Driving While Texting Laws Did Not Reduce Crash Rate, Says Study

Sept. 28, 2010— -- Texting while driving may be very dangerous, but state laws banning the activity are not reducing the number of auto crashes, a new study claims.

Researchers at the Highway Loss Data Institute reported today they found no reduction in car collisions after texting-while-driving laws took effect.

The researchers calculated rates of collision claims for vehicles in California, Louisiana, Minnesota and Washington, immediately before and immediately after those states banned texting while driving.

Not only did the researchers find that crashes did not decrease after texting bans, they found that in three states, crashes actually increased slightly.

"We want to be very, very clear. Texting while driving or using a cell phone while driving is definitely hazardous. It's just that laws enacted to reduce this behavior are not reducing crashes," said Anne Fleming, a spokeswoman for the Highway Loss Data Institute.

Although the study only focused on four states, she said there's no reason why the findings wouldn't apply to the 26 other states that have also adopted texting-while-driving laws.

"The point of texting bans is to reduce crashes, and by this essential measure the laws are ineffective," Adrian Lund, president of both HLDI and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (HLDI-IIHS), said in a statement.

He also said that the finding that collisions went up after texting bans indicates that those bans might even increase the risk for texting drivers.

The study will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Governors Highway Safety Association. It comes as U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood ramps up the Department of Transportation's efforts to combat distracted driving.

"This report is completely misleading," said LaHood in a statement after the study was made public. "Distracted driving-related crashes killed nearly 5,500 people in 2009 and injured almost half a million more. Lives are at stake, and all the reputable research we have says that tough laws, good enforcement and increased public awareness will help put a stop to the deadly epidemic of distracted driving on our roads."