Distracted driving is a growing problem that only seems to be exacerbated by tomorrow’s technological advances. While most would acknowledge that driving distractions such as smart phones, smart-watches, etc. are a dangerous temptation behind the wheel, few people understand how devastating the consequences of driving distracted can really be. And while many safe driving advocates have made it their mission to raise awareness to the perils of distracted driving, the challenge of reaching and making an impact on consumers remains extremely difficult.
Public interest attorney Stephen Joseph, however, has taken a different approach, shifting responsibility from the consumer back to the tech industry.
In a lawsuit filed by Joseph earlier this year, companies such as Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Google were named as perpetrators of distracted driving for their failure to educate consumers about the effect that their electronic communication products can have on someone operating a motor vehicle.
Joseph knows all too well that corporations like those named in his most recent lawsuit have a responsibility to protect public safety, though it may not yet be legally required. In the past, he spearheaded a lawsuit against Kraft Foods which paved the way toward the FDA dictating that artificial trans fats be removed from foods by 2018. He is also partially responsible for California’s ban on plastic bags, which can be harmful to the environment.
Now, he is asking that the companies who are defendants in his distracted driving lawsuit be required to spend at least a billion dollars per year on campaigns designed to educate consumers about the consequences of distracted driving.
To Joseph, this is a small price to pay when related to the profits that these companies are generating from their products, which are putting consumers at risk behind the wheel.
And while the lawsuit focuses primarily on the hot product of the day, smart-watches, Joseph argues that the next big thing will pose just as many risks and distractions to drivers.
“I think with the distracted-driving campaign, even if I lost the lawsuit, then it tends to be public pressure,” he says. “We can’t allow these companies to throw all this technology at us without getting involved in what’s happening in the automobile”.
With power comes responsibility, and companies like Apple and Microsoft have the funds, and the attention of their audience, needed to change perceptions and educate people on safe practices. Stephen Joseph is here to make sure that happens, or at the very least, get the ball rolling.
