Accident Caused

Three Months in Jail for Checking a Cell Phone Navigation App

The young driver caused a serious accident because he was looking at his cell phone’s navigation app and was speeding, and as a result, he was brought to trial.(Bild: Scanrail - stock.adobe.com)

Checking your phone while driving isn’t just expensive—currently 100 euros—it’s also life-threatening! The statistics on cell phone use behind the wheel are alarming. A case from Linz illustrates the dramatic consequences that can result when you check your navigation app for directions—and end up causing an accident.

“I’m truly very sorry,” the 21-year-old Afghan man from Spital/Pyhrn told the young policewoman during the trial. On April 5, the man had been driving at least 60 in a 30 zone in Linz and was looking at his phone’s navigation app when he was cut off. An evasive maneuver sent him crashing into an unmarked police car, in which the woman and a colleague were conducting radar speed checks. The male officer escaped with a bruise, while the female officer suffered severe facial and dental injuries and remains under treatment. 

1,600 euros in compensation for pain and suffering
The apprentice was very cooperative and visibly remorseful for his mistake. He accepted without complaint that he received a three-month suspended sentence—“that won’t appear on your record,” the judge said—and must pay a total of 1,600 euros in compensation for pain and suffering to the officers. 

20,000 messages per hour while driving
It’s rare for a glance at a cell phone to end up in court, but this case shows how quickly it can happen. The potential for such cases is enormous. According to an analysis by the Austrian Road Safety Board, in Upper Austria alone, around 20,000 text messages are sent while driving—per hour! Glancing at a cell phone is the leading cause of distraction while driving. And distraction is the number one cause of accidents.

2,000 accidents per year due to distraction
More than 20,000 citations and fines are issued annually in Upper Austria for “checking cell phones.” Only in Lower Austria and Vienna do police issue citations more frequently for this reason. Due to distracted driving, an average of nearly 2,000 traffic accidents occur each year in Upper Austria, resulting in about 2,200 injuries and 20 fatalities.

16 percent text while driving
A survey by the KFV also shows just how “normal” it is to illegally check a cell phone while driving. For example, 28 percent of those surveyed admitted to reading text messages while driving, 16 percent do not pull over to reply, and one in two makes calls without a hands-free device. Here’s a quick calculation: If you’re distracted for just two seconds while driving at 50, you’ll travel 30 meters without seeing the road.