Avoiding an Accident, or Minimizing the Damage
No matter how excellent a driver you are, there is always the possibility of getting into an accident. If you’re lucky enough to not be hurt, there are still some consequences to an accident. If you are held at fault, for example, your car insurance rates are probably going to go up a bit. You may lose your driver’s license for a bit, or you might not have enough car insurance coverage to take care of all the costs, and wind up paying for it out of pocket.
And this kind of thing happens to even the best drivers. Sometimes, you can follow all the rules, and still be at fault over a technicality or a misunderstanding or a minor mistake.
But besides all of that, the bottom line is this: Accidents suck. People get hurt in accidents, cars can be totalled in accidents, and even a minor accident can be a pretty traumatic experience.
Avoid accidents at all costs.
There are some things you should know to help avoid accidents and minimize damage in the event of an accident.
If you get knocked around the road and you go spinning, slam on the brakes and turn out of the spin. Again, this seems like common sense, but it can be confusing when it happens, so know what to do beforehand.
A healthy car is much less likely to stall or give out in an emergency. A well maintained car isn’t guaranteed to never get in an accident, but a healthy car can be a lot more responsive to the driver, putting more control in your hands, and less in the hands of random chance.
Let’s say you’re coming from the north to an intersection that only has stop signs for the east and west bound drivers. You can drive straight through, legally, but don’t just assume that every driver out there is going to stop for every stop sign. Yes, certainly, they should, but so many don’t. Be cautious and keep your eyes peeled when you go through any intersection.
Any time you have the right of way at a four way stop or a traffic light, don’t assume that the other drivers KNOW you have the right of way. Sadly, the real rule of the road is “Whoever drives out into the intersection like a moron when it’s not their turn gets to go first”, because people who are sensible enough to follow the rules of the road don’t want to get killed.
In life, it’s optimistic to assume that people are basically good at heart, but on the road, you have to be prepared for the possibility that everyone but you is crazy. Don’t assume that everyone out there is going to abide by the rules. Plenty of dummies love turning left on red lights, or just ignoring traffic lights altogether, plenty of ding dongs out there love driving drunk with their eyes closed while hollering “Yee-haw!” out the window. MOST drivers aren’t crazy, but some are, and you’ll never spot the crazy ones until they do something dangerous. Make sure they don’t do anything dangerous to you.