Why “hands-free” doesn’t always mean liability-free after a crash

Hands-free driving keeps your hands on the wheel, but it doesn’t keep your mind on the road. A jury can still find you negligent.

Distractions while driving might have more of an impact on driving performance than most people think. Researchers at the University of Utah found that unsafe levels of mental distraction were persistently distracting, even when the driver stopped shifting their attention from the road.

The study found that mental distraction can persist for 27 seconds, and that was just from inputting a voice command on a phone. At 25 mph, that means the driver crosses a whole 3 football fields’ worth of distance while distracted.

While hands-free driving keeps your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road, there’s increasing evidence that this kind of driving is still dangerous.

Compliance With a Statute Isn’t a Defense in a Negligence Case

Many facing negligence cases because of hands-free driving systems mistakenly believed they were following the law. For example, consider New Jersey, where using a handheld phone behind the wheel is prohibited, but that doesn’t always mean using a hands-free system isn’t negligent.

Negligence is clearly defined as the driver using reasonable care under the circumstances. So, even if there wasn’t a violation of the specific statutes relating to phone use while driving, a jury could easily find you negligent. 

Driver Assistance Systems

We’re now seeing a new type of hands-free negligence involving driver assistance systems. These systems are sometimes referred to as “self-driving,” but this misrepresents the legal responsibilities of the individual sat behind the wheel. Driver assistance systems handle steering and speed while still requiring the person behind the wheel to monitor the road.

The three most common driver assistance systems are the following:

• Adaptive cruise control: which maintains speed and following distance without driver input
• Lane centering: which keeps the car positioned between the road markings
• Automatic emergency braking: which applies the brakes when a collision looks imminent

None of these systems change legal liability. If you’re behind the wheel of a car, you’re responsible for it, so any crash that happens could still be considered negligence. Car accident liability stays with the operator, which is why Newark auto crash lawyers gather evidence early. 

The Vehicle Keeps a Record

Road safety technology creates staggering amounts of data that can be used as evidence. Four records can be obtained in discovery after a crash.

• Infotainment logs
• Paired phone records
• Event data recorder output

Together, these establish what a driver was doing in the seconds before impact. The legal implications of driving with a connected system are that your own car may supply the evidence against you.

Hands-Free Driving Is Not Hands-Off

Hands-free driving feels safer than it is, and while it might not be illegal to use a hands-free system while driving, it doesn’t mean you’re immune from negligence. Autonomous vehicle systems also carry similar risk, especially when drivers overestimate how much the car is doing. Whether you’re using a hands-free driving system to use your phone or using autonomous features to steer, you can still be liable for negligence.

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