Cellphone Use Leading to Pedestrian Accidents

Cellphones aren’t only a distraction to drivers. Fifty-three percent of adults who own a cellphone report being involved in a walking accident caused by distractions from the device.

More and more incidents of distracted walking are being reported. Distracted pedestrians using cellphones have walked off piers, fallen into water fountains and bumped into other pedestrians.

Twenty-three percent of cellphone owners report bumping into others while distracted by their phones. Fifty percent of owners say another person using a cellphone has bumped into them due to distractions from their phone. So-called distracted walking encounters have happened in fifty-three percent of the adult cellphone-owning population.

Who Is Distracted?

Young adults are the most likely to have a distracted walking encounter. Among cellphone owners between the ages of 18 and 24, fifty-one percent report being distracted by the device and bumping into another person, while 70 percent report being run into by someone distracted by a cellphone.

Statistics are only available relating to age. It is unlikely that location makes a difference in one’s likelihood of experiencing a distracted walking encounter. Urban residents are likely to have more opportunities for one to occur, but accident rates appear equal between urban, suburban and rural areas.

It does appear that cellphone type and how it is being used relates to distracted walking. Thirty-two percent of smartphone owners report accidents while using their phones, compared to only 14 percent of those owning non-smartphone devices. Thirty-seven percent of users who surf the web primarily on a smartphone or who go online via a smartphone regularly report bumping into someone while using their phone.

Have you been injured in a serious car accident due to someone else’s negligent cellphone use? At Anderson, Cummings & Drawhorn, LLP, we are a group of personal injury attorneys in Fort Worth that are dedicated to helping you hold the responsible party accountable for their actions which caused you harm.

Contact us at (817) 920-9000 for a free consultation.