Charleston County topped South Carolina in hands-free driving citations during the first month of full enforcement, with 470 citations issued, according to data from the South Carolina Department of Public Safety and local coverage of the rollout. The state's Hands-Free and Distracted Driving Act reached full enforcement on February 28, 2026, after a six-month warning period that began September 1, 2025. Now, as summer travel season fills roads across the peninsula and Mount Pleasant, enforcement is colliding with peak holiday traffic, and the citations are changing how fault gets proven after a crash across the Lowcountry, according to the Charleston personal injury lawyers at Woron and Dhillon, LLC.
The law, codified under Section 56-5-3890, prohibits drivers from holding or supporting a phone with any part of the body while the vehicle is moving, a standard far broader than the earlier texting-only rule. First offenses carry a $100 fine, and second offenses within three years bring a $200 fine and two points on the driver's record. Since late February, officers can issue tickets instead of warnings, leading to the surge in citations.
When a driver violates the hands-free law and causes a wreck, that violation can serve as evidence of negligence. In South Carolina, which follows a modified comparative negligence standard under S.C. Code Section 15-38-15, fault is everything. A distracted driving citation can cut through the ambiguity insurers rely on when trying to shift blame onto the injured party. Other key pieces of evidence in a distracted driving accident claim include phone records that align with the moment of impact, a police report noting handheld device use at the scene, and witnesses who saw the driver looking down or holding a phone.
"A ticket makes the conversation with the insurance company very different," said Brett Woron, a partner at Woron and Dhillon, LLC. "When there is documentation that a driver was on a phone, it becomes much harder to argue the crash was unavoidable. Injured people should know that evidence exists and how quickly it can disappear."
The implications for drivers and accident victims are significant. With Charleston leading the state in citations, the data underscores the prevalence of distracted driving in the region. For those injured in a crash, a citation provides concrete evidence that can strengthen a claim, potentially leading to fairer compensation. However, the fleeting nature of digital evidence means victims must act quickly to preserve phone records and other documentation. As summer traffic intensifies, the combination of increased enforcement and holiday travel may lead to more citations and, consequently, more clear-cut liability determinations in accident cases.
