This post on driver distraction, from the Insurance Information Institute’s blog, made me think of all of the multi-tasking agents out there, who doubtless talk while driving and maybe—yikes!—compose text messages behind the wheel.

Nationwide finished their second annual report on driver distraction, and the results are sobering. “Almost all Americans believe they are safe drivers, yet almost three-quarters guilty of distracted driving,” says Nationwide. Distracted driving includes (but is not limitied to) talking on a cell phone, writing text messages, fiddling with the stereo, and eating. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says that driver distraction is the culprit behind nearly 80 percent of all traffic accidents.

Worse still, 90 percent of respondents to the Nationwide survey say that DWD (driving while distracted) will become a bigger problem with advancing technology (as in gadgetry).

And if you don't think talking on a cell phone is a hazard, consider this study from the University of Utah, which found that talking impaired driving ability as much as drinking alcohol.

[Related: Dial 'D' For Driver Distraction]

P.S. The University of Utah study also concluded that hands-free devices do not reduce the danger associated with talking on the phone.

Photo from Flickr