New exception allows texting and driving in California

March 09, 2013 (Press-News.org) Since 2008, drivers in California have been prohibited from using cell phones while operating a motor vehicle. The single exception has been that drivers 18 years of age and older are allowed to use a hands-free device.

The following year, the California Wireless Communications Device Law prohibited drivers from writing, sending or reading text-based communication on an electronic wireless communications device, such as a cell phone, while driving. This law took effect on January 1, 2009. Exactly four years later, on January 1, 2013, an exception to this texting and driving ban was made.

A closer look at the new California law

The new law allows California drivers to send text messages or emails while operating a motor vehicle if they use a voice-operated system that allows both hands to remain on the steering wheel while driving.

Idaho was the first state to pass a law allowing the texting and email exception through the use of a hands-free device. California is the second state to adopt the exception.

The law was not distinctly written to apply to phones, but the language was left broad enough so that it does apply to voice-powered smart phone apps, as well as to dashboard navigation systems such as OnStar.

The safety arguments against the law

On the surface, the hands-free device exception seems safe enough. However, the National Safety Council is calling for the repeal of the law, arguing that safe driving requires a driver's full attention and that drivers can still be distracted using hands-free devices.

There has been no research to indicate that voice-powered devices reduce the driver's distraction. However, there have been studies linking texting and driving to car accidents.

The first study, a study by the California Office of Traffic Safety, found that since the law banning cellphones went into effect in 2008, deaths due to handheld cell phone use dropped by 22 percent.

In a four-year study in Kern County, Kern Medical Center and the coroner's office found that 45 percent of the 700 traffic-related deaths involved texting while speeding.

If you've been in an accident, you have options

Only time will tell if this new law negatively affects the statistics that cite that banning texting and driving has had positive results. In the meantime, if you have been involved in an accident where distracted driving played a role, consult with a skilled personal injury attorney who will fight for your rights and seek full compensation for your financial losses.

Abstract: In 2009, California law banned talking, texting and emailing on a handheld device while driving. Now, in 2013, California lawmakers passed a law allowing voice-operated systems to text while driving.

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