Every time a driver looks down at a phone, they are making a choice…and when that choice injures someone, Pennsylvania law holds them accountable. If you were hurt by a distracted or texting driver in Lancaster, York, or Chester County, understanding your rights is the first step toward getting the compensation you deserve.
How Dangerous Is Texting While Driving?
The numbers are not abstract. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving claimed 3,308 lives in the United States in a single recent year. Sending or reading a text at 55 mph takes your eyes off the road for approximately five seconds – the equivalent of driving the length of a football field completely blind.
In Pennsylvania, the problem is well-documented. PennDOT’s annual crash data consistently shows distracted driving as one of the leading contributing factors in serious injury and fatal crashes across the Commonwealth. Lancaster County, with its mix of high-speed rural routes and dense suburban corridors like Route 30 and Route 222, sees its share of these crashes every year.
What makes texting uniquely dangerous compared to other distractions is that it combines all three distraction types at once:
- Visual – takes your eyes off the road
- Manual – takes your hands off the wheel
- Cognitive – takes your mind off driving
No other common driving behavior does all three simultaneously. That combination is why texting behind the wheel is consistently one of the most dangerous things a driver can do.
Pennsylvania’s Texting While Driving Law
Pennsylvania prohibits the use of interactive wireless communication devices for texting while driving under 75 Pa. C.S. § 3316. The law applies to all drivers and bans composing, sending, or reading text – based communications while the vehicle is in motion.
A conviction under this statute is a summary offense carrying a $50 fine, but from a civil liability standpoint, a citation or conviction is powerful evidence of negligence. If the driver who hit you was cited for distracted driving, that citation will be central to your injury claim.
The statute covers more than traditional text messages. Emails, social media notifications, and other interactive communications on a phone fall within its scope. A driver scrolling Instagram at a red light who rearends you when traffic moves, is potentially just as liable as one composing a text message.
How Cell Phone Records Prove Your Case
One of the most important, and most overlooked pieces of evidence in a texting and driving accident case is something the at fault driver carries in their pocket: their cell phone records.
Carriers maintain detailed logs of when calls were made and received, when text messages were sent, and when data was actively used. In personal injury litigation, these records can be subpoenaed, and when the timestamps align with the time of your crash, they are extremely difficult for the defense to explain away.
Here is what the process typically looks like:
- Preservation demand: your attorney sends a letter immediately after the accident demanding that the at-fault driver and their carrier preserve all phone records. This is time-sensitive, as some carriers do not retain detailed logs indefinitely.
- Subpoena: once litigation begins, a subpoena is served on the carrier for records covering the window of time around the crash.
- Analysis: the records are reviewed for calls, texts, and data usage at the exact time of impact. Even if the driver claims they were not texting, active data usage- (a refreshing social media app) for example, can establish distraction.
This is evidence the other driver cannot hide or explain away after the fact. It is one of the strongest tools available in these cases, and one of the most important reasons to involve an attorney early.
What to Do Immediately After Being Hit by a Texting Driver
The steps you take in the hours and days after the crash directly affect the strength of your claim.
At the Scene
- Call 911 and make sure a police report is filed. In Pennsylvania, crashes involving injury must be reported, and the officer’s report will document the scene, witness information, and any citations issued.
- If it is safe to do so, note whether the driver’s phone was visible and in use, and tell the responding officer.
- Collect contact information from every witness. Witness accounts of a driver looking down at a phone before impact are valuable corroborating evidence.
- Do not discuss fault at the scene and do not minimize your injuries… even if you feel okay, say so carefully.
In the Days That Follow
- Seek medical attention immediately. Symptoms from whiplash, concussions, and soft tissue injuries often appear 24 to 72 hours after impact.
- Document everything- photographs of your injuries, your vehicle, and all receipts for medical treatment or related expenses.
- Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company before speaking with an attorney. Insurers use these statements to find inconsistencies that reduce or deny claims.
- Contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible so the phone record preservation demand can be sent before critical evidence disappears.
Proving Negligence in a Pennsylvania Texting Accident Case
To recover compensation in Pennsylvania, your attorney must establish that the other driver was negligent, meaning they owed you a duty of care, breached that duty, and that breach caused your injuries and damages.
Texting while driving is negligence per se under Pennsylvania law. This means that a violation of 75 Pa. C.S. § 3316 establishes negligence as a matter of law – you do not need to independently prove that texting while driving is unreasonable. The violation itself does.
