New Study Shows Drivers Disregard Tri-State Hands-Free Laws Due to Lack of Enforcement, but Still Support the Law

On the Two-Year Anniversary of Connecticut's Cell Phone Driving Law Hand-Held Cell Phones Still Used nearly 40 percent of the Time by New York Tri-State Area Drivers

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 2 -- Tri-state drivers are not consistent about following their state's cellular hands-free driving laws despite the fact that three out of four (77%) drivers support it, according to a survey of 902 drivers in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The study was commissioned by Parrot, the world's largest manufacturer of hands free car kits, and conducted by Harris Interactive(R), a leading market research firm.

The "Parrot Tri-State Hands-Free" survey revealed that 72 percent of the tri-state drivers who use a cell phone while driving have a hands-free solution. However, drivers in these states still use their hand-held phones 38 percent of the time with only 14 percent using a hands-free solution all the time while driving. Overall, New Jersey drivers are the worst offenders, using their hand-held phones 43 percent of the time, when compared to Connecticut and New York drivers. The survey also identified two groups who are the most common violators -- females and drivers in the 18-34 age group, each of whom use a hand-held phone 41 percent of the time.

The Parrot Tri-State Hands-Free survey also revealed tri-state drivers' attitudes towards their state's legislation. Though 77 percent of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut drivers support their state's cellular-hands free driving laws, less than half (45%) feel the law is relevant to them personally. This may be due to the fact that only two percent of those surveyed indicated that they received a ticket or warning for driving using their handset.

"The challenge of hands-free compliance is not only perception but also reality. The reality is that the majority of tri-state drivers are still using their hand-held cell phones because they don't perceive that the law applies to them. Education and enforcement can improve hands-free compliance but without these initiatives, drivers' unsafe habits will continue," said Ed Valdez, president and COO of Parrot, a leading innovator of Bluetooth(R) hands-free mobile phone car kits.

"While many New York tri-state area drivers admit to having hands-free solutions they're not consistently using them. According to the study, that's because the majority are using headsets and earbuds that drivers say are uncomfortable and difficult to use. Parrot has developed a variety of portable and installed Bluetooth-enabled hands-free devices that use voice recognition technology so that drivers can keep their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. They don't have to worry about wires, poor sound quality or an uncomfortable earbud that keeps falling out," added Valdez.

As part of a new campaign to encourage more drivers to eliminate distractions while behind the wheel, Parrot will be introducing a new Web site at www.parrotsafedriving.com that will offer educational resources, tips on responsible driving and more. In addition, the company plans a nationwide 20 percent rebate on its popular portable Bluetooth speakerphone, the Parrot MINIKIT, later this month.

The following are additional highlights from the survey that reveal how drivers in each state have been affected by the legislation:

NEW YORK

In November 2001, New York became the first state to pass legislation banning hand-held cell phones while driving. Six years later, nearly 70 percent (67%) of New Yorkers are aware of the law; yet, New Yorkers who talk on the phone while driving use a hand-held cellular phone 36 percent of the time. Only four percent of these drivers say they have received a ticket related to the use of a hand-held cell phone.

NEW JERSEY

New Jersey enacted legislation in July 2004, making talking on a hand-held cell phone while driving a secondary offense. Senator Richard Codey is the sponsor of an amendment to the New Jersey law that would make the use of a hand-held phone while driving a primary offense, however this is still waiting Governor Corzine's signature. Meanwhile, only 43 percent of New Jersey drivers know that it is currently still only a secondary offense. New Jersey drivers who talk on the phone while driving admit to using a hand-held cell phone 43 percent of the time. No one surveyed from New Jersey said they had received a ticket or warning for driving while using their handset.

CONNECTICUT

Connecticut became the third state to enact a jurisdiction-wide ban on driving while on a hand-held cellular phone in October 2005. Two years later, Connecticut drivers are the most aware of this legislation among the three states at 75 percent, still; only 50 percent of these drivers feel that this legislation is relevant to them personally. Connecticut drivers who use a phone while driving admit to using their hand-held phone one-third of the time.

Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States (or in other location/s) by Harris Interactive on behalf of Parrot between July 6 - 20, 2007 among 902 adults ages 18 and over who live in New York, New Jersey, or Connecticut, have a driver's license, and own a cell phone. Results were weighted as needed for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the U.S. adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to be invited to participate in the Harris Interactive online research panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

ABOUT PARROT:

Founded in 1994, Parrot has rapidly established itself as a major global player for wireless peripherals around the mobile phone. Capitalizing on the know-how acquired in the fields of voice recognition and digital signal processing technologies, Parrot has been one of the first companies to develop Bluetooth(R) wireless hands-free car kits, having identified this standard's great potential as early as 1999. In 2005, Parrot sold 865,000 units. Determined to be part of the mobile telephone's increasing importance in day- to-day life, Parrot has developed two new products in 2006: the Parrot Photo Viewer, an LCD photo frame designed to display photos transmitted from a mobile telephone via Bluetooth, and the Parrot SOUND SYSTEM, a wireless hi-fi system with Bluetooth(R)-enabled speakers. Parrot has achieved strong growth in its consolidated revenues, up from euro 29.2m in 2004 to euro 62.5m (euro 80.9m pro forma) in 2005. www.parrot.biz./www.parrotcorp.com Euronext Paris - Eurolist, Compartment B (mid caps): FR0004038263 - PARRO

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