Distracted driving: What not to do behind the wheel. (It’s not just texting.)

When it comes to staying safe behind the wheel, phones get a bad rap-with good reason. The National Safety Council says you're four times more likely to crash if you're using a cell phone than if you're not.

But what about the many other reasons we find ourselves distracted on our morning commute, like breakfast on the go, unfinished makeup, or an unpleasant song on the radio? While each of these tasks on their own aren't illegal in Oregon, it's easy to get carried away with trying to do them all before reaching your destination.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration defines distracted driving as any activity that diverts attention from driving, including talking or texting on your phone, eating and drinking, talking to people in your vehicle, or fiddling with the stereo and navigation system.

In Oregon, between 2013-2017, 12,006 crashes that involved a distracted driver resulted in 95 fatalities and 18,429 injuries, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation. Since motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of worker-related deaths in the US, we recommend employers create or update their safe driving policy to help reduce worker distractions on the road. 

This Distracted Driving Awareness month, SAIF encourages you to take note of all the things that take your attention off the road. It will help ensure you-and your copilots-arrive safely.

You can find more helpful resources at saif.com/drivesafely.