If another driver’s distraction caused a crash that injured you, you may be able to pursue compensation through an insurance claim or personal injury lawsuit. Distracted driving is generally treated as evidence of negligence. You must still show that the driver failed to use reasonable care, caused the collision, and left you with injuries or other compensable losses.
The exact claims process depends on state law. In no-fault states, certain medical expenses and lost income may initially be covered through personal injury protection, and a claim against the other driver may be subject to an injury threshold. Regardless of the process, acting promptly matters because video, device information, vehicle data, and other evidence may become unavailable over time.
Passengers, pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers may all have claims after a distraction-related crash. When a crash is fatal, a personal representative or another party authorized by state law may be able to bring a wrongful death claim for eligible survivors. A car accident lawyer can help identify the available claims and take steps to preserve time-sensitive evidence.
Key Takeaways About Filing an Injury Claim After a Distracted Driving Accident
- Distracted driving can support a negligence claim, but the injured person must still prove that the distraction contributed to the crash.
- A traffic citation may help establish fault, but it does not automatically determine liability in a civil claim.
- Phone or device information, vehicle data, surveillance footage, and witness accounts can help establish what the driver was doing before the collision.
- State laws affect no-fault benefits, injury thresholds, filing deadlines, and how an injured person’s own share of fault influences compensation.
Can You File an Injury Claim After a Distracted Driving Accident?
A distracted driving claim generally depends on the same elements as other negligence claims. Drivers owe other road users a duty to use reasonable care. A driver who fails to do so because of a distraction may breach that duty. The distraction must also have contributed to the collision and caused injuries or other compensable losses.
Causation is especially important. Showing that a driver used a phone shortly before a crash may not be enough unless the evidence connects that activity to the collision. A message sent as the vehicles approached each other is generally more relevant than one sent several minutes earlier. That is why understanding how distraction leads to collisions matters as much as establishing that some form of distraction occurred.
The applicable insurance system also affects how the claim proceeds. In some no-fault states, an injured person first seeks certain medical and wage-loss benefits through personal injury protection. A claim against the other driver for additional damages, particularly pain and suffering, may require meeting a statutory injury threshold.
If the driver was acting within the scope of employment when the crash occurred, the employer may also be liable. Depending on the facts and state law, separate claims involving negligent hiring, training, supervision, or vehicle maintenance may be possible.
What Counts as Distracted Driving?
Federal safety regulators define distracted driving as any activity that diverts attention from driving. It includes much more than texting. NHTSA reported that 3,208 people were killed and 315,167 were injured in crashes involving distracted drivers in 2024. Reading or sending a text takes a driver’s eyes off the road for about five seconds. At 55 mph, that is comparable to traveling the length of a football field without looking at the road.
Distraction generally falls into three overlapping categories:
- Visual distraction: The driver’s eyes leave the road while looking at a phone, navigation screen, passenger, or something outside the vehicle.
- Manual distraction: The driver’s hands leave the wheel while eating, reaching into a bag, adjusting controls, or handling a pet.
- Cognitive distraction: The driver’s attention shifts away from driving because of a phone conversation, argument, strong emotion, or another preoccupation.
Cognitive distraction can be difficult to establish because it may not be visible in a photograph or video. It may still support a claim when the surrounding evidence shows that the driver failed to notice or react to traffic conditions.
Evidence That May Establish Driver Distraction
Distraction often must be established through several sources of evidence that support the same timeline.
- Phone and device information: Carrier records may show the timing of calls or certain text-message activity, while data from the phone itself may provide information about app use or other activity. These records do not automatically prove who was using the device, so they must be compared with the crash time and other evidence. Obtaining them may require consent, formal discovery, or a subpoena after litigation begins.
- Vehicle data: Some vehicles are equipped with event data recorders. Federal requirements apply to covered vehicles that are equipped with an EDR. Depending on the vehicle, recorded information may include speed, throttle or accelerator input, braking, seat-belt status, and, in some vehicles, steering input. Evidence that a driver did not brake before impact may be consistent with a delayed or absent reaction, but it does not establish distraction by itself.
- Video: Traffic cameras, business security systems, dashcams, and doorbell cameras may capture the driver’s actions or the movement of the vehicles before impact. Retention periods vary, and some systems overwrite footage quickly.
- Witness testimony: Passengers, pedestrians, and other drivers may have seen the person looking down, holding a phone, swerving, or reacting late. Their observations of how a distracted driver behaves may help connect the records to the collision.
- Physical evidence: Skid marks, impact angles, debris patterns, and vehicle damage may help an accident reconstruction expert determine whether the driver tried to avoid the collision.
- The driver’s statements: Admissions made at the scene, to the police, during testimony, or on social media may also become evidence.
