Auto insurance survey shows drivers are still using smartphones behind the wheel

auto insurance premiums car mobile smartphone

Research by Allstate has shown that Canadian motorists continue to talk and text against the law.

Regardless of the fact that it is against the law to talk on a handset or send and receive text messages, a study conducted by an auto insurance company has determined that Canadians can’t seem to break this distracted driving habit.

The majority of provinces and territories regulate the way mobile devices can be used by drivers.

That said, Allstate Insurance has discovered that many Canadians are not abiding by those laws and are placing themselves – and others with whom they share the road – at increased risk of incident due to distracted driving. This auto insurance survey has shown that these motorists are continuing the use of smartphones as well as other forms of electronic devices, even while they are driving.

The auto insurance study revealed the following about the habits of Canadian drivers with mobile devices.

auto insurance car mobile smartphoneThere were over 1,200 drivers from across the country that participated in the Allstate study. The title of the research was the “Canada Distracted Driver Poll.” It showed that one third of the survey respondents said that when they were stopped at a red light or had otherwise come to a temporary stop while driving, they would check their smartphone for texts and calls.

Furthermore, one fifth of the respondents said that they had received or sent text messages while the vehicle was in operation. An interesting point was that they had done this, even though one out of every three drivers that participated in this study said that if they were to receive a ticket and be required to pay a fine for having used their smartphones illegally while driving, it would be adequate as a deterrent against this behavior.

The auto insurance study research showed that the results were different between men and women. In fact it showed that even after having received a ticket and a fine, a male driver was six times more likely to continue to use his or her smartphone while behind the wheel. As distracted driving is causing a rising number of traffic accidents, this is a surprising figure.

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