Insurance Company Poll: Oregon Drivers Want Harsher Cell Phone Penalties

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, texting or emailing while driving more harshly.

If you’re driving in the Greater Portland area, about one-in-three drivers in the cars next to you are likely breaking the law by using a cell phone without a hands-free device, and about one-in-four are texting or emailing while driving.

Of the Portland-area drivers surveyed in the poll, 31 percent said they use their cell phones without a hands-free device while driving, and of those, 26 percent admit to using their cell phone to text or email while behind the wheel.

“Distracted-driving laws are becoming common across the U.S., and for good reason,” said Seattle, Wash.-based PEMCO spokesperson Jon Osterberg. “Distracted driving is dangerous, and while our poll results show that most drivers agree, we need to raise awareness to help lower the number of drivers who are focused on their phones rather than on the road.”

More than 40 percent of respondents said that texting violations are serious enough to warrant more than the accompanying $142 fine, and 55 percent think that violations for handheld phones and texting should become part of a driver’s record.

In January 2010, it became a primary offense to use a handheld mobile device while driving in Oregon, which includes texting and sending emails from a cell phone and talking without a hands-free accessory. Fines of at least $142 are levied against violators, and the current law does not mandate that the citation become part of a driver’s record.

PEMCO’s poll found that almost one-in-three drivers think the fine should be at least $250 for texting while driving, and 15 percent think $500 or higher is a more appropriate fine for violating texting laws.