5 Illegal and Deadly Driving Habits

This timely article arrived from Legal Shield and I want to pass it on.  We are seeing an increase is major front end and rear end collisions, and in the dry summer, there can be no excuse except for distracted driving.  Please take heed of these suggestions:

Causing an accident due to negligence could kill or seriously injure you, your loved ones and other drivers.
Read and share the following information with your friends and family, particularly young drivers.
1. Texting While Driving – Driving while texting, emailing or using a smartphone is illegal in
most U.S. states and Canadian provinces. While the laws may vary based on the age of the
driver or the type of device in use, one thing is clear: distracted driving is dangerous.
Numerous studies have shown that texting or using your smartphone while driving
substantially increases your chance of injury or death. Injuries and deaths caused by
distracted drivers have skyrocketed in recent years. Pull safely to the side of the road and
stop before texting or using your smartphone.
2. Not Wearing Your Seatbelt – Many states and provinces have made driving without a
seatbelt a citable offence. Make sure you and anyone else riding in your vehicle is buckled
up. Young children should be in an age appropriate child car seat or booster. Click here to
learn more about which type of car seat is safest for your child.
 
3. Aggressive Driving – Aggressive drivers are dangerous. Weaving in and out of traffic,
tailgating and cutting off other drivers can lead to accidents and reckless driving charges.
Depending on where you live reckless driving may be a criminal offense and could lead to
the loss of your license, expensive fines and even jail time.
4. Excessive Speeding – Excessive speeding does not mean occasionally going a little bit over
the speed limit. Excessive speeding often involves driving at dangerous speeds, putting you
and others at risk. Many states and provinces have set thresholds for charging speeders with
reckless driving. Being caught speeding in excess of the threshold may mean you will receive
a reckless driving charge.
5. Buzzed Driving – It is no surprise that drunk driving is dangerous and illegal, but some
drivers think it is all right to have just a few drinks before they drive. Many states and
have drastically lowered the blood alcohol level acceptable for driving. In some
cases one or two drinks could land you a DUI charge. Even blood alcohol levels below the
legal limit can impair your driving and increase your chance of injury or death in an accident.
Teens face zero tolerance laws for drunk driving.
 
This means that it is often illegal for anyone under the age of 21 (22 in Canada) to have any measurable amount of alcohol in their system while driving. First offenses of DUI or DWI may land you in jail and leave you with a criminal record. The best way to avoid DUI or DWI accidents and criminal charges is to avoid drinking and driving all together.

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