RBC: 72% of Canadians Admit to Distracted Driving, 90% Notice Other Distracted Drivers

According to a recent RBC Insurance survey, 72 percent of Canadians have admitted to distracted driving and 90 percent have noticed other distracted drivers.

Even though many Canadian drivers are willing to admit to some form of distracted driving, they are much quicker to point the finger at other drivers. Here is a list of the greatest differences between self-reported and publicly observed distracted drivers:

– Talking or texting on the phone (just 17 per cent of drivers say they’ve done this while 80 per cent of drivers say they’ve seen it)
– Doing hair, makeup, or changing clothes (five per cent versus 58 per cent)
– Reading a book/newspaper (three per cent versus 36 per cent)
– Taking ‘selfies’ (three per cent versus 28 per cent)

RBC Insurance’s senior product manager Natalie Dupuis said:

“It’s always easier to put the blame on someone else, and distracted driving is no different. What we are seeing is that more drivers take notice of others’ distracted driving behaviours than what they admit to doing themselves. Canadians need to be much more aware that driving takes your full attention.”

Distracted driving is one of the leading cause of accidents among our Canadian roadways. Drivers need to  put their cellphones away, leave their hair and makeup products at home and focus on the task at hand, which is to drive safely.

[via Newswire]