We\u2019re all familiar with the \u201cDon\u2019t Text and Drive\u201d safety campaigns and distracted driving prevention messages. But a local personal injury lawsuit recently named not only the at-fault driver as a defendant, but Snapchat as well.<\/p>\n
Snapchat is a social media platform used by millions to share photos, videos, and other content with connections. The app is filled with filters that transfer your image and your face, but it\u2019s the speed filters sparking a lawsuit in Metro-Atlanta. This filter shows how fast you\u2019re moving at any given moment. Even though there\u2019s a disclaimer that says \u201cDon\u2019t Snap and Drive\u201d, a team of Atlanta attorneys say the app was a factor in a horrific crash at a Clayton County intersection. Now, they\u2019re suing Snapchat over it. A complaint filed in Spaulding County court spells out how it happened. Attorneys say at 18-year-old woman was driving more than 100 MPH so that she could post it on Snapchat. Attorneys say she was so engrossed in the app and so distracted with her phone that she never saw the vehicle pulling out right in front of her. She was driving 107 MPH when she crashed her Mercedes into an SUV. The man driving the SUV was left with permanent brain damage.<\/p>\n
Attorneys may attempt to build their case against Snapchat by pointing to other speed-filter-related accidents. For instance, a woman in Brazil snapped a picture of driving 100 MPH and then later wrecked her car and suffered serious injuries. There have been countless other lawsuits involving mobile apps, many of which involve claims of promoting distraction while behind the wheel of a vehicle.<\/p>\n