up to the crash. This will include the speed, when a person applied pressure on the brakes or accelerator, and how quickly the crash occurred after the brakes were applied. Even though this may not be able to prove directly that distracted driving occurred, it could help establish a pattern of unsafe behavior on the part of the driver.
- Mobile device data. If the distraction driving was caused by the use of an electronic device, there may be mobile records that could be obtained that show that the driver was using cellular data or Wi-Fi at the time the crash occurred. This data could also show whether or not the driver was on the phone or sending and receiving text messages when the crash happened.
- Video surveillance. It could be the case that video cameras on nearby homes, businesses, or dash cams caught the other driver on footage leading up to the crash. This footage could show that the driver was distracted at the time the crash occurred.
Working With an Attorney
If you or somebody you care about has been injured in a crash caused by the actions of a distracted driver, you need to work with an attorney as soon as possible. A Philadelphia personal injury lawyer can conduct a complete investigation into the case and help uncover the evidence needed to prove that distracted driving was indeed the cause of the crash.