Philadelphia Texting and Driving Accident Lawyer
Texting while driving is illegal across Pennsylvania. Despite the law, texting and driving frequently leads to death and serious injuries in Philadelphia. If you’ve been harmed by a texting driver, a Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyer may be able to help you recover compensation for accident costs like medical bills and lost wages.
Wapner Newman has been fighting for injured clients in Pennsylvania for over four decades. Our experienced Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorneys are ready to discuss your options after a crash. We offer free consultations and no fees unless we win your case.
Why Choose Wapner Newman
Hundreds of Millions Recovered, Decades of Experience
Wapner Newman has been fighting for justice for injured clients in Philadelphia for over forty years. Our skilled Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorneys know what it takes to build a successful personal injury case – and our track record shows that we achieve results that exceed client expectations. Our experienced legal team has a long history of recovering multi-million settlement and verdict amounts. Our skilled trial attorneys aren’t afraid to take your case to court if that’s what it takes to recover the compensation you need.
When you’re injured by a texting driver, our Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyers have the skill and experience you want on your side.
How Our Philadelphia Texting and Driving Accident Attorneys Can Help
Building a Case Against a Texting Driver
When another driver causes an accident, you need a car accident lawyer on your side, working to collect evidence and build a case showing that the crash wasn’t your fault. Unfortunately, when a Philadelphia crash is caused by a texting driver, establishing liability can be difficult to achieve. The other driver probably knows that texting while driving is illegal in Philadelphia, so they probably won’t admit that their cell phone use caused the crash. As a result, a Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyer may need to put substantially more work into proving how and why the accident happened.
As the experienced Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyers at Wapner Newman work on your case, they may need to collect:
- Crash reports
- The other driver’s cell phone records
- Eyewitness testimony
- Traffic and security camera footage
- Accident reconstruction specialist testimony
- Proof of medical bills and lost wages.
Successfully proving that the other driver was on the phone at the time of the crash can be a challenge. However, the Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorneys at Wapner Newman are ready to put in the work your case requires.
Injured in a Philadelphia texting and driving crash? Call Wapner Newman at (215) 569-0900 to schedule your free consultation with an experienced Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorney.
Pennsylvania Texting and Driving Laws
Texting Drivers Face Few Consequences in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is one of the many states that have passed legislation banning text-based communication by all drivers. This is a primary law in Pennsylvania, which means a police officer can ticket a driver for violating the law without having observed any other traffic violation. The law also forbids drivers from reading, writing, or sending any text communication, including email, chat messages, and social media messages.
Pennsylvania state law specifies that the texting ban does not extend to using GPS or technology integrated into the vehicle. It’s also illegal for a police officer to seize the cell phone of a person they’ve caught texting and driving.
One reason people may not take the texting ban seriously is that the penalty is rather insignificant, compared to penalties for other traffic offenses.
Texting drivers only face a $50 fine, with no points assessed to one’s driver’s license. By way of comparison, the citation for failing to yield at a stop sign is three points and a $25 fine.
The points system helps the state keep tabs on irresponsible or careless drivers. Once someone accumulates six points, they must take a special safety exam within 30 days of notification from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. If they fail to pass the exam at that time, their license is suspended.
Pennsylvania’s traffic laws also penalize drivers for most repeat offenses, with the fines increasing at the second, third, and fourth citations. But a driver could be pulled over four times in one day for texting while driving, and the penalty would still be $50 each time.
The High Cost of Texting While Driving in Philadelphia
Banning texting while driving is a good start toward making the roads safer in Philadelphia and across the state, but the existing laws are often not enough to discourage drivers from texting. The lack of serious consequences for drivers who choose to text from behind the wheel may be a significant factor in why texting and driving accidents continue to be a problem across Pennsylvania.
Drivers who text behind the wheel may think that if they’ve never had an accident, they can safely text and drive. Riding in cars with drivers who are texting reinforces the misconception that texting isn’t dangerous.
Despite Pennsylvania’s ban on texting while driving, texting-related accidents still occur every day. Like most states, Pennsylvania doesn’t specifically keep track of how many accidents are caused by texting drivers. Instead, texting-while-driving accidents are counted as distracted driving accidents. While this crash category can include accident causes like eating or talking to passengers, cell phone use makes up a significant portion of distracted driving accidents.
According to the 2022 crash report released by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), in 2022, there were 11,484 distracted driving accidents and 62 deaths. According to the most recent data, distracted driving is the third leading cause of accidents and the fifth leading cause of death on Pennsylvania roads.
Frequently Asked Questions
You probably have many questions about recovering injury compensation after a texting and driving crash in Philadelphia. Here are some of the most common questions our Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorneys hear from new clients.
How much money can a Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorney recover for me?
Every Philadelphia car accident case brings a different compensation value. The higher your accident expenses, the higher your compensation usually is. The best way to get an estimated case value is to attend a free consultation with a Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyer.
What should I do to protect myself after a Philadelphia texting and driving crash?
You can protect yourself after a texting and driving accident in Philadelphia by reporting the crash to the police and seeing a doctor immediately after the accident. You should call a Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorney as soon as possible, and never speak with an insurance representative until you’ve taken the time to first consult an experienced lawyer.
How long do I have to contact a Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorney?
You should call a Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyer immediately after the crash. If your lawyer recommends filing a lawsuit, Pennsylvania law gives you two years from the date of the accident.
How much does it cost to hire a Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyer?
When you work with Wapner Newman, you don’t pay anything up front, and you only pay if and when we win your case.
If you’ve been harmed by a texting driver in Philadelphia, our Philadelphia texting and driving accident attorneys are available to answer your questions about recovering injury compensation.
Consult a Philadelphia Texting and Driving Accident Lawyer Today
Texting while driving is a dangerous, distracting activity that results in injuries and deaths all over the country. When a texting driver in Philadelphia causes a serious accident that harms other people, they should be held accountable for their actions.
If you’ve suffered an injury in a crash and believe another driver’s text-related distraction is to blame, the Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyers at Wapner Newman can identify whether you are eligible for compensation.
If you’ve been injured in a crash with a texting driver, our Philadelphia texting and driving accident lawyers want to hear from you. Contact Wapner Newman at (215) 569-0900 to request your free case consultation.