“Labor Omnia Vincit” McKay Law
Inattentive driving kills thousands every year in Altus, OK. When a motorist diverts focus from driving, they gamble with other people’s lives. McKay Law fights for victims of distracted driver crashes throughout OK. At highway speeds, taking your eyes off the road for 5 seconds means traveling the length of a football field blind—which is why the consequences are so devastating. Distracted driving covers texting, social media, navigation distractions, and visual or cognitive distractions. Texas law bans texting while driving—and violations strengthen your injury claim. Our Altus distracted driving accident attorneys establish driver inattention with evidence. We act quickly—phone records, video evidence, eyewitness accounts, and citations for distraction. Cell phone records often win these cases—establishing the driver was on the phone at impact. Injuries from distracted driving crashes traumatic brain injuries, spinal damage, broken bones, internal injuries, and wrongful death. We fight for every dollar including economic and non-economic losses, plus punitive damages in egregious cases. For gross negligence behind the wheel, punitive damages may apply. Every distracted driving case is handled on a contingency fee basis—no fees unless we recover. Critical evidence disappears fast. Reach out to McKay Law right away for a complimentary evaluation with a Altus, OK texting while driving accident attorney who will pursue every dollar your case is worth.
Distracted driving has become one of the leading causes of crashes in Oklahoma and across the country. Texting, calls, navigation, eating, and other distractions prevent drivers from paying full attention to the road. A momentary glance away from the road results in serious crashes. McKay Law advocates for distracted driving accident victims in Altus and in surrounding communities.
Safety researchers identify three main types of distraction:
Phone use combines visual, manual, and cognitive distraction simultaneously.
Oklahoma has enacted laws to combat distracted driving:
Breaking these laws supports negligence claims.
Fault can be shared under Oklahoma law (Okla. Stat. tit. 23, § 13). You can recover if your fault is 50% or less, with your award reduced by your percentage of fault.
Punitive damages may apply in cases of reckless or willful conduct. Conduct that may warrant punitive damages include:
You typically have two years from the date of the crash to file (Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 95). Distracted driving cases need fast action because electronic evidence vanishes.
We get to work immediately to preserve phone records and electronic evidence, pull EDR and black box data, retain accident reconstruction experts when warranted, secure proof of distraction from multiple angles, seek punitive awards in egregious cases, and treat each matter as trial-ready.
A: Phone records, app data, EDR data, witnesses, video, and the driver’s own statements.
A: Zero upfront. No recovery, no fee.
A: Absolutely. It’s powerful proof of liability.
A: Through litigation, we can subpoena them.
A: Never. Call us first.
A: Maybe. Particularly bad conduct can trigger punitive damages.
A: 2 years from the date of the crash (Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 95). Move quickly — electronic evidence can be lost.
Distracted driving has overtaken drunk driving as a leading cause of crashes in many categories. Distraction leaves a digital trail that drunk driving doesn’t. A Altus distracted driver accident lawyer turns distraction into the leverage that drives serious recovery.
Distracted driving covers any activity that diverts attention from driving.
Distraction has three forms:
Visual distractions remove the driver’s gaze from traffic. This category covers looking at passengers.
Hands-off-wheel distractions. This category covers reaching for objects.
Anything that takes the driver’s mind off driving. Examples include fatigue-related mental wandering.
Texting and similar smartphone use combines all three categories.
Distracted driving leaves evidence. Unlike many other driver behaviors, distraction is frequently captured by phones, vehicles, and witnesses.
Phone carrier data can show exactly when calls were made or received. This evidence is typically definitive.
Text message records exist on multiple servers. Application usage logs may be retrievable from platform companies.
Modern vehicles record interaction with their systems. Touchscreen interactions, music selections, and navigation use can be retrieved through expert analysis.
Traffic cameras may capture distracted driving behaviors.
Independent observers provide direct evidence of distraction.
Drivers sometimes admit distraction in police reports, statements, or social media posts becomes powerful evidence.
OK has laws addressing distracted driving. Many states ban specific forms of distraction. Statutory breaches directly establish negligence.
If the driver broke a statute, this can establish negligence as a matter of law. The jury or judge doesn’t need to decide whether the conduct was negligent.
Apart from any per se claim, distracted driving is straightforward negligence. The standard of ordinary care demands focused attention on the driving task.
Insurers often deny distraction outright. Defeating this defense requires the digital evidence trail.
Causation defense. Insurers may concede distraction but dispute its role.
Analysis of how attention affects crash dynamics establishes the connection.
Defense sometimes argues hands-free phone use isn’t really distraction.
This argument is contradicted by research. Cognitive distraction from hands-free use is substantial.
“You were distracted as well”. OK’s comparative fault rules may reduce — but typically won’t eliminate — recovery.
Visual distraction accounts for many rear-end wrecks. The driver doesn’t react in time.
Distraction-related lane departure causes lane departure crashes.
Visual distraction at intersections drive intersection collisions.
Distracted drivers are particularly dangerous to vulnerable road users. A momentary glance away can result in striking someone the driver never saw.
Highway distraction leads to severe crashes.
Egregious distracted driving conduct can trigger punitive recovery. This category covers:
Phone records aren’t kept forever. Subpoenas must be served promptly.
Digital evidence has unpredictable retention. Quick preservation demands can lock down data that would otherwise be lost.
Officer documentation of distraction provide critical case evidence.
Witnesses who saw the driver on their phone provide compelling proof.
Modern vehicles’ infotainment systems and other electronic systems may contain evidence of distraction.
These claims can pursue:
Distracted driver accident attorneys charge no upfront fees. Case reviews cost nothing.
Digital evidence has time-limited preservation. Various data holders have varying retention policies. The legal time limit applies regardless. Engaging counsel right away positions the claim for the recovery the evidence trail makes possible.
A driver who looks down at a phone for just five seconds while traveling 55 miles per hour moves across the length of a football field with their eyes off the road. That’s the math behind distracted driving — and it’s why texting, scrolling social media, fiddling with infotainment screens, eating behind the wheel, applying makeup, and reaching for items in the back seat cause thousands of preventable crashes every single day. At McKay Law, we understand that proving distraction is often the difference between a fair settlement and a lowball offer. We subpoena cell phone records, social media activity, app usage logs, and infotainment system data to prove exactly what the at-fault driver was doing in the seconds before impact. We combine that evidence with dash cam and surveillance footage, witness statements, and police reports to develop a case the insurance company can’t talk its way out of.
Distracted drivers cause some of the most senseless crashes on the road — rear-end collisions in stopped traffic, lane-departure wrecks at highway speed, and intersection crashes from drivers who blew through a red light because their eyes were on a screen. The injuries that follow are anything but minor: spinal damage, traumatic brain injuries, multiple fractures, and lifelong complications. When you become part of the McKay Law family, we push back against the at-fault driver’s attempts to minimize what they did. We demand full compensation for emergency care, surgeries, hospitalization, ongoing rehabilitation, future medical needs, prescription costs, missed paychecks, lost earning capacity, vehicle replacement, and the pain, frustration, and lasting impact of a crash that never had to happen. Contact us today at (866) 679-9651 or reach out online to schedule your free consultation and get a firm that knows how to expose distracted driving on your side.
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