Even though South Carolina is among the top ten most dangerous states to drive in, and even though it has one of the nation’s highest percentage of teen drivers, the state has been slow to enact a distracted driving ban. Even now (as of 2016), South Carolina’s distracted driving ban is one of the least restrictive in the nation.
Distracted Driving Restrictions
In 2014 South Carolina became the 49th state to ban texting while driving. State law also bans contrary city and county laws, which has acted to lessen distracted driving penalties in a number of South Carolina cities, including Charleston and Mt. Pleasant by repealing their stricter laws once the statewide law was passed. Exceptions to the texting and driving ban include:
- While you are legally parked
- While you are stopped at a stoplight
- In an emergency (as necessity demands)
- As an on-duty public safety official (such as an ambulance driver) in the line of duty
Law enforcement agencies are prohibited from reporting texting and driving citations to the offender’s insurance carrier. To cite you, the police officer must have a “clear and unobstructed view” of you and cannot seize, search or even view your phone to prove your guilt. Since texting and driving is not a criminal offense under South Carolina law, you can’t even be arrested for it. The maximum fine is $50, one of the lowest in the nation.
There is no statewide ban on talking on a cell phone while driving. Some municipalities, such as Greenville, have enacted their own prohibitions against the use of hand-held cell phones while driving (this ordinance is not subject to the statewide texting ban because it addresses a different activity). In Greenville you can’t even hold your phone while driving, even if you are not using it. The fine is $100.
In the Event of an Accident
South Carolina’s leniency towards distracted driving ends the moment you cause an accident while engaged in this behavior. An injured party can use texting and driving against you in court to prove that you were negligent. If your negligence caused the accident, you will be held liable for the other party’s damages. One way out of this trap would be to prove that although you were negligent, the other party was mostly at fault for the accident. If you can prove this, you will owe no damages and the other party will have to pay you instead if you suffered damages.
If you caused the accident (or mostly caused it) and if your texting amounted to “recklessness” (a callous disregard for the safety of others), a court might award punitive damages to the other party, which would drastically increase the amount you would have to pay. You might even face criminal charges.
If someone dies in an accident caused by your texting, you could be imprisoned for up to five years. It is difficult to say exactly what conduct constitutes criminal recklessness – it all depends on the circumstances. Texting while drag racing, for example, would probably qualify.
– Updated through September 1, 2016