Some people who are injured in car crashes in Hollywood and Florida are injured through no fault of their own. Even if you are a very careful driver, other motorists may make poor decisions which cause serious injuries for you and your passengers. However, you are not totally without control. There are ways you can stay in the driver’s seat and at least reduce your risk of a car crash:
Driving is one of the most dangerous things you do every day. Each year, many Hollywood passengers and motorists are seriously injured in car collisions. While there are many reasons for car crashes, distraction remains a key cause of many collisions. Unfortunately, it is difficult to accurately tell how many collisions are impacted by distracted motorists, since there are no tests to determine distraction.
Why Does Distracted Driving Happen?
One of the challenges of distraction is that it can be difficult to notice, even for a practiced driver. Distraction which is dangerous on the roads can occur for many reasons and in various ways:
Fog affects your ability to see and can make it harder for other drivers to see you. Each year, fog causes car collisions in South Florida, including in Hialeah and other communities. While you cannot control the weather, there are several things you can do to reduce the risk of being in a crash in these types of conditions:4
If you’re heading to an amusement park in Miami or to any big festival or event anywhere in southern Florida, you may be at a higher risk of car accidents. The heavy traffic to and from the event as well as chaotic parking can conspire to create a higher-than-average crash risk.
Luckily, there are things you can do to reduce your risk:
Aggressive driving in Hollywood and South Florida is a major problem. Aggressive driving can be as dangerous on our roads as drunk driving. Angry drivers can be so enraged that they may act in reckless or dangerous ways. They may cut others off, shout, speed, or weave in and out of lanes. All of this can cause an accident.
Aggressive drivers are also distracted drivers. They may be so focused on their anger and on the drivers who are the target of their anger that they may be taking their eyes off the road. Certainly, their minds are not on safe driving. They may make mistakes or fail to react to situations correctly, potentially causing an accident.
Elderly drivers have some habits that can help them avoid injury and car accidents. According to statistics, older drivers have more experience behind the wheel and are less likely to drink and drive than many younger drivers. In addition, senior drivers are statistically more likely to obey the speed limit and wear their seat belts.
Unfortunately, senior drivers do face some challenges when driving. They can have a higher risk of car accidents when compared with other age groups. They are also more likely to be seriously or fatally injured in a car accident. Age-related conditions such as osteoporosis can mean more fractures and more serious fractures while other medical conditions can complicate car accident injuries.
When you first got your license, you probably took driver’s education classes. If it was some time ago, you may not have needed to go through the graduated licensing process and you may only have gotten a few hours of instruction. Even if you received your license more recently, you likely only had about 10 hours of in-car instruction with a professional.
Luckily, you aren’t limited to driver’s education classes. There are in fact many types of courses you can take to improve your driving skills and become a safer motorist.
It can happen anywhere and at any time, even if your car is in good condition. One minute you’re driving along and the next minute your car is making a strange noise, grinding, or is coming to a complete stop. When this happens, your priority is to avoid a secondary car accident in Homestead or your location while also protecting your personal safety.
Here’s how you can do that:
Your children are learning all sorts of useful things in school, but as a parent you are still your children’s most important teacher. One important thing you can teach your child is how to navigate traffic safely. Unfortunately, pedestrian accidents in Hollywood, Miami, and the rest of Southern Florida are an especially big risk for children. Children may act impulsively, may be harder to spot, and may not have the skills needed to cross streets safely.
As a parent, there are several things you can do to help your children:
No parent wants their teen driver to stress behind the wheel and many of us see stress as a type of distraction. In fact, some safety experts argue that driving when we’re very upset is tantamount to driving distracted in Homestead or our communities. A new study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, however, suggests that some stress could reduce the risk of car accidents for teen drivers.
According to the researchers at the University of Sherbrooke, teens with responsive stress systems may have a lower risk of car accidents. The study examined 42 teen drivers in Virginia to test their stress levels and their rate of crashes during their first 18 months of driving. Researchers found that teens who had higher levels of cortisol (a stress hormone) when stressed had fewer near-misses and collisions during the study than teens with less intense responses to stress. The study’s authors concluded that differences in biology could have an impact on how teens respond to problems and hazards in driving scenarios.
Car accidents in Homestead and other communities continue to be a leading cause of death and injury for teens. Can this newest study offer some insight that could help prevent traffic fatalities in Homestead and other communities? On the surface, of course, there is very little that can be done about a driver’s stress response. On the other hand, knowing that there are biological markers that affect driving ability could be useful. Parents who have teens who tend to stay anxious behind the wheel or teens who tend not to stay cool under pressure may be able to see from this study that this personality trait could affect driving ability.
For parents who want to help their teens avoid car and truck collisions in Homestead or their community, there are a few things that can be done:
•Get additional driving instruction for your teen. One-on-one driving instruction, racing classes, and additional classes can help new drivers develop skills and can also teach them to stay calmer in high-risk situations, which can lower their risk of accidents.
•Set rules about safe driving. Make it clear to your new driver that distracted driving or drunk driving are not allowed. Do not allow your teen to use cell phones behind the wheel – even hands-free devices – and make sure that your teen knows to call home for a ride rather than driving drunk.
•Emphasize defensive driving. Researchers in the most recent study concluded that driving ability and learning to drive are affected by biological markers, but getting your child into defensive driving classes can help your new driver learn how to prevent accidents, which can lower their risk overall.
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