April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and Finder.com released its second annual Safe Driving Report for 2019. Finder surveyed American adults about their riskiest driving habits and the things that keep them from driving free of distractions. We’ve compiled some of its staggering findings below. Are your fleet drivers part of these findings?
WHO’S GUILTY?
A whopping 204.4 million Americans admit to being distracted while driving. Men are more likely to drive under the influence, while millennials are most likely to be distracted by driving, and 27.6 percent of all drivers admit to speeding.
RISKY BUSINESS
Finder discovered that the No. 1 distraction for US drivers is talking on the phone, with 40 percent of those surveyed—roughly 92 million drivers—admitting to answering their cell phone behind the wheel. The figure is down 4.9 percent compared to 2018.
The number of drivers admitting to speeding compared to 2018 is down from 30.1 percent (or 70 million drivers) to 27.6 percent (or 62.2 million drivers) in 2019.
Phones also contribute to No. 3 on the list, with 19.9 percent of American drivers (about 44.8 million) admitting to texting while driving, a figure that is up 3.6 percent from last year.
Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs also rose in 2019, with an estimated 10.9 million American drivers (4.8 percent) admitting to driving under the influence.
DATA BREAKDOWN
Gender
Men are more likely than women to perform dangerous driving behaviors. Men are slightly more likely to talk on the phone behind the wheel (20.7 percent vs 20.2 percent) and text (10 percent vs 9.6 percent) while driving.
Men are much more likely to drive under the influence (3.8 percent vs 1.1 percent), drive while tired (9.9 percent vs 8.8 percent), and speed (14.6 percent vs 13 percent). However, women are more likely to fix their appearance while driving, with 4.7 percent of women admitting to grooming behind the wheel vs 4.2 percent of men.
But counter to the stats above, more men than women say they don’t get distracted while driving (24.1 percent vs 19.4 percent).
Generation
Millennials are most likely to drive distracted vs other generations, with only 33.2 percent saying they concentrate while behind the wheel, a figure that is 2.2 percent lower than last year.
Other generations are more likely than millennials to focus on the road, but are far from perfect. Only 42.44 percent of Gen Xers say they concentrate while driving, up from 38.1 percent last year. Boomers are the most likely to pay attention while driving at 51.6 percent, up from 46.1 percent in 2018.
Millennials are almost five times more likely than boomers to drive drunk at 9.8 percent vs 2 percent of boomers.
Marital Status
Drivers who are married or in a domestic relationship are most likely to talk on the phone while driving at 44.28 percent. Single people are most likely to pay attention behind the wheel, with 50 percent saying they concentrate while driving.
WAYS TO IMPROVE
If you find yourself or your fleet drivers having trouble focusing on the road, there are tools such as distracted driving apps to help. Below is a list of apps that monitor driving behaviors and disable certain phone functions while on the road.
Cellcontrol
- Blocks employees from texting, talking, posting on social media, emailing, surfing the web, and more
- Program works with technology installed on employee’s vehicle and mobile app
- App gives drivers access to safety score that analyzes speed, harsh braking, and more
- Easy-to-use interface for monitoring and safety scores
LifeSaver: Distracted Driving
- Blocks phone uses while driving
- Driver Portal allows driver habit monitoring and monthly rewards tied to focuses driving
- Free for iOS and Android devices
AT&T DriveMode: Don’t Text & Drive, It Can Wait
- Silences texts and phone calls when driving 15 mph or more
- Automatically texts AT&T customers to let them know you’re driving
- Can be alerted if the app is turned off
Mojo: Rewards for Safe Driving
- Scores drivers based on behaviors such as texting or talking on the phone
- Provides tips to improve driving and nudges drivers to reduce distracted driving
- Safe driving earns points that are redeemable for a chance to win gift cards
- Invite friends to compete for safest driver
DriveSafe Mode
- Disables phone while car is in motion
- Alerts when app is turned off
- Set up emergency phone numbers
STAY SAFE
When it comes to safety, you can never be too cautious. Be sure to encourage safety with all your fleet drivers. If you’re not already using driver monitoring programs through your telematics provider, consider using one of the apps above to monitor your employees’ driving behaviors. View Finder’s full safety report at www.finder.com.
