Who's at risk
Some groups are more at risk for distracted driving.
Young adult and teen drivers
- Among fatal crashes involving distracted drivers in the U.S. in 2019:
- A higher percentage of drivers ages 15–20 were distracted than drivers age 21 and older.
- Among these younger drivers, 9% of them were distracted at the time of the crash.1
- A higher percentage of drivers ages 15–20 were distracted than drivers age 21 and older.
- A 2019 survey2 of U.S. high school students found:
- 39% of high school students who drove in the past 30 days texted or emailed while driving on at least one of those days.3
- Texting or emailing while driving was more common among older students than younger students (see figure below) and more common among White students (44%) than Black (30%) or Hispanic students (35%).3
- Texting or emailing while driving was as common among students whose grades were mostly As or Bs as among students with mostly Cs, Ds, or Fs.3
- Students who texted or emailed while driving were also more likely to report other transportation risk behaviors. They were:
- more likely to not always wear a seat belt;
- more likely to ride with a driver who had been drinking alcohol; and
- more likely to drive after drinking alcohol.3
- more likely to not always wear a seat belt;
- 39% of high school students who drove in the past 30 days texted or emailed while driving on at least one of those days.3
Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2019
