Louisiana Ranked One of the Worst States for Distracted Drivers

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There's been a lot of discussion recently about auto insurance rates in Louisiana after State Farm announced rate increases... pretty substantial rate increases.  In fact, according to data from Experian.com, Louisiana ranks number two in the country for the highest auto insurance rates.

Here are Experian's Top 5 Most Expensive States for Auto Insurance

1. Delaware

• Average annual auto insurance premium: $2,703 
• Average FICO® Score: 714 
• Average personal income: $58,891 
• Population per square mile rank: 7 

2. Louisiana

• Average annual auto insurance premium: $2,569 
• Average FICO® Score: 689 
• Average personal income: $54,137 
• Population per square mile rank: 27 

3. New York

• Average annual auto insurance premium: $2,566 
• Average FICO® Score: 722 
• Average personal income: $78,817 
• Population per square mile rank: 8 

4. Georgia

• Average annual auto insurance premium: $2,544 
• Average FICO® Score: 693 
• Average personal income: $54,320 
• Population per square mile rank: 18 

5. Maryland

• Average annual auto insurance premium: $2,511 
• Average FICO® Score: 716 
• Average personal income: $69,934 
• Population per square mile rank: 7 

But when looking at WHY auto insurance rates are so high, there are several factors.  Of course, there are those who say out-of-control litigation by "billboard lawyers" is to blame.  Others might say the percentage of uninsured motorists is the culprit.  But when looking at all the factors, one cannot discount distracted drivers.

Distracted driving has become a huge problem over the years, and is only continuing to grow.  In fact, in order to understand more about why distracted driving has become such a problem, Assurance recently surveyed over 3200 drivers about their distracted driving habits, including texting, applying makeup, and playing with the radio.

According to Assurance, Louisiana ranks right up there in states with the largest percentage of numbers of drivers that text while driving.

1. Mississippi- 50% 
2. New Hampshire- 50% 
3. Missouri- 49% 
4. Alabama- 48.1% 
5. Louisiana- 48.1% 

But texting isn't even the worst distraction.  According to the Assurance study, texting ranks number 6 on the list.  SIXTH!  Here're the top things causing drivers not to have their full attention and focus on the road ahead.

1. Selecting Music- 68.9% 
2. Checking GPS- 56.1% 
3. Interacting with other adults in the car- 54.8% 
4. Eating- 37.5% 
5. Interacting with children in the car- 21.1% 
6. Texting- 19.2% 
7. Making a phone call- 18.1% 
8. Preening- 11/9% 
9. Checking email- 9.6% 
10. Checking social media- 7.4% 

Of the 10 things on this list, at least 6 of them do, or could, involve our phone. So, what's the answer?  We've all been told "Don't Text & Drive," but we still do it.  We've all seen statistics about how dangerous distracted driving is, but we ignore them.  What is it going to take to change behavior?  There are already laws on the books about texting and driving, so what are more laws going to do?  It comes down to making a personal decision.  Is that text more important than your life, or the lives of those around you?