The 10 Most Important Safe Driving Tips

1. Don’t Drive After Drinking

In the United States, alcohol-impaired driving is a factor in more than 30% of all fatal auto accidents. If the involved drivers hadn’t just gotten behind the wheel while intoxicated, the majority of the fatalities might have been prevented.

Alcohol creates a range of impairments that lead to car accidents. Intoxication decreases coordination, response time, and inhibitions even at low blood alcohol levels, which might lead drivers to make poor decisions. Alcohol can produce double or blurry vision at larger doses, as well as unconsciousness. Driving while intoxicated is illegal as well as a bad idea.

Driving drunk can be avoided with ease. If you’ve had a drink, ask a friend who is sober to take you or phone a cab.

2. Slow Down

Although moving quickly seems exciting, doing so could endanger your life.  Be patient and follow any posted speed limits. There is only one surefire method if you truly need to be there as quickly as possible: Leave sooner.

3. Avert Distractions

The United States has enacted legislation prohibiting the use of cell phones while driving in many states. The reason is the amount of fatalities linked to this ostensibly safe hobby, which some estimates put at 2,600 per year across the country. Due to the continuous surge in cell phone use while driving, those figures may potentially be too low. Additionally, using a cell phone while driving might cause reaction times to be up to 20% slower.

But distractions are not limited to smartphones. Eating, donning makeup, messing with electronics, or conversing with passengers are other potentially fatal distractions for drivers.

4. Don’t Drive While Tired

Though you might not think much of a few yawns, even a slight amount of drowsiness can raise your risk of being involved in an accident. Responses might range from briefly nodding off to completely “zoning out” and losing concentration on the road. At highway speeds, a few seconds of carelessness might spell disaster.

Get more restful sleep as the simple solution! Make sure you get a full eight hours of sleep every night, not just the night before lengthy travel. You can become sleep-deprived and find it difficult to concentrate if you don’t get enough sleep each night. If you feel the slightest bit sleepy while driving, stop right away. Don’t think you’ll be warned or that you can stop it from happening before you nod off. Unpredictably, people can go from being sleepy to being fully awake.

5. Wear a seatbelt, please.

Belts in cars save lives. According to NHTSA statistics, persons who weren’t wearing seat belts made up more than half of all crash fatalities. Young drivers and passengers should be especially concerned about the statistics, which show that a startling 70% of fatal crash fatalities between the ages of 13 and 15 weren’t using seat belts.

Everyone has heard terrifying tales about people who would have survived if they had been wearing a seat belt but perished in strange unexpected incidents. These tales are anomalies even if they are true—many of them are exaggerations or urban legends. If you’re wearing a seat belt, you have a better chance of surviving the vast majority of auto accidents.

6. In bad weather, exercise extra caution.

Be extra cautious when driving through fog, torrential rain, a snowstorm, or on icy roads. Use all the other advice offered here, so that you can: If necessary, reduce your speed to the posted limit. Leave extra room between you and the vehicle in front of you. If you can, assign driving duties to someone who is familiar with the weather if you must go through it. If the weather intensifies, just find a safe area to wait out the storm.

Turn off your lights if you accidentally or purposely veer off the road while driving in poor visibility caused by snow or fog. Drivers searching for other vehicles to follow on the highway when they can’t see the road. They’ll drive toward you when they see your lights and could not notice you aren’t moving in time to avoid a collision.

7. Avoid trailing too closely

Drivers are advised by safe driving recommendations to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of them. If that car suddenly turns or stops, drivers need ample time to respond. The majority of experts suggest using the “three-second rule” because it can be too challenging to gauge the required distances while driving and the precise distance would need to be adjusted for speed. Even seasoned drivers, though, should occasionally count off the three-second rule to make sure.

8. Beware of the Other Guy

It doesn’t always matter how carefully you drive. To put it another way, be ready for erratic lane changes, abrupt stops, swerving, tailgating, and any other unsafe driving practice you can think of. It’s likely that you’ll run into someone like them at some point, and it pays to be prepared for them.

Although it is hard to cover every scenario that another driver might engage in, there are a few typical ones. If a car has its turn signal on and is approaching you as you are backing out of a driveway into traffic, don’t assume it is actually turning.

9. Become a better defensive driver

If we simply consider the situation from the other side, it becomes rather clear how to apply this advice. Remember that one time when that guy abruptly cut you off, flew down the street, and nearly caused a major collision? Don’t act like that.

Although it can be difficult to quantify, aggressive driving raises the possibility of accidents. According to studies, young male drivers are more likely to drive violently. An aggressive driver goes beyond simply breaking the advice in this article; they may also actively annoy other motorists, start a fight, use crude language or gestures, tailgate or obstruct other vehicles, or flash their headlights out of annoyance. These actions are risky in addition to being bothersome.

In addition to the other suggestions listed here, such as keeping a safe distance and avoiding speeding, defensive driving also emphasizes remaining composed in the face of annoying traffic problems. Accept minor delays by not swerving into another lane in front of a slower vehicle. Even if you officially have the right of way, give way to other vehicles.

Not only is defensive driving safer, but it can also cost less. Drivers who finish defensive driving courses are often eligible for savings from insurance companies.

10. Keep your car secure

Vehicle maintenance is a critical safety problem as well as a vital strategy to extend the life of your car. State-mandated vehicle inspections address a number of maintenance issues. The mechanic who is inspecting your car will let you know what has to be fixed if it is unsafe. Car owners must be aware of any potential safety hazards and have them fixed before they cause an accident because it may be a year or more between inspections.

Inadequate tire pressure is one of the most frequent maintenance issues that might cause a collision. Particularly in high-performance cars or large, heavy vehicles like SUVs, uneven tire pressure or pressure that is excessively high or low can affect performance or result in a blowout. Any car parts store will sell a cheap pressure gauge that you may purchase to compare the pressure to the recommended level in your owner’s manual. Rotate your tires while you’re at it to encourage even wear and dependable performance.