You have probably dropped a French Fry or a lipstick while driving. Maybe you were fumbling with your phone and it tumbled down towards the gas pedals, or maybe it was a pet that scrambled onto the floor of the car. Whatever the item was, there is a chance that at some point in your driving career, you have reached down. In this swift, multi-second motion, you took your eyes off the road, and one hand off the wheel. You also reduced you potential for a reaction time, and your ability to steer in the event of a turn.

For you, retrieving the item may have worked out well, yet every year, many drivers aren’t this lucky. A driver in Fayette County was recently driving when he dropped his cigarette down to the car floor. In an attempt to retrieve it, he dipped down. The few seconds was enough to send his speeding car in the wrong direction. The victim, Ronald McGee, looked up and lost control. His vehicle hit a guard rail, slid about 100 feet, and then toppled down a hillside into a creek. Thankfully, 48-year-old survived the horrific crash.

Another woman in Dayton, Ohio, was reaching for her dog when disaster struck. The pet was scrambling around the floor of the car and she wanted to put him back up on the seat. She dipped down to scoop up the pet, and swerved towards two power poles. She hit them violently, and her car flipped over. The woman also had a baby inside the car. Thankfully, they all managed to get away from the accident without a serious injury. A police officer who arrived at the scene said that if this woman hadn’t hit the pole, her accident would have been much worse. The building that was behind the pole was made of marble, and she would have crushed her car and herself if she had hit it at her high speed.

In Syracuse, one pedestrian is recovering in a hospital after she was struck by a car outside of a McDonald’s on Route 11. She was standing on the sidewalk waiting to cross the street in front of the parking lot when she was hit by a car that was pulling out. The driver says that she was reaching down to pick up a spilled soda, and accidentally turned her wheel towards the pedestrian. The driver was issued tickets charging him with driving on the sidewalk, driving on the shoulder, and driving without a license. They also discovered that he had an unlawful possession of marijuana.

These instances show that reaching downwards to retrieve a lost or spilled item can cause a car accident. The same thing can happen when a driver reaches back to help a baby in a car seat or a child that is in the passenger seat. If you need to complete some sort of action, then you should pull off the road to do so. Never chose to reach down and grab the item on your floor. If it is urgent, you should pull over on the side of the road. If it isn’t, then you can wait until you reach your destination. To eliminate the potential for these types of accidents, try not to eat messy foods while driving. Also, don’t ever let pet’s run around in a car. If you are taking your pet with you, put him or her in the proper safety restraints to keep him or her safe from harm. Talk to a car accident attorney today if you need help settling a car accident case in court.