Think that texting and driving gets more credit than it’s due? If so, you’re not alone- researchers now believe that a less obvious distracted driving problem could be to blame for more accidents and lost focus: your GPS. How often has your GPS failed to update quickly enough or to identify a detour, causing you to fiddle with it while you’re driving? Much like texting and driving, this could cause you to look away from the road, even if only for a few seconds. When this happens, an accident is much more likely.

Many of the built-in features that come with modern cars are so distracting that they should never be enabled when a car is in motion, according to University of Utah researchers who published a study. They found that the most distracting things you could do while driving were, in order:

  •       Programming a navigation device
  •       Receiving or sending text messages
  •       Making calls and audio entertainment

Navigation is even more dangerous when it is used when the car was in motion. Some people assume that adding this technology to their vehicle makes things safer but they end up using that technology in ways that are not anticipated. The study was conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety and looked at in-vehicle information systems across 27 vehicles of 30 different variations.

People were required to engage in four different types of tasks including interactive technologies, touchscreen and voice technology. They were asked to program the radio or navigation, send a text message or make a call. Those individuals who were asked to use touchscreen and voice-based technology took their mind, eyes, and hands off the roads for longer than 24 seconds to complete it. If you or somebody you know has already been involved in an accident because of distracted driving behavior, you may be entitled to recover compensation with the help of an experienced San Diego personal injury lawyer.