Berkely Brokerage Corp.

Understand the scope of distracted driving Is distracted driving really as pervasive and dangerous as it’s made out to be? According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about 660,000 drivers use electronic devices while driving. In 2015, such drivers caused 391,000 injuries and the deaths of 3,477 people. Electronic devices are not the only source of distraction. We can understand behind-the-wheel distractions as falling into three categories: manual, cogn...itive and visual. A manual distraction can include reaching into the back seat, while a cognitive distraction may be as simple as daydreaming. And, a visual distraction is anything that takes your eyes off the road including looking at a GPS device. Still, as the CDC emphasizes, texting poses a unique challenge to the driver’s attention: It combines all three of these types of distraction. We can also think of risky driving as either a poor decision, like texting behind the wheel, or an unintended action, like falling asleep. See more

Sending out thanks and good wishes on this Thanksgiving Day!

CREDIT CARD THEFT TOPS LIST OF CRIMES AMERICANS FACE ACCORDING TO A GALLUP POLL: More than 1 in 4 people say they or someone in their household has had credit card information stolen. Americans are significantly more likely to say their households have been victimized by credit card information theft than to say they were victims of any of the other crimes Gallup measured in its 2016 Crime survey. More than 1 in 4 (27 percent) now say they or someone in their household had information stolen from a credit card used in a store, up from a dip to 22 percent in 2015.