Is It Illegal To Eat While Driving in New Jersey?

Let’s talk about eating while driving. I’m sure we’ve all been in a situation while on a road trip, late to work, or even just trying to survive a busy day where we’ve picked up some food and eaten it during our drive or commute.

We’ve all done this at least once and I can’t lie, it can be pretty distracting. I had just done this this morning and it just felt so wrong!

I was looking over my shoulder every time I took a bite of my wrap to see if I was going to get in trouble and then I quickly put the food down because I realized just how distracted a little snack could make you while you’re driving down the road.

Does it feel super illegal to anyone else besides me? It then had me thinking, is it illegal to eat while you’re driving in New Jersey? Here’s what I found out.

Is It Illegal to Eat While Driving in New Jersey?

After looking into this, eating while driving falls under the category of distracted driving, which could lead to some hefty fines.

Although, no, there is no specific law that bans you from eating while driving like there is for texting or drinking while driving, you still can be charged with a hefty fine when it comes to distracted driving, which is exactly what this is.

According to the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, the fines for distracted driving in New Jersey are $200 for a first offense, $400 for s second offense and the maximum fine is $600 and a 90-day suspension on your driver’s license.

So, the next time you go to eat that big breakfast sandwich before you get to work, maybe think twice. It’s not worth it and driving distracted is not only dangerous to yourself, but to other drivers around you.