At Carden IT Group, we believe in the power of IT to improve the lives of people and increase businesses’ efficiency. As a company we have benefited from technology immensely, in fact we wouldn’t be in business today if it wasn’t for mobile phones, laptops and computers. But we also see first-hand the dangers of new technology and we can’t be complacent.
Using a phone while behind the wheel of car is not only irresponsible it can be deadly. With 33 deaths and countless injuries just last year attributed to mobile phone use while driving.
These numbers represent just the tip of the iceberg, when you consider the number of pedestrians injured while not paying attention to the road while texting as well as other situations where people have harmed themselves by using phones during risky activities like being up a ladder or operating machinery.
The temptation will always be there to check your phone, numerous studies have shown that the positive reinforcement of Social Media can be extremely addicting. So, with the best will in the world the temptation will always be there. With that in mind, here’s three things you can do TODAY that will make you safer when driving.
1. Put your phone out of reach!If you can reach for your phone while you’re driving, the temptation to do so will eventually win out of most people’s common sense. It’s easy to fall into the trap of “I’ll just check that one text”. For this reason, it’s a good idea to put your phone somewhere you can’t reach it while you’re driving and put it on silent. Try putting it in your bag and then putting your bag on the back seat, those messages will still be there when you reach your destination.
2. Consider investing in a dedicated sat nav.While sat navs have fallen out of favour with drivers since the rise of smart phones they have the huge advantage of having far fewer distractions. There are even some available that are hybrid sat navs/dash cams. Installing one of these hybrids can even reduce your car insurance.
3. If you must use your phone for navigation, do it properly!We understand that many people now use their phone as a sat nav in order to find their way around. If you are doing this – make sure you’re doing it using the apps and platforms that are designed for that purpose and put your phone into Do Not Disturb so that other notifications and sound don’t distract you. If your car is compatible with Android Auto or Apple Car Play it’s a great idea to use those as they have built in safety features designed to prevent you being distracted and some even feature steering wheel control so you can use buttons on your steering wheel to interact with your phone without having to look at or touch your screen.
You can check if your car is compatible with these services here:
For iPhone – https://www.apple.com/uk/ios/carplay/
For Android – https://www.android.com/intl/en_uk/auto/
Carden IT Group’s new campaign is here to remind everyone that no phone call, text message, meme or playlist is worth your life. Whatever you do, DON’T DIAL AND DRIVE!
Learn more at our dedicated Carden – Don’t Dial & Drive Facebook page