Auto insurers' group: Texting bans do not reduce crashes

Texting bans do not reduce car crashes and may make the problem slightly worse, according to a report from researchers at the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), a group that works on behalf of the auto insurance industry.

Researchers speculated that drivers are lowering their phones so police do not see them texting, and as a result they remove their eyes from the road for longer stretches.

The report examined the frequency of insurance claims filed for vehicle damages related to collisions. It compared this data before and after texting bans took effect in four states. It also looked at the numbers in nearby states.

The findings "are consistent with those of a previous HLDI study, which found that banning hand-held phone use while driving doesn't cut crashes," the group said.

Adrian Lund, president of  HLDI and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, said texting bans are a bad policy.

"Texting bans haven't reduced crashes at all," he said in a statement. "In a perverse twist, crashes increased in 3 of the 4 states we studied after bans were enacted. It's an indication that texting bans might even increase the risk of texting for drivers who continue to do so despite the laws."

The Transportation Department has made a strong effort to combat distracted driving, pushing state-level restrictions on how drivers can use their cell phones in the car.

A study last year by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institutef found that when when the drivers texted, their collision risk increase by a factor of 23.