How can I minimize my chances of getting in a car accident?

September 14, 2009 12:01 AM

How can I minimize my chances of getting in a car accident?

I haven't gotten in any traffic accidents in my year of driving, but I am concerned because I can be a bit of an absent-minded driver. Today I cut off a car while switching lanes because I forgot to check my blind spot. I had my mind on spotting the right cross street and just forgot.

Another issue is that before I learned to drive I never paid attention to the rules of the road, so I still haven't developed the intuition most drivers have.

My first measure has been to minimize the actual amount of driving I have to do. Additionally, I eliminate all distractions when I drive (including the radio), avoid driving others, and never drive when I'm tired. After today's close call I bought convex side view mirrors to cover my blind spots. What other things can I do to minimize my chance of getting in a car accident?

posted by wireless to travel & transportation (46 answers total)

Go and book a block of driving lessons with a competent driving instructor. Then practice what they tell you to practice until they stop telling you to practice things.
posted by flabdablet at 12:05 AM on September 14, 2009 [6 favorites]

I'd have to say that reducing the amount of driving you do probably doesn't help.

Also, perhaps ride as a passenger with someone who's more confident than you and watch what they do.

And it's somewhat impractical, but I think riding a motorbike has made me a much more attentive driver. When riding a bike I am constantly checking my mirrors, and watching at least three cars ahead of me. I am aware of not only my blind spot, but also those of the drivers around me.
posted by sycophant at 12:12 AM on September 14, 2009

"Student Driver" bumper sticker. People will keep their distance from you.
posted by No New Diamonds Please at 12:16 AM on September 14, 2009 [3 favorites]

I think you're statistically more likely to get into an accident close to home because, well, that's where you typically do most of your driving. So if you tend to get bored taking the same routes all the time then switch things up to stay frosty.

When I drive I just assume that that everyone else driving has their head up their ass while they are texting, fiddling with the radio, talking on the phone or doing all three at once. This makes me cautious – but not paralyzed.

If you spend your whole time worrying about getting into an accident then you're taking your eye off the ball, which in turn makes you more susceptible to an accident. Be a safe and conscientious driver. That's all you can do.
posted by quadog at 12:22 AM on September 14, 2009

The primary thing you need to do is develop situational awareness. Ideally, while you're driving, you're doing these things every few seconds: glancing at your speedometer, checking your rear-view and side-view mirrors, observing traffic conditions ahead and considering how they'll impact your actions in the coming seconds or minutes. Initially, you may have to make this a very conscious process — force yourself to take these actions frequently to become aware of the traffic conditions around you. Ideally it eventually becomes automatic, where you don't even realize you're doing it.

Situational awareness means being aware of what all the vehicles, pedestrians, signals, etc. are doing around you at all times, not just when you want to make a turn or a lane change. Sometimes things present themselves so quickly that you'll need to take emergency actions, often with time for conscious thought. Having good situational awareness will help you take the right action, because you'll already know there's a car in your blind spot on your right, and you won't swerve into it.

If you only take the time to check around you when you plan to make lane changes, there's the chance you'll forget every now and then. On the other hand, if you practice being constantly aware of your surrounding environment, you're less likely to cut people off (or worse).
posted by knave at 12:22 AM on September 14, 2009 [8 favorites]

...often without time for conscious thought...
posted by knave at 12:23 AM on September 14, 2009

Like knave said, situational awareness. I think this might be a good place to start. A lot of it is basic common sense, but you might pick up some nuggets in there. I'd say if you want to go the extra mile, schedule a few minutes of extra time before a drive so you're never in a hurry (added benefit: you're watching for other drivers instead of for cops), and if you can, have a small cup of coffee for alertness.

It's been 25 years and I've never been in a wreck, knock on wood. But all of my close calls were either from allowing myself to being in a hurry or not paying enough attention, all of them solvable problems.
posted by crapmatic at 12:24 AM on September 14, 2009

Seconding what sycophant said. Even if you don't intend to ride a motorcycle, the instruction involved in a basic motorcycle course should definitely make you more more aware of your surroundings.

Changes the perspective a bit once it sinks in that you're invisible, to some/most drivers anyway. You have to keep aware of your surroundings if you want to stay alive when riding. That transfers over to when driving a car, being aware of what's around you...
posted by hungrysquirrels at 12:25 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

P.S. Point your side mirrors toward your blind spots. That's kind of a pet peeve of mine when people set all the mirrors straight backward, so you see the exact same thing in each mirror. Three mirrors gives you better coverage around your car and gives you better situational awareness.
posted by crapmatic at 12:27 AM on September 14, 2009

After today's close call I bought convex side view mirrors to cover my blind spots.

This is very wrong unless you're driving an RV.

First off, you need to arrange your mirrors correctly. Contrary to everyone's assumption, you should NOT be able to see the side of your car in them -- they should be pointing to give you a good view of your blind spot.

The coverage of the area behind you, assuming a car from behind is overtaking you:

1) you see the car coming up in your rearview mirror
2) as it transitions from your rearview mirror it should start to appear in your side mirror
3) as it leaves your side mirror you should begin to see it in your peripheral vision

When driving, you should always be aware of what the cars behind you are doing, by monitoring them in the rearview mirror. Then when lane-changing, check the rear for any cars coming up from behind too fast, and then physically turn your head to check the blind spot is clear, too, then return to normal driving and make sure you don't hit any other cars on the road.

There's no substitute for space, too. Keep plenty of space ahead of you. Stay out of others' blindspots -- when passing, speed up a bit to get by them quicker.
posted by Palamedes at 12:29 AM on September 14, 2009 [2 favorites]

I asked a question about driving for my sister, and several people said to try taking lessons at a racing school — "it really does help you to know your car and limits well".
posted by dreamyshade at 12:29 AM on September 14, 2009

Here's a pdf illustrating the mirror setup Palamedes describes.
posted by contraption at 12:50 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

I'd have to say that reducing the amount of driving you do probably doesn't help.

What? That's insane. Of course reducing the amount of driving done would reduce the chances of having an accident. Accident rates are always given in accidents per mile driven, and reducing the mileage per time would reduce the probability of an accident in that amount of time.
posted by delmoi at 1:09 AM on September 14, 2009

Since my car accident in May (for which I have 3 witnesses - one being a cop - who say it wasn't my fault - a kid with no license pulled out in front of me while I was on the highway), I have seen more stupidity on the road than I ever would have noticed before, because I am more alert than I was before. You're doing the right thing by eliminating distractions. A lot of people who make stupid, unpredictable moves - I see them with cell phones in hand.

NEVER assume you know what the other driver's going to do. If you're waiting to pull out onto a road at an intersection and the person coming towards you has their signal on, don't assume they're going to turn - wait and make sure. The signal might be on because they forgot. Don't assume people are going to stop at a red light or stop sign either. Make it a habit to check over your shoulder before you change lanes. Habits are hard to break.

Never forget to put your seat belt on, and make sure your passengers are wearing theirs too, even if they're the sort that say it's their right to decide to wear it or not (I have a cousin like that). My best friend was in the passenger seat in my accident and wearing her seat belt and her airbag went off, but she was still injured a lot more than I was. It was hard enough seeing her with the injuries she had. (Since you're already nervous, I'll spare you the details.) I could not imagine my conscience or the emotional trauma I would endure if she had been more severely injured or died, because I had not made her wear a seat belt. Simply make it a rule - your car doesn't move until everyone in it is wearing a seat belt, if not for their own health, then for your mental health should you be in a wreck.

I just found and read Uncle Bob's 70 rules for defensive driving. A lot of them are saying the same thing in different ways, but it's got some wise advice.

One thing I learned after my accident... my doctor encouraged me to get out there and drive no matter how scared I was. You have to jump back up on that horse. It's been 4 months for me and I am finally starting to relax a little behind the wheel, although I still have my jumpy moments. Heck, sometimes I even have trouble riding in a car. Please don't avoid driving, or avoid driving others around... don't let that fear take you over. My best friend still rides with me all the time, even after being in that accident with me, because she says I'm the safest driver she knows