Tennessee Injury Law Center
Yes, you read that right. Two South Korean fighter pilots were filming and taking selfies and collided midair. Apparently, it was the final flight for one of the officers who climbed and banked sharply to improve the camera angle. The other pilot was filming the retiring officers’ maneuvers. Neither pilot was concentrating solely on flying their respective jet.
The good news is that the midair collision was not severe. The retiring pilot’s tail struck the wing of the other plane. No one was hurt but it did cause $600,000 in damage, and the retiring pilot was ordered to pay 10% of the repair costs, which honestly seems light. Worse yet, the other pilot, the one that was not retiring, was suspended from flying, received severe disciplinary action and ultimately left the military – all for some selfies and a video.
Of course, fighter pilots are not the only ones guilty of this type of careless conduct. Every day, people ignore their surroundings and obligations to other people in order to take a selfie or film a video so that they can share it on social media, etc. In fact, we recently wrote in this blog post about a social media influencer who struck and killed a pedestrian as she was filming a live video while driving.
In Tennessee, it is illegal to drive a vehicle while holding your cellphone. In fact, a friend who was unaware of the law recently got pulled over and ticketed for talking on the phone, while holding it, and driving. (She has paid the fine but has yet to see how that citation is going to impact her insurance rate).
Even if you are using a cellphone holder to film a video while driving, if you are taking your eyes off the road to look at the camera you are breaking Tennessee law. Specifically, Tennessee law states: “every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care by operating the vehicle at a safe speed, by maintaining a safe lookout, by keeping the vehicle under proper control and by devoting full time and attention to operating the vehicle, under the existing circumstances as necessary in order to be able to see and to avoid endangering life, limb or property and to see and avoid colliding with any other vehicle or person, or any road sign, guard rail or any fixed object either legally using or legally parked or legally placed, upon any roadway, within or beside the roadway right-of-way including, but not limited to, any adjacent sidewalk, bicycle lane, shoulder or berm.”
Of course, your cell phone is not the only thing that can prevent you from maintaining a safe lookout and giving your full time and attention to driving safely. This applies to other activities as well. You also should not be rummaging around in your gym bag, reading the newspaper (yes, we have seen it), putting on make-up or driving with your dog on your lap, etc.
In the case of the retiring South Korean fighter pilot, he had to reimburse a portion of the damage to the jet. The other pilot was punished severely and ultimately lost his career. If you are driving while taking selfies or otherwise failing to give your full time and attention to the road and you seriously hurt or kill someone, the consequences could be significantly worse. Of course, you will be responsible for all the damage that you cause to the other driver’s vehicle and for all their injuries or their death. Hopefully, you have adequate insurance. To the extent that you do not, your personal property, bank accounts, home and other assets are at risk. If a jury or a court finds your conduct was reckless (a conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk) the consequences of your actions), you could also be responsible for punitive damages which are generally not covered by insurance. Lastly, your conduct may be considered criminal and you could face additional penalties and jail time.
So, for the love, put the phone down. Teach your teenagers about the hazards of using a cellphone while driving. Model good behavior for your kids. You should also check your insurance policy to make sure you have adequate uninsured/underinsured (UM/UIM) motorist coverage in the event it is YOU that is harmed by some selfie-taking driver without adequate insurance.
If you have questions about a car accident, give us a call. We offer a free, no-obligation initial consultation so that you can get answers without making a commitment. If we think you have a case and you decide to hire us, we handle all accident cases on a contingency basis so we only get paid if we win, and we advance all case expenses without interest, unlike a lot of injury lawyers.
To get started, call us at 615-742-4880. We are here to help.