Phone or device information, vehicle data, and video may be deleted, overwritten, altered, or become unavailable if they are not identified and preserved promptly.
How Can a Distracted Driving Violation Affect Fault?
A citation for texting or unlawful phone use may support the claim, but its legal effect depends on state law. A statutory violation may be treated as negligence per se, as a rebuttable presumption, or simply as evidence that the driver acted negligently.
Even when a violation helps establish that the driver acted unreasonably, the injured person must still show that the conduct contributed to the crash and caused the claimed injuries. A citation is therefore useful evidence, but it is not the same as a civil judgment finding the driver liable.
States also have different distracted driving laws. Conduct that violates a handheld-phone law in one state may not violate the same type of statute elsewhere. However, the absence of a statutory violation does not necessarily mean the conduct was reasonable under the circumstances.
What Compensation May Be Available After a Distracted Driving Crash?
Depending on the facts and state law, compensation may include:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Reduced earning capacity
- Vehicle repair or replacement costs
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Other losses caused by the collision
Punitive damages may be available in some states when the conduct was especially reckless or showed a serious disregard for the safety of others. Ordinary inattention generally does not meet that higher standard by itself.
Available insurance coverage often affects how much compensation can realistically be collected. The at-fault driver’s liability policy has a payment limit, but other sources may be available, including employer or commercial coverage, umbrella policies, additional liable parties, and the injured person’s uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.
The injured person’s share of fault may also affect compensation. Under comparative negligence, compensation is generally reduced according to the percentage of fault assigned to that person. Some states bar recovery when the injured person is 50% at fault, while others do so only when that person is more than 50% at fault.
Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia generally follow contributory negligence, under which even a small share of fault may prevent recovery. The District of Columbia also applies contributory negligence in many cases but has a different rule for pedestrians and defined vulnerable road users in certain collisions.
Fault percentages are often disputed and may ultimately be determined by a judge or jury. Understanding how car accident settlements are calculated can help injured people evaluate an insurer’s offer and the potential value of their claim.
What Should You Do After an Accident Involving a Distracted Driver?
Seek medical assistance and report the collision to the police. A police report creates an official record and may document statements, witness information, citations, and observations made at the scene.
If you can do so safely, note anything suggesting that the other driver was distracted. This might include where the phone was, what the driver said, whether the person appeared to be looking down, or whether witnesses saw the driver using a device. Obtain witness contact information before they leave.
Photograph the vehicles, roadway, surrounding businesses, traffic signals, skid marks, and any visible injuries. If nearby businesses or homes may have cameras, identify them promptly so that a request can be made before the footage is overwritten.
Avoid speculating about fault in a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company. You should also avoid posting photographs or comments about the collision, your injuries, or your activities on social media while the claim is pending.
How a Car Accident Lawyer Can Help
Much of the work in a distracted driving claim involves identifying, obtaining, and preserving evidence. A lawyer can send preservation requests, seek phone or device information through formal discovery when available, arrange for vehicle data to be downloaded, and request video before it is overwritten.
A lawyer can also investigate whether an employer or another party shares responsibility, review the available insurance coverage, document damages, and respond when an insurer argues that distraction cannot be proven or that the injured person contributed to the collision.
The photographs and details captured immediately after a crash can provide an important starting point for that investigation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Prove the Other Driver Was Texting?
Phone records may help establish whether call or text activity occurred near the time of the crash, but they do not necessarily prove who was using the phone or what the driver was doing. Device data, video, witness testimony, vehicle data, and the driver’s own statements may provide additional support.
What If the Driver Was Not Ticketed?
An injury claim does not depend on whether the driver received a citation. Police officers may not discover the distraction at the scene, and evidence obtained later may still support a civil claim.
What If I Was Partly at Fault?
The answer depends on the state. Most states reduce compensation based on the injured person’s percentage of fault, although some bar recovery at a specified threshold. A small number of jurisdictions follow contributory-negligence rules that may prevent recovery when the injured person shares any legal fault, subject to applicable exceptions.
How Long Do I Have to File?
Filing deadlines are established by state law and vary considerably. Claims involving a government vehicle or public entity may also have a separate notice deadline that is much shorter than the statute of limitations. Missing an applicable filing or notice deadline can prevent a claim from moving forward, although limited exceptions may apply under state law.
Call Brandon J. Broderick for Legal Help
A crash caused by a distracted driver can leave you dealing with injuries, expenses, and questions about how to prove what happened. Because video and electronic information may become unavailable, investigating the collision promptly can make an important difference.
At Brandon J. Broderick, Attorney at Law, our team can help preserve evidence, investigate the driver’s actions, identify available insurance coverage, and handle communications with the insurance companies while you focus on recovering. Contact us today for a free consultation and an assessment of your legal options and the compensation that may be available.