All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Dec 9 2011 // New federal safety data shows texting while driving increased 50 percent last year, despite a rush by states to ban the practice. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does an annual survey that watches...
Dec 8 2011 // More than 70 million drivers in the U.S. potentially are leaving car insurance savings on the table by not taking advantage of usage-based insurance programs that reward drivers who drive safely and during safe times of...
Dec 7 2011 // A new study says tougher restrictions on Iowa’s teenage drivers could have saved the lives of 32 young drivers in 2009.The Des Moines Register reports that the study report includes suggested standards: requiring...
Dec 7 2011 // If all states implemented comprehensive graduated driver licensing (GDL) laws, an estimated 2,000 lives could be saved. Further, if all 50 states were to enact comprehensive GDL laws, it could generate savings of $13.6...
Dec 5 2011 // A rental car customer’s insurer must cover crash injuries, even though an unauthorized driver was behind the wheel. That’s what the Florida Supreme Court decided in a 5-2 opinion recently.The majority ruled in...
Dec 5 2011 // According to a poll from PEMCO Insurance, nearly half of Portland-area drivers are upset enough at the prospect of sharing the road with distracted drivers that they believe lawmakers should treat those caught talking,...
Nov 28 2011 // A Florida rental car customer’s auto insurer must cover crash injuries, even though the driver was someone not authorized under the rental car company’s contact.In a 5-2 opinion on Nov. 23, the Florida Supreme...
Nov 22 2011 // The Association of British Insurers has strongly endorsed “tougher measures to improve young driver safety,” which it explained is “crucial to delivering a better motor insurance deal to...
Nov 16 2011 // According to a poll from PEMCO Insurance, nearly half of Portland-area drivers are upset enough at the prospect of sharing the road with distracted drivers that they believe lawmakers should treat those caught talking,...
Nov 16 2011 // Students in suburban New York are getting a chance to learn the perils of distracted driving without having to worry about an accident or a traffic ticket.A texting-while-driving simulator that resembles an old-fashioned...
Nov 15 2011 // Drunk driving, impaired driving and distracted driving stories frequently make news headlines, but what about drowsy driving?According to the National Sleep Foundation, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety estimates that...
Nov 7 2011 // The total cost of motor vehicle crashes in the U.S. totals $299.5 billion, according to a study done for the auto club AAA.According to the study conducted for AAA by Cambridge Systematics, the overall cost of crashes...
Nov 7 2011 // Motorists getting distracted by holding a cellphone in one hand and making or receiving calls while driving is a common problem in the United States. A survey conducted by State Farm in November 2010 found that 74 percent...
Nov 7 2011 // Those who view their car as an extension of themselves have stronger aggressive driving tendencies, a new study finds.The study “Aggressive Driving: A Consumption Experience,” by a Temple University Fox School...
Nov 1 2011 // Beginning Nov. 1, Oklahomans who drive drunk will face tougher penalties — changes that supporters say will save lives. Sen. Clark Jolley and Rep. Jason Nelson authored the Erin Swezey Act last session, which won...
Oct 31 2011 // Farmers Insurance is advising Oklahoma residents that a new law, which goes into effect on Nov. 1, will have a significant effect on all drivers, especially those who drive without proper automobile insurance.The new...
Oct 25 2011 // The number of Floridians who have had their driver’s licenses revoked because they are deemed physically or mentally unfit has more than doubled in the last decade. State figures show the main reasons many lose...
Oct 20 2011 // New York’s highest court has ruled that a motorist from Syracuse who struck and killed a pedestrian while being distracted by sun glare cannot invoke “emergency doctrine.”An attentive driver would have...
Oct 18 2011 // Those who view their car as an extension of themselves have stronger aggressive driving tendencies, a new study finds.The study “Aggressive Driving: A Consumption Experience,” by a Temple University Fox School...
Oct 17 2011 // In July, an astute observer was driving in Mountain View, Calif., when he came across a multiple car fender-bender. A Toyota Prius had hit a Prius, and that Prius hit an Accord, which hit an Accord, which hit a Prius.Being...