Even without a citation, negligence can be proven through:
- Cell phone records showing active use at the time of impact
- Witness testimony describing the driver looking down before the crash
- Dashcam footage from your vehicle or other cars on the road
- Traffic or business surveillance cameras near the crash location
- Physical evidence of the crash itself –(a driver who never braked before a rearend collision), for example
Pennsylvania also follows a modified comparative negligence standard under 42 Pa. C.S. § 7102. This means that even if you are found partially at fault, you can still recover damages as long as your share of fault does not exceed 50%. However, your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault. Insurance companies will often try to assign you a share of fault to reduce their payout. An experienced attorney knows how to push back on these tactics.
What Compensation Can You Recover?
If you were injured by a texting driver in Pennsylvania, you may be entitled to recover:
Economic Damages
- Past and future medical expenses, including emergency care, surgery, and physical therapy
- Lost wages for time missed from work during recovery
- Lost earning capacity if your injuries affect your ability to work long – term
- Vehicle repair or replacement costs
- Out-of-pocket expenses related to the crash
Non – Economic Damages
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress and anxiety
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of consortium
Pennsylvania does not cap non – economic damages in standard personal injury cases. The value of your pain and suffering is determined by the severity and duration of your injuries, the impact on your daily life, and how persuasively your attorney presents your case to the insurer – or, if necessary, a jury.
Why Insurance Companies Fight These Claims Hard
You might expect that if the other driver was clearly texting – and the records prove it – the insurance company would simply pay. That is rarely how it works.
Carriers for at-fault drivers are experienced at minimizing payouts. Common tactics include claiming your injuries were pre-existing, arguing that a prior medical condition caused your symptoms rather than the crash, disputing the medical necessity of your treatment, or making a fast, low settlement offer before you understand the full extent of your injuries.
The distracted driving cases that settle for fair value are almost always the ones where the injured party had an attorney involved from the beginning – someone who preserved the evidence, documented the damages thoroughly, and was prepared to take the case to trial if the insurer refused to negotiate in good faith.
How GLS Injury Law Handles Texting and Distracted Driving Cases
At GLS Injury Law, we have been representing car accident victims in Lancaster, York, and Chester Counties for over 20 years. Texting and distracted driving accidents are among the most common cases we handle, and the evidence issues in these cases are ones we know well.
When you come to us after a distracted driving crash, we move quickly on the things that cannot wait: the preservation demand to the cell carrier, the request for any available surveillance footage, and the identification of witnesses before memories fade. We know how insurers in this region argue these cases, and we know how to counter those arguments.
We handle every case on a contingency fee basis –you pay nothing unless we win. We’re available 24/7 and if you cannot come to us, we will come to you.
Reference 1: https://www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/2022-traffic-deaths-2023-early-estimates
References 2: https://crashinfo.penndot.pa.gov/PCIT/welcome.html
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Through the civil litigation process, your attorney can subpoena the at – fault driver’s cell phone carrier for records covering the time of the crash. These records show call activity, text messages, and data usage with timestamps. If they show active phone use at the time of impact, that is powerful – and often case – defining – evidence.
A citation helps, but it is not required. Officers often cannot confirm distracted driving at the scene without admissions or direct evidence. Cell phone records, witness testimony, dashcam footage, and crash reconstruction can all establish that a driver was distracted even without a citation.
Pennsylvania’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims is two years from the date of the accident under 42 Pa. C.S. § 5524. Missing this deadline means losing your right to sue entirely. Do not wait – evidence disappears, witnesses become harder to locate, and phone records may not be retained indefinitely.
Pennsylvania’s modified comparative negligence rule means you can still recover compensation even if you were partially at fault, as long as your share of fault is 50% or less. Your recovery is reduced by your percentage – so if you were 10% at fault and your damages are $100,000, you recover $90,000.
There is no reliable average because every case depends on injury severity, how clearly liability is established, and the insurance coverage available. Minor injury cases may settle for tens of thousands. Cases involving serious or permanent injuries, lost earning capacity, or wrongful death can be worth significantly more. The best way to understand what your case may be worth is to speak with an attorney.
Immediately. Cell phone carriers do not retain detailed records forever, surveillance footage is typically overwritten within days, and witness memories fade. The sooner an attorney is involved, the more evidence can be preserved. Call us the same day if you can.
