Is Texting While Driving Illegal in Arizona?

Yes. Texting while driving is illegal in Arizona under A.R.S. § 28-914. Arizona's hands-free law, which took effect on January 1, 2021, prohibits all drivers from holding or manually using a wireless communication device while operating a motor vehicle. This includes texting, browsing, scrolling, typing, and watching video. Talking on a handheld phone is also prohibited. Drivers must use hands-free mode, voice commands, or a mounted device.

Prior to 2021, Arizona only banned texting for school bus drivers and drivers under 18. The current law applies to all drivers on all Arizona roads.

Penalties: A first offense carries a fine of $75 to $149. A second or subsequent offense carries $150 to $250. If the violation causes a crash resulting in serious injury or death, criminal charges may apply in addition to the traffic citation.

Exceptions: The law allows use of a device to contact emergency services, by first responders performing official duties, and for single-swipe or single-touch actions to activate or deactivate a feature (such as answering a call in hands-free mode).

Impact on car accident claims: A violation of A.R.S. § 28-914 is direct evidence of negligence in a civil injury case. If the other driver was texting or holding their phone at the time of the crash, that statutory violation supports your claim that they breached their duty of care. Cell phone records matched against the crash timeline establish distraction at the moment of impact.

How Texting While Driving Affects Your Arizona Car Accident Claim

When a distracted driver causes your crash in Arizona, the texting law works in your favor in two ways.

First, the violation itself is evidence of negligence. Our car accident attorneys will obtain the at-fault driver's cell phone records through discovery and matches usage timestamps against the crash timeline from the police report. A text sent or received within seconds of impact is direct evidence of negligence.

Second, Arizona follows pure comparative negligence under A.R.S. § 12-2505. Your compensation is reduced by your fault percentage but never barred. If the other driver was texting, that statutory violation strengthens your position in the fault determination and helps keep your assigned percentage low. Every percentage point matters because it directly reduces your payout and the opposition will try to spin events to assign blame to you.

The flip side is also true. If there's any evidence you were using your phone at the time of the crash, even checking a notification, the insurance adjuster will use it to assign fault and increase your fault percentage. Under Arizona's hands-free law, that phone activity is now a statutory violation on your side too.

What to Do If a Texting Driver Hit You in Arizona

Call 911. The responding officer, whether Phoenix PD, Scottsdale PD, Arizona DPS, or the relevant local agency, may cite the at-fault driver for a hands-free law violation at the scene. That citation becomes evidence in your injury claim.

Do not admit to any phone use. Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver's insurance company. Under A.R.S. § 12-2505, anything you say can be used to assign you a share of fault.

Photograph the scene including the other driver's phone if it's visible. Get witness names. Accept medical transport to Banner University Medical Center, Valleywise Health, or the nearest ER if you are hurt. See a doctor within 72 hours even if you feel fine.

Your attorney subpoenas the at-fault driver's cell phone records early because carriers purge usage data on varying schedules. The longer you wait to hire an attorney, the greater the risk that the phone evidence proving the other driver was texting gets deleted.