Are you recklessly driving?
Almost all experienced drivers all believe that they are good drivers. When someone goes years without ever getting into an accident, it is easy for them to think that they are good drivers. After so much time, even the best drivers can pick up bad habits. Have you picked up a habit that makes you a reckless driver?
Reckless or negligent behavior can quickly turn into a fatal accident. If you can recognize bad habits, you will be able to stop them and reduce the chances of causing an accident. Here are some everyday bad habits that you can keep from doing:
Not using turn signals
Turn signals are how we communicate with other drivers. When drivers choose not to use these signals, they have no way of alerting other drivers of their intentions. This can turn changing lanes or slowing to turn into a deadly accident.
Speeding
You may be confident in your ability to speed through traffic, but others may not be. Even if you can weave through traffic flawlessly, other drivers may not expect you to approach them so fast, and they may move into your path. An unaware driver pulling in front of a speeding vehicle means neither driver can react and avoid the collision.
Multitasking
Fixing your appearance, eating, or drinking requires a driver to use at least one hand, and take their eyes off the road for a minimum of several seconds. A few seconds of not looking at the road on the highway can compare to driving blindfolded for hundreds of yards. Reducing the number of hands a driver has on the wheel also limits a driver’s ability to react to a possible accident.
Using your cell phone
Cell phones are especially dangerous on the road. The focus a driver has to give to their phone should be used for their driving instead. Having conversations, texting, and driving, and adding a new address to a GPS can all take enough focus from even the most experienced drivers to cause an accident.
Focus on driving
The more distractions you allow yourself to experience while driving, the more likely you will experience a catastrophic car accident. Other issues can wait while you are driving. If you need to deal with a matter, do not become a reckless driver and pull over to handle one thing at a time.