Automotive
IIHS study finds phone use before crashes is at least seven times higher than police report
Telematics data from four states revealed phone activity shortly before crashes in up to 8% of incidents, compared to 1% recorded by law enforcement.
The short version
- A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Cambridge Mobile Telematics shows drivers used cellphones prior to crashing at rates significantly higher than documented in police records.
- Analyzing telematics data from roughly 17,000 crashes between 2021 and 2024, researchers found phone activity within 30 seconds of impact in 7% of single-vehicle crashes and 8% of two-vehicle crashes.
- Police cited cellphone use in only 1% of the crashes in the sample, likely due to underreporting by drivers and laws that do not ban all forms of phone activity.
- The findings highlight widespread driver distraction, though telematics data cannot track built-in infotainment systems, Apple CarPlay, or Android Auto when phones remain locked.
Key facts
- An IIHS and Cambridge Mobile Telematics study analyzed approximately 17,000 crashes across four states between 2021 and 2024 by combining driver telematics data with police crash reports.[Jalopnik]
- Telematics recorded phone activity within 30 seconds of impact in 7% of single-vehicle crashes and 8% of two-vehicle crashes, whereas police cited phone use in 1% of total sampled crashes.[Jalopnik]
- The telematics data identified 639 instances of screen manipulation, 586 instances of passive unlocked use, and 90 hands-free calls within 30 seconds of impact, compared to 20, 20, and 1 reported by police, respectively.[Jalopnik]
- Both telematics and police reports recorded low rates of handheld phone calls prior to crashes, with telematics logging 22 cases and police logging 7.[Jalopnik]