Pokémon Go Game Adds to the Problem of Distracted Driving

Chicago, IL (Law Firm Newswire) December 14, 2016 – Distracted driving is a major cause of serious car accidents, resulting in about 3,000 deaths and 430,000 injuries per year, according to U.S. government statistics. Meanwhile, software companies continue to develop apps that draw drivers’ attention away from the road. The latest distraction is the game Pokémon Go.

Pokémon Go is an augmented reality game, in which players must travel to real-world locations to play the game on their phones. It is the most popular mobile phone game in U.S. history, having attracted millions of users within a few days of its release. The fact that the game requires players to go out into the real world is one of its charms, but it has also caused players to attempt to play the game while driving, with car crashes as the predictable result.

“Personal technology has developed quickly and incorporated itself into people’s daily lives, and many drivers have not established the habits necessary for safety,” said Paul Greenberg, a Chicago car accident attorney with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. “We all have a responsibility to avoid distractions and focus our attention on the task of driving.”

In one incident, a driver was accused of crashing into a police car after playing Pokémon Go while driving. In another incident, a teenage driver who crashed into a power pole was suspected of driving while playing the game.

Mobile phone games are only the latest distraction. According to the National Safety Council, about 1.6 million car accidents each year are caused by cell phone use while driving, and texting while driving is the cause of one out of every four car accidents. In 2013, 3,154 people lost their lives in crashes caused in part by distracted driving.

Learn more at http://www.briskmanandbriskman.com/practice-areas/wrongful-death/ Briskman Briskman & Greenberg Phone: 312.222.0010