Do you remember when you first started driving? Your hands would sweat as you grasped the steering wheel the first time. You hesitated at every stop sign, and you parked a mile away from the entrance to the mall so you could find an open section of the parking lot.
Through the years, you have become more comfortable. Perhaps this isn’t a good thing. Maybe fewer accidents would happen if more people on the roads still had sweaty hands when driving.
Have you become too complacent when operating a motor vehicle? Here are some reminders of how to drive to avoid having an accident.
Don’t look at your phone.
You know how dangerous it is to look at your cell phone while driving. Thanks to public service announcements, we know that some area police officers will ticket drivers who are driving while holding a phone.
Astoundingly, you don’t have to spend very much time on a busy highway before you see a driver flying along at 70 miles per hour while texting.
Quit looking at your phones while driving, America! The National Safety Council has named “distracted driving” as one of the top three reasons for fatality crashes. Not texting and driving is one obvious way to avoid having a car crash.
Watch for other drivers at intersections.
Just because the light is green doesn’t mean that it is safe to drive through an intersection. As you prepare to cross, take a quick glance at approaching drivers from either side to make sure they are preparing to stop.
Will this pause cause the drivers behind you to lay on the horn? If they do, who cares? That split-second pause may be the difference between having an accident or not having one.
Don’t speed.
Previously, we mentioned that distractive driving has been named as one of the major causes of accidents in the United States. One of the other top three causes of accidents is speeding.
Know the speed limit on the roads and highways where you are driving. Use your common sense when the conditions are not appropriate for driving the speed limit. Just because you can drive 70-miles-an-hour doesn’t mean that you always should.
If it is raining, foggy, or snowing, slow down. If you are driving in an area known for having animals cross the roads, slow down. If you see gridlock ahead, slow down.
Don’t drive while impaired.
Don’t drink and then drive. Don’t drink when you are high.
According to the National Safety Council, many accidents in the U.S. could have been avoided if the drivers causing those accidents would have waited until they were sober to get behind the wheel.
If you know you are going to be drinking, take an Uber or a Lyft. The apps make it easier than ever before to get home safely.
If you have been injured from an auto accident caused by one of these four reasons, do yourself a favor and call the best accident lawyer in your community. You shouldn’t suffer a loss of income or have to pay for high medical bills because of another driver’s poor decisions.
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