Car Accidents And Tips To Avoid Them

Accidents are called accidents for a reason—and the yhappen.  When they do, whether it is through any fault of your own or not, you will find that you are suddenly in need of advice from a personal injury lawyer. Before it gets to that point, keeping safe driving practices in mind is vital, which can prove to go a long way to keeping you and your loved ones safe from a car accident.  There are several tips to help you to avoid car accidents, and we have listed them below.

Getting Rear-Ended

Involvements in rear-end collisions are a common occurrence.  Whether you are at fault, hitting the vehicle in front of you, or adriver who collides with a vehicle behind you, they all have the same characteristic – you can avoid them.

The primary method of preventing this type of accident is that you make sure to keep an well-maintained adequate distance between yourself and the vehicle in front of you, which will allow you the ability to stop safely.  The space is especially imperative during those times of inclement weather. The most commonly used rule of thumb is to maintain a distance of at least three seconds following behind the vehicle in front of you.  You will also need to drive both strategically and not allow yourself to become distracted.  If you are feeling drowsy, or are possibly under the influence, don't drive.  These conditions can lead to severe impairment of your driving ability.

Accidents Involving Single Vehicles

A single-vehicle accident is juat as it sounds.  The only vehicle involved is your own.  Typical forms of these types of accidents include collisions with wildlife, debris that may exist on the road, or even rollovers and accidents caused by dangerous driving conditions.  Even so, these types of accidents are not all that hard to prevent in the first place.

When incurring inclement weather, such as snow, rain, orice, it is best to slow down and drive at a speed that will ensure you can maintain control of your vehicle. You should also always keep a watchful eye on the area around you.  Even if you are the only vehicle on the road, it does not give license to texting on the phone or enjoying that messy hamburger while driving.  The road conditions can change in an instant, so stay alert.  Finally, over the last two decades, one-third of all known fatalities related to motor vehicles have been attributed to speed.  Even if there are no other visible vehicles around you, speeding is still dangerous—period!

Intersection Accidents

One of the other areas where accidents are known to frequently occur is at intersections.  In most cases, for whatever reason, a driver will become distracted and most commonly miss the changing of the traffic light from green, to yellow and then red.  Or, they may not notice that vehicles are coming onto the road into their line of path. To ensure the prevention of accidents from occurring in these types of situations, defensive driving techniques need to be put into play.  Take a few extra seconds after the changing of the traffic light to ensure that the path is clear.  Scan the area for any appearance of drivers that may be speeding or driving precariously. When approaching a light that has turned yellow, slow down and stop.  Do not speed up and attempt to get through it before it turns red.

Collisions When Backing Up

The best method for avoiding this particular form of accident, which can occur when you are possibly backing out of your driveway or a parking spot, is to avoid needing to back up. Whenever possible, and given a chance, attempt to park in a manner that will not have you having to back out into the path of any oncoming traffic. Suggestions include pulling into the parking spot in front of you or backing into a parking spot instead of parking head-in.  If neither of these two are options, you can also try:

-         Before entering your vehicle, take a full assessment of your surroundings

-         Use the most direct route available when backing out

-         Keep the vehicle in a straight line when backing until you are sure you are clear of any surrounding vehicles or possible obstructions

-         Back out slowly and continue to scan for any potential traffic around you

-         When backing out, do not have any possible distractions

Although various steps can be taken to avoid the above situations, the unexpected or unanticipated can and does happen.  But then again, that is why they are called accidents.

The Bryant Law Firm has helped thousands of injury victims in the Greater Houston Area and all across Texas.  Let David A. Bryant, Jr. help you get the appropriate medical treatment and compensation you deserve.

‍