New vehicle systems that are designed to alert a distracted driver to an incoming road hazard, unfortunately, are unlikely to deter a driver from being distracted in the future, according to a new study published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. IIHS researchers initiated the study in order to determine whether or not vehicle warning systems were likely to impact driver behavior negatively or positively.

They used a Honda Accord equipped with warnings for lane departure, forward collision and excessive speed on curves and observed the behavior of multiple volunteers. Their hypothesis was that the collision alerts would lead drivers to focus more closely on their driving but unfortunately, this was not the case. This also led to a conclusion that these warning systems do not have the opposite effect, however, either.

The 108 volunteer drivers included in the study were between the ages of 20 and 70. They spent a period of time driving the vehicle without any warning systems and then drove a vehicle that was equipped with the features. A secondary analysis also explored the experiences of 40 different teenage volunteers. Ten 5 second video clips were analyzed from every driver’s vehicle each week. Younger drivers were more likely to be distracted than older drivers and 57% of the clips analyzed in this study showed at least one secondary behavior. At lower speeds, drivers were more likely to engage in distracted behavior. If you or someone you know has recently been injured in a distracted driving accident, you need the insight of an experienced California personal injury lawyer.