Many Canadians are guilty of using phones behind the wheel of a car. Whether it's glancing down at a notification, or taking a hand off the wheel to send a text message, distracted driving can cause fatal collisions in seconds. Until victims remind us of the consequences of these thoughtless actions, it's easy to minimize the dangers of distracted driving.

Kyle MacDonald of Bowmanville, Ont., was the victim of a life-altering car crash when he was hit head-on by a distracted driver. MacDonald discussed his collision and the need for driver accountability with new Checkup host Duncan McCue.

I was walking and the person that struck me was trying to make a left-hand turn. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, he was distracted in some way and hit me head-on. I'm still in a recovery process. I'm in constant pain daily. It's really turned my life upside down, and I cannot always try to put a positive note to it, unlike the people who lose their lives to these things every year. Their families will never be the same, and they can't turn back time and get their child back.

I want people to understand that it only takes a second for things to change. That text message that you want to send, or checking that little ding from your Facebook notification? It can wait. You're looking down. It just takes two seconds for an accident or collision to happen. And once that accident happens you can't take it back. There's such a fine line between being able to text something and an accident that you can't change. You can't turn back time.

I wish people would understand the importance of paying attention. In our society we think we're invincible in a car. We feel like just because we get inside of these machines that we're instantly safe. But we have the job as drivers to pay attention, both for our own safety and for others, and that includes pedestrians and everyone around us on the road. We really have to take the time to pay attention.