Nathan Wood is a funeral director in Owen Sound, Ont. In the course of his work, he sees the outcome of distracted driving on a regular basis. Wood said, "I see people probably two to three, maybe four times a month in single vehicle accidents, where people have died."

While Wood doesn't know with certainty that these people died as a result of distracted driving, the frequency with which he sees drivers looking down at their phones, leads him to make the connection. He said, "I often drive from Owen Sound to Flesherton, where the crematorium is, and on my way, I can see people coming from the opposite direction, swerving back and forth almost like they've been drinking."

These experiences have led Wood to confront drivers when he sees them using their phones.

He spoke with Checkup host Duncan McCue about this. You can listen to the interview below, or scroll down and read a transcript. And let us know what you think: how do you engage with distracted drivers?

Nathan Wood: I think that it should be a criminal offence if you're caught driving while distracted, especially by your cellphone.

Duncan McCue: Why?

NW: Well, I'm a funeral director and I see people probably two to three, maybe four times a month in single vehicle accidents, where people have died. And those are the accidents you don't hear about on the radio or in the newspaper. You don't hear about the causes of those collisions, like you hear for a head-on collision with a motorcyclist or a tractor or something like that. But when it's a single vehicle accident and somebody dies, it doesn't show up in the papers.

I think that, as people get in their vehicles, they don't believe that they can die; they feel safe.

I often drive from Owen Sound to Flesherton, where the crematorium is, and on my way, I can see people coming from the opposite direction, swerving back and forth almost like they've been drinking. And then as they pass by, often they're looking down. I don't know if they're looking at their cellphones, or if they're eating a sandwich or whatever. In any case, they're not looking up at the road. So people need to realize that your vehicle—just because it feels safe, it doesn't mean that you're not going to die in there.

And it just has to be somehow enforced. I don't know how you could ever do it, because as soon as you're not distracted, you are sober again. I don't know how the police could ever catch it.

DM: Nathan, you're in a fairly unique position in the sense that you're seeing some of the impacts [of distracted driving]: families in mourning. What kind of discussions do they have when the death has been the result of a car accident, and perhaps distracted driving?

NW: Well, I'm not sure that a lot of them even know what the cause is. I don't know what the legal issues are when releasing information about the cause of a car accident. I don't know, from the police's perspective, whether they're able to say that the cellphone was on, or the person was texting 10 seconds before the car went into the ditch.

So I don't know that they ever know but I mean obviously it's just devastation because it's unexpected. And generally, the person is on the younger side. So [the family] shouldn't be worrying about having to bury their children or their spouse. It's utter devastation and they just have no reason, right? The retired police officer [who was on the program earlier] said it's just pointless to tell your friends you're on your way or whatever, or the need to check your phone. It's not that important.

Yesterday, as a matter of fact, I was walking across the street downtown in Owen Sound and somebody was coming towards me. I could tell that they weren't paying attention. I went from one side of the road to the other side of their lane. And as they went past, I could look into her window and saw that she was texting on her phone. And I said to her, "Get off your phone." And she told me to mind my own business. I'm standing there thinking, "Well, that kind of is my business because my life is in your hands right now and you're not even looking at me."

DM: Hashtag: #MakeItAwkward

NW: I probably shouldn't have said anything. I don't know it just overwhelms me. I just think, "This person doesn't care about my existence at all. They're going to run me over and they won't even think twice about it until it happens and then they'll be sorry but it's too late for me."