Auto accidents can be minor or serious, and when they are serious, they can be an event that affects the rest of your life because of serious injury or the loss of a loved one. To recoup the costs of accident damage, you need to get an auto accident lawyer, record medical bills, and spend months or even years working toward a fair settlement.
Each year, about 800 Americans die in winter car accidents, and more are injured. Sometimes an accident cannot possibly be avoided, but you can reduce your risk this holiday season and throughout the winter months by following these safe driving tips.
1. Use a driving service on holidays where you aren't sure how much you might drink.
If you are heading to an office party or a family gathering without knowing what will be served, make sure you set a little money aside just in case you aren't fit to drive home. Don't take risks. If you have one or two drinks, you might feel fine, but it's safer just to call a service to call you home.
2. Leave earlier for work so you aren't rushing through poor road conditions.
Many people make the mistake of trying to keep to their summer commute time in the winter. In reality, it takes longer to drive on roads that are slippery or snow-covered. It also takes extra caution to work around other drivers who are also navigating trickier conditions. Plan on taking five or ten minutes more to make your daily commutes so you aren't tempted to speed or make quick maneuvers in order to get to your daily appointments on time.
3. Give yourself more space behind other vehicles on the road to increase your stopping distance.
Consciously allow yourself more space on the road. When following another car, give yourself a few extra seconds of stopping time instead of closing the gap between you and other cars. Road conditions can be unpredictable, and rear-ending accidents from not being able to stop in time are common in the winter months. Even when you stop at a stoplight, you should give yourself some more room. If you are rear-ended, slippery road conditions can make it easier for the car behind you to push you into the car ahead.
4. Stay off the road late at night if you can help it, especially on busier days.
Winter conditions are always tougher to navigate in the dark, but your risk of getting into a car accident is even worse on busy days that have late-night festivities. New Year's Eve, for example, means more nighttime traffic on the road, and there are increased instances of people who are driving while impaired. You don't want to become a victim of a drunk driving accident, so make plans to stay the night, end the evening earlier, or spend the night in a nearby hotel instead of spending time on the road.
If you have to take a road trip to see family, don't be tempted to drive through the night in tricky conditions. Stop at a hotel if driving gets tough, even if you did not budget for it. An injury and lawsuit can be much more financially stressful than one unplanned hotel stay.
5. Slow down.
Finally, remember to slow down. A lot of winter accidents are caused by motorists who drive too quickly, and they are not able to correct mistakes because they are going too fast. For example, you need to give yourself a lot of time to slow down before braking at an intersection because sliding through would put you in the path of oncoming traffic. You need to slow down when going around curves or when driving during a snowfall, as both reduce your visibility and traction on the road.
Share26 November 2018
After I was in a car accident, I wasn't sure what I was going to do in the future. I had some really significant back and neck pain, so I started talking with a lawyer about how to recover some of my losses. I began working with an attorney to take care of things, but I was nervous about how the process would unfold. I began working with the attorney to evaluate every component of the incident, and help me to decode the problems I was faced with. We worked on learning more about the lawsuit, and it helped me to make sense of the situation. Learn more about accidents on this blog.