Can Car Accidents Be Caused By Prescription Drugs?
Yes, prescription drugs can and do cause car accidents. Certain medications can impair cognitive function, slow reaction times, affect judgment, and reduce coordination, making it unsafe to operate a motor vehicle. Even when taken as prescribed, some medications may cause drowsiness, dizziness, blurred vision, or difficulty concentrating, all of which can increase the risk of a crash. Drivers should carefully review medication warnings and talk with their doctor or pharmacist about whether it is safe to drive while taking a particular medication.
There are many car accidents caused by prescription drugs. Unfortunately, many drivers are unaware of just how dangerous the side effects of many prescribed medications can be. Even when people take their medications as prescribed, the side effects can cause people to remain drowsy for hours and even days afterward.
How can a car accident be caused by prescription drugs?
A car accident can be caused by prescription drugs when they impair a driver’s ability to safely operate a vehicle. Certain medications can cause drowsiness, dizziness, blurred vision, slowed reaction times, impaired judgment, confusion, or reduced coordination. These side effects can make it more difficult for a driver to recognize hazards, react to changing traffic conditions, maintain control of a vehicle, or make safe driving decisions, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Slowed reaction times – Certain medications, including muscle relaxants, opioid pain medications, and anti-anxiety medications, can slow brain function and reaction times. As a result, a driver may be unable to brake, steer, or respond quickly enough to avoid sudden hazards, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Drowsiness and fatigue – Medications used for sleep disorders, depression, and allergies can make drivers excessively tired and less alert behind the wheel, and in some cases, these prescription drugs can cause momentary lapses in concentration or lane departures that result in serious car accidents.
- Dizziness and vertigo – Certain medications, including blood pressure medications and antihistamines, can cause dizziness, lightheadedness, or vertigo. These side effects may make it more difficult for a driver to maintain control of a vehicle, stay within a lane, accurately judge distances, or safely respond to traffic conditions.
- Impaired cognitive function – Antidepressants, anti-seizure medications, and other medications that affect the central nervous system can impair a driver’s focus, judgment, and ability to process information. As a result, drivers may have difficulty making safe decisions in heavy traffic, at intersections, or in other situations that require quick reactions.
- Vision disturbance – Some medications can impair a driver’s vision by causing blurred eyesight or difficulty adapting to bright or low-light conditions. When vision is affected, drivers may struggle to recognize traffic signals, spot hazards, or safely navigate the roadway, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Dangerous drug interactions – Using multiple medications at the same time, or combining medications with alcohol, can intensify side effects in unpredictable ways. These combined effects may significantly impair alertness, coordination, and judgment, greatly increasing the risk of a motor vehicle accident.
How often are car accidents caused by prescription drugs?
According to the car accident statistics on how many car accidents are caused by prescription drugs, the Governors Highway Safety Association reports that “10.7% of all fatally-injured drivers were known to have been opioid-positive.” The most frequent opioids included: (1) Oxycodone; (2) Hydrocodone; (3) Morphine; (4) Fentanyl; and (5) Methadone.
“Prescription drugs are the most prevalent of all drugs found in drugged drivers involved in fatal crashes (46.5%),” according to AAA’s “Drugged Driving” Fact Sheet.
“Benzodiazepines (prescribed for anxiety or sleep disorders) and opiates (prescribed for pain relief) are the two prescription drugs most commonly found in fatal and seriously injured drivers.” (AAA)
“Some types of antidepressants have been shown to increase crash risk by up to 41%.” (AAA)
Diphenhydramine, “an ingredient commonly found in over-the counter cold and allergy medications,” “has been shown to severely impair the ability to follow at a safe and constant distance, maintain speed, and maintain lane position.” (AAA)
“One single dose of” Diphenhydramine “can have the same effect on driving as being above the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration.” (AAA)
Here are the statistics for drug-involved automobile crashes in Michigan in 2023:
- 22.5% of the fatal crashes in Michigan were drug-involved
- 23.4% of the people killed in car crashes were drug-involved fatalities
- 20% of the crash-related motorcyclist deaths were the result of a drug-involved crash
What prescription drugs can cause car accidents?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identified the following prescription drugs as being capable of causing car accidents:
- Antipsychotic medicines
- Anti-seizure medicines (antiepileptic drugs)
- Diet pills, “stay awake” medicines, and other stimulants (for example, caffeine, ephedrine, pseudoephedrine)
- Medicines that treat or control symptoms of diarrhea and urine or bladder control
- Medicines that treat or prevent symptoms of motion sickness
- Muscle relaxants
- Opioids
- Drugs or medicine containing codeine
- Pain Relievers such as hydrocodone
- Anxiety medications (for example, benzodiazepines)
- Sleeping pills
- Antidepressants
- Tranquilizers (such as Valium)
- Some prescription and OTC cold remedies and allergy medicines that contain an antihistamine, decongestants, nighttime sleep aids or cough medicines
Driver symptoms before an automobile crash caused by prescribed medication
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms after you have taken prescribed medication, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends that you do not drive until these symptoms have completely resolved and gone away:
- Sleepiness/drowsiness
- Blurred vision
- Dizziness
- Slowed movement
- Lack of coordination
- Fainting
- Inability to focus
- Inability to pay attention
- Nausea
- Excitability
How to stay safe if you are taking prescribed medication?
You need to find out how your medication can and will affect your ability to drive safely before getting behind the wheel. Talk to your doctor and/or your pharmacist. Read the label for warnings about driving or operating machinery. Find out about possible reactions with other medications and/or alcohol that can compound the possible side effects of the medication you are taking.
What is being done about car accidents caused by prescription drugs?
As the number of car accidents caused by prescription drugs continues to increase and the role these medications becomes better understood, the FDA is becoming more involved. For example, the FDA has ordered the makers of sleeping medications containing zolpidem to lower their dosages based on research showing these prescribed medications stay in a person’s bloodstream long enough and at high enough levels to cause drowsiness the next morning.
After the FDA received reports of automobile crashes being linked to drivers’ use of commonly prescribed sleep medications containing zolpidem, the FDA conducted driving simulation studies that showed the drug levels remained high enough to cause drivers to have difficulty driving safely.
What if you are injured in a car accident where the driver who caused the crash was on prescription drugs?
If you have been injured in a car accident caused by an at-fault driver’s use of prescription drugs, then you will be entitled to collect No-Fault benefits to pay for your medical bills and lost wages. You will also be able to sue for pain and suffering compensation and other economic damages.
This means that if the at-fault driver ingested these medications in a knowingly abusive manner, i.e., knowing that he or she would be a danger to others on the road, then the at-fault driver can be sued for the injuries and lives lost that he or she caused in much the same way that a drunk driver could be sued for a serious automobile crash that he or she caused.
In states that allow exemplary or punitive damages, the abuse of such drugs may allow for these additional counts.
Is it illegal to drive after taking prescribed medication?
Unlike many other states, Michigan does not have a zero-tolerance law that prohibits driving with “any amount” of prescribed medication in the driver’s system. However, it is against the law to drive while “intoxicated” or “under the influence of [an] intoxicating substance,” which can include prescribed medications. (MCL 257.625(1)(a) and (8))
Injured in a car accident that may have been caused by prescription drugs? Call Michigan Auto Law now!
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Written By
Steve M. Gursten,
Attorney,
License#: P53632
Steven Gursten, attorney at Michigan Auto Law and one of the most successful auto accident attorneys in Michigan. Michigan Auto Law represents people seriously injured in car, truck, motorcycle, and bus accidents, including catastrophic injury, traumatic brain injury, and No-Fault insurance cases. Steven has recovered the largest reported auto and truck accident settlement of any Michigan lawyer, and has been named Michigan Lawyer of the Year and a Top 50 Michigan Super Lawyer.
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