Overall risk of a collision while using a cell phone increases by ____ percent.

Overall risk of a collision while using a cell phone increases by ____ percent.

• A. 100
• B. 200
• C. 400
• D. 600

Answer: (C)

Using a cell phone while driving greatly raises your chance of crashing because your attention is split between the phone and the road, which slows your perception of hazards and your reaction time. In studies that compare crash risk with and without phone use, the overall risk is found to be about four times higher when a phone is in use, which is described as roughly a 400 percent increase. In other words, driving with a phone on increases the likelihood of a collision significantly more than not using a phone. The other numbers would imply smaller or larger increases than what the typical data show, so the 400 percent figure best matches the commonly cited risk increase.

Using a cell phone while driving greatly raises your chance of crashing because your attention is split between the phone and the road, which slows your perception of hazards and your reaction time. In studies that compare crash risk with and without phone use, the overall risk is found to be about four times higher when a phone is in use, which is described as roughly a 400 percent increase. In other words, driving with a phone on increases the likelihood of a collision significantly more than not using a phone. The other numbers would imply smaller or larger increases than what the typical data show, so the 400 percent figure best matches the commonly cited risk increase.