Washington Injury Law Blog

Washington state law requires you to use a hands free device with your cellphone when driving and prohibits texting while driving.  The problem with these laws has been that a violation was classified as a secondary offense.  Secondary offense means that a policeman can only pull you over if you commit some other traffic infraction that is a primary offense, like speeding and improper lane change.

Washington State Sen. Tracey Eide of Federal Way has proposed changing the cellphone and texting laws to make violations a primary offense.  That means you could be pulled over when that cellphone is to your ear or even in your hand.  The basic fine would be $124, but that would increase if you caused a car accident that injures someone. 

Sen. Eide has a friend who was t-boned and injured in a car accident with a teenage driver who was talking on a cellphone.  Research has shown that driving while talking on a cell makes you as likely to cause a car accident as someone who is driving drunk with a BAC of 0.08 and 23 times more likely to crash if you’re texting. 

My reaction to this is FINALLY!!  The cellphone and texting laws as they currently stand are a joke.  Nobody obeys them because there’s no real threat of being stopped by the police.  I still encounter idiots on cell phones every day I drive on Washington roadways, and I’ll admit at times I’m one of those idiots.  Why, because I have no fear of a traffic ticket, which could raise my car insurance rates and cost me some cash.  

I hope the proposed law passes.  All you have to do is look at the seat-belt law history to see this change will force people to change their behavior.  Washington currently has the second highest seat-belt usage rate in the country at 96.5%.  That wasn’t the case when the seat-belt law violation was a secondary offense.  The seat-belt law was changed to make failing to click it an automatic ticket.  Now look at us, dedicated seat-belt users.      

Drive safe,

Max Meyers, Esq.