Saga of Cell Phone Accident...

Reality Check wrote:
Not to excuse bad driving.... because it's a pain and it happens a lot and is mostly preventable. And flat out...I have a bone to pick with stupid people, unprepared people, and uninsured drivers.

But....

They call them accidents for a reason...not on-purposes. Everyone of us has had an incident where we screwed up, some small, some large.

Honestly, cops aren't claims examiners. If they 'investigated' every single fender bender (and this was a FB because it was minor in comparison to the rest of life's big issues) they'd be tied up on the road, off the road and in the courts defending and testifying to stupid chit. Be careful what you wish for. There is a reason most of us responsible folks pay extra for un-insured/underinsured additional coverage. You do not want your local law enforcement spending their time taking accident reports, chasing barking dog complaints or ticketing jay walkers. Checking cell phone records? This isn't television and OP's accident was surely not a fatality or serious anything. "It could have been" doesn't qualify.

Reference cell phone use and laws...a couple of comments. First, not everyone that talks on the cell phone while holding it in their hand is a menace. There are people that shouldn't even carry on a conversation while driving...period...with anyone, whether in the car or not. And there are people that can chat on a phone, answer the car radio and check the laptop next to them while driving code to a call and do just fine. The point is, distracted driving, whether eating a burger, tuning the radio, looking at the wildlife or scenery or talking on or off a phone is all 'distracted driving'. Passing silly laws about a specific practice is ridiculous.

Example of passing laws to make people think your addressing a problem ( "We're doing something...!! ) Remember when Car Jacking became a problem/epidemic? All the sheep and politicians screamed that 'we' need to do something. So most states passed some form of a law banning "car jacking". Really? it's called Robbery...law's already on the books. But hey, problem solved. Tools.

Back to OP's issue. Sucks, makes a great story, and is great that his writing it helps us think and prepare for ourselves. i.e. got adequate jack? got insurance covered? practice good defensive driving skills? got sense of humor? Seriously, it's good to think about these things because they DO happen. It's part of life.

Glad OP is ok. Glad he could continue on, glad he has insurance. Glad he took the time to write it up for us all.