In 2010, CNN reported the assembling of a local high school in Alabama to review the dangers of texting while driving. In this state, there is no law making the event unlawful, but nevertheless, the assembly was a powerful reminder to teens that texting behind the wheel of a vehicle is a dangerous risk. In the assembly they learned that a 26-year-old woman was driving to a meet her wedding planner when she was struck and killed by a truck driver because he was texting while operating his vehicle. Ever since then, her mother has been speaking out to the public about the dangers of behind the wheel texting.

When looking down at a phone while driving for five seconds, the distance traveled is over the length of a football field; this is how long most drivers look down before a crash. According to one source, when polled, 95 percent of Americans said that texting behind the wheel should never occur while 21 percent do it anyway. The New York Times listed texting behind the wheel as the most distracting event that could take place while operating a vehicle. 50 percent of Americans think that texting while driving should be given penalties as harsh as those of drunk driving. Also, there is a 23 percent greater risk of collision for those texting in the car as opposed to those who are not; they are also eight times more likely to crash.

USA Today states that the National Transportation Safety Board recommended banning texting for truckers and commercial vehicles due to an accident in 2010 where 11 people were killed in a collision. There are many people trying to raise awareness about the dangers of texting, one of which includes Oprah Winfrey. The Texting Analysis has also financed $300,000 in order to improve safety precautions.

A survey taken also shows that those who text while driving know the risks but still text anyway. Insurance companies know that teenagers are more prone to risks in the car and are therefore more susceptible to the dangers of texting. 21 percent of teens from ages 16 to 19 die every year due to cell phone incidents (with a four percent increase predicted every year), while 50 percent of the drivers from 16 to 24 said that they texted while driving in contrast to the 22 percent of individuals ages 35 to 44.

Some guidelines given to parents by the Federal Communication Commission are to:

There are 35 states that ban texting while driving, some of which includes California, New York, Alaska, New Jersey and Louisiana. Since banning behind the wheel texting, California has issued 7,924 citations; texting while driving has been banned since 2009 for the state inhabitants while both Michigan and Georgia recently banned it in 2010. Out of the 35 states, 32 of them allow an official to pull over a vehicle if they saw a person texting, while the other 3 states only warrant citing a texting violation after having pulled the vehicle over for another charge. Texting behind the wheel proves to be almost unanimously agreed upon as being dangerous for people of all ages, though teens are considered to be generally the most susceptible.