Distracted Driving Accidents in Peoria, Illinois

Last Updated: October 29, 2026

625 ILCS 5/12-610.2(b) says a person may not operate a motor vehicle on a roadway while using an electronic communication device. Instruction 60.01 lets the jury consider a violation with the other evidence when deciding negligence. Proximate cause remains separate. Eating is not that prohibition.

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Distracted Driving Accidents in Peoria, Illinois: Your Legal Options

Under 625 ILCS 5/12-610.2(b), a person may not operate a motor vehicle on a roadway while using an electronic communication device. The prohibition includes using the device to watch or stream video, to take part in a video conference, or to access a social media site. Subsection (d)(3) exempts hands-free or voice-operated use, other than artificial-intelligence smart glasses. Paragraphs (d)(3) and (d)(9) do not exempt video, video conferencing, or social media.

Under 625 ILCS 5/12-610.1(b), a person under 19 who holds an instruction permit or a graduated license may not drive on a roadway while using a wireless phone. Subsection (c) provides an emergency exception, including calls to law enforcement, a health care provider, a fire department, or other emergency services, and the section does not apply to that emergency use. That teen wireless restriction is separate from the 12-610.2 handheld-device rule that applies more broadly.

Illinois Distracted Driving Law: What It Prohibits

Subsection (c) of 12-610.2 makes a violation an offense against traffic regulations governing the movement of vehicles. The instruction in IPI Civil 60.01 says that if the jury decides a person violated the statute, the jury may consider that fact together with the other evidence in determining whether and to what extent the person was negligent. The comment says a violation is not negligence per se. Reasonable conduct under the circumstances may answer the violation, and proximate cause is separate. Recovery in a negligence action for bodily injury still follows 735 ILCS 5/2-1116: fault of more than 50 percent bars recovery, and fault that is not more than 50 percent reduces damages in proportion.

Illinois graduated driver licensing rules also address moving violations before age 21, including suspension of driving privileges when a young driver receives two or more moving violation convictions within a 24-month period. That is an administrative licensing consequence, not a substitute for civil proof of fault or damages.

Proving Distracted Driving After an Accident

The civil claim still has to prove what the driver was doing and that the conduct caused the injury. Phone records, witness observations, camera footage, and vehicle data can be part of that proof. A record does not by itself decide the case.

Traffic camera footage, dashcam recordings from nearby vehicles, and witness testimony from other drivers or pedestrians who observed the driver looking down at their phone all strengthen the case. Documenting the accident scene immediately is critical because this evidence degrades quickly.

Damages in Peoria Distracted Driving Cases

Instruction 30.05 covers pain and suffering that is proved, including future pain when the evidence shows it is reasonably certain. Instruction 30.06 covers the reasonable expense of necessary medical care, treatment, and services, or the reasonable value of that care. Instruction 30.07 covers earnings lost and the present cash value of earnings reasonably certain to be lost. Instruction 30.01 leaves whether any element has been proved to the jury.

Instruction 35.01 allows punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages when the evidence proves qualifying intentional, fraudulent, or willful and wanton conduct that proximately caused injury or damage and when justice and the public good require an award. A handheld-device violation by itself does not automatically support punitive damages.

When Distracted Driving Causes Fatal Accidents

A wrongful death action is brought by the personal representatives of the deceased person under 740 ILCS 180/2(a). Subsection (a) allows punitive damages when applicable. The action is generally subject to a two-year filing limitation measured from the death, subject to other statutory exceptions that include, among others, escrow timing under subsection (d), violent intentional conduct and listed charged crimes such as reckless homicide under subsection (e), and minors under subsection (f). An injury claim and a death claim are separate.

When the at-fault driver was working, a separate employer claim depends on fact-specific scope-of-employment proof under Restatement (Second) of Agency section 228, including whether the conduct was of the kind the employee was employed to perform, substantially within authorized time and space limits, and at least in part to serve the employer’s purpose. In Bagent v. Blessing Care Corp., No. 102430 (Ill. Jan. 19, 2007), the Illinois Supreme Court applied those criteria on patient-confidentiality facts and held the employer was not vicariously liable. That decision does not decide a motor-vehicle crash case or guarantee employer coverage.

Talk to a Peoria Personal Injury Lawyer

Parker & Parker Attorneys at Law has helped injured people across Central Illinois recover fair compensation. There is no fee unless we win your case.

Call 309-673-0069 for a free consultation, or contact us online.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is texting while driving illegal in Illinois?

Subsection (b) prohibits using an electronic communication device while operating a motor vehicle on a roadway. Subsection (d) lists exemptions, including hands-free or voice-operated use under paragraph (3). The hands-free and single-button exemptions in paragraphs (3) and (9) do not permit video, video conferencing, or social media. A violation is not negligence per se. Instruction 60.01 lets the jury consider it with the other evidence. A person under 19 with an instruction permit or graduated license also faces the separate wireless-phone restriction in 12-610.1(b), subject to the emergency exception in subsection (c).

How do you prove the other driver was distracted?

The proof can include phone records, witness testimony, camera footage, and vehicle data. None of those items replaces proximate cause or the other elements of the claim.

What compensation is available after a distracted driving accident in Illinois?

When the evidence supports them, an injured person may recover medical expenses, proved earnings loss, and pain and suffering, including future medical care or future loss of earnings when the evidence shows those elements are reasonably certain. Punitive damages require the proof Instruction 35.01 describes and are not automatic from a traffic violation. Section 2-1116 bars recovery when contributory fault is more than 50 percent and otherwise reduces damages in proportion. Property damage and other claims have their own proof requirements; 735 ILCS 5/13-205 is generally a five-year filing limitation from accrual, subject to stated exceptions, not a damages measure for property loss.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a car accident, Peoria personal injury lawyer Robert Parker can help document the claim, evaluate available coverage, and prepare the case for settlement or litigation.

Need a lawyer? This article is part of our Peoria Car Accident Lawyer practice area. Call Parker & Parker at 309-673-0069 for a free consultation.

Distracted Driving Accidents in Peoria, Illinois: Your Legal Options