FINALLY, A BAN ON TEXTING WHILE DRIVING
Distracted drivers throughout Florida are causing accidents resulting in unnecessary injuries and even deaths. Every day, roughly nine people are killed, and more than 1000 people are injured in accidents that involve at least one distracted driver. Distracted drivers account for 8.5% of fatal auto accidents.
Florida has finally taken a firm stand to help reduce the number of deaths and injuries from distracted drivers. As of July 1, 2019, Florida got serious about stopping texting while driving with an update to the law that had been in effect. Before the update, the police could only fine you for texting if they pulled you over for some other reason. Under the updated law, if the police believe a driver is texting, they can be immediately pulled over.
The law, Fla. Stat. § 316.305, states that a driver cannot operate a vehicle while manually typing or entering multiple letters, numbers, symbols or other characters into a wireless device. In addition, the statute states that you can’t send or read data through non-voice communication methods such as texting, emailing or instant messaging. Note that the texting ban applies only if you are driving your vehicle and not when you are stopped.
The punishment for the first offense is a non-moving violation with no points assessed to the driver’s record. But a second violation within five years of the date of the prior conviction is punishable as a moving violation which means points can be assessed against the driver. These points can increase insurance costs significantly and with enough points, a driver can lose their license.
Also, if a driver is in violation of the law and gets into an accident, it will be presumed that the driver was negligent as a matter of law in operating their vehicle and was the cause of the accident. The driver can then be held responsible for any property damage and injury damages that result. This is called negligence per se. The driver’s cell phone billing records are admissible as evidence in trial. The presumption of negligence for violating Florida’s texting laws is rebuttable in an auto accident case. But it could prove very difficult for a driver to persuade a jury that they were not at fault given the widespread understanding that texting drivers are distracted drivers prone to causing accidents.