Driving just too boring for most in poll

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COLUMBUS, Ohio, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Self-admitted alarming driving habits in a Nationwide Mutual Insurance poll released Tuesday all but guarantee rosy futures for U.S. auto body repair shops.

The Columbus, Ohio, insurer polled 1,200 U.S. drivers on whether they considered themselves guilty of "Driving While Distracted," and got results that contradict national accident statistics, the Automotive Body Repair News reported.

While the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says distracted drivers account for almost 80 percent of all crashes in the United States, the poll indicated 83 percent of drivers consider themselves to be safe drivers.

Their self-assessment comes into question when 73 percent admitted to talking on cell phones while driving, just 16 percent said they drive at or below the speed limit and 38 percent admitted they have driven a certain distance without any recollection of doing so.

"We are a nation of people with too much to do and too little time," said Bill Windsor, associate vice president of safety at Nationwide.

As if technology weren't enough of a distraction, 31 percent also said they would like to have a refrigerator in their vehicles and 29 percent wanted Internet access, the survey found.