4 Tips To Avoid Car Accidents in 2024

Car accidents are always part of everyday news. While you may hear such news every now and then, it doesn’t really cause much impact on your life until you experience it. Being involved in a car accident usually causes victim drivers to think of what possibly gone wrong. Most often than not, a loved one’s death caused by a car accident leads to self-blame.

Don’t let this tragic incident happen to you. You can prevent car accidents by practicing the safety tips below.

1. Undergo Formal Driver’s Training

Undergoing a formal driver’s training helps you hone your defensive driving skills. It’ll avoids deadly mistakes by increasing your road and traffic law awareness. In a formal driving lesson, you’ll better understand the different situations that can cause a car accident and things you need to do before it happens.

Also, you’ll learn the best course of action in case you got involved in a car accident in a formal driving course. Visit this website to find out how a car accident lawyer can help you after a road traffic accident.

Check the following tips when choosing a driving school:

• Check the Driving School’s Credentials: Determine the legitimacy and credentials of the driving school by securing proof of business operations, such as business permit and insurance.
• Check the Curriculum: Make sure that the driving school’s curriculum matches your state’s requirements.
• Check the Driving Instructor’s Qualifications: Find out if the driving instructor is qualified to give you top quality driving lessons. Only work with an approved driving instructor (ADI).

2. Wear Seatbelts Correctly

According to NHTSA statistics, about 40,000 car crash fatalities occur each year, making it the leading cause of mortality for people age 3 to 34 years old. Experts found out that in 2008, 45% of passengers died in car crashes during daytime hours, and 64% of passenger died during nighttime hours and the reason is that they weren’t wearing seatbelts.
Wearing seat belts can guard your body during a sudden stop. At a speed of 30 mph, a sudden halt is equivalent to hitting the wall four times harder than 15 mph or it’s like you fell from a three-story building. Without a properly worn seatbelt, the injuries will be more serious.
So, how should you wear a seatbelt properly? Here are some expert tips from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):

• Proper Seating Position: Sit with your back straight with your feet resting on the floor, and avoid slouching.
• Check Fit: Ensure that both straps are snugly fit to transfer the collision’s impact on the body parts that can sustain it, such as your shoulder bone and hipbones.
• Correct Placement: Don’t wear the seat belt on the shoulder strap because you’ll slide out from underneath and get strangled. Wearing a lap belt alone won’t prevent your face from hitting the steering wheel.
• Buckle Up: Wear the shoulder harness across your shoulder and chest. Adjust the lap belt, so it’s snug, lying below. Buckle lap belt as well when you have an automatic seat belt.

3. Practice Defensive Driving

Your best driving defense is awareness. Defensive driving techniques provide you with more options to pull out or move forward to avoid a speeding vehicle. Be mindful of the potential road hazards, overcome your fear, and observe other motorists’ behavior. In this way, you can take proactive actions to avoid a car accident.

Take a look at these defensive driving tips to keep you guided:

• Anticipate safety hazards by looking 15 seconds ahead, which will give you enough time to react.
• Always scan mirrors to ensure you’re fully aware of what’s going on around you.
• Be aware of potential hazards by looking beyond the vehicle in front of you. By doing so, you can take action before it’s too late.
• Provide drivers around you enough space and time by keeping a three-second gap when you’re following another vehicle.
• Don’t tailgate because it will lessen the space and time you need to react to a sudden change, increasing the likelihood of an accident.
• Signal early and minimize lane changes.
• The more road signs, street lights, and painted road markings you see, the more dangerous road can be.

4. Avoid Distracted Driving

Distracted driving involves activities that lose your focus on the road. Texting is banned in 48 states for all drivers due to the high car incident rates involving texting while driving, especially among teenagers, with 38,215 fatal vehicle crashes involving teen drivers and passengers between 2007 to 2017.

Avoid doing the following activities to avoid car accidents:

• Text messaging while driving
• Answering phone calls while driving
• Eating or drinking while driving
• Tuning car stereo settings
• Looking away from the road because you’re talking with a passenger
• Kissing or hugging while driving

Conclusion

You can avoid car accidents by undergoing formal driving lessons especially if you’re a novice driver. Make sure that you and your passengers are wearing seatbelts correctly and you should avoid any form of distraction while driving. Practice defensive driving by being aware of potential hazards ahead of you and be aware and careful in following road signs. Give your car enough space and time from other vehicles following the tips shared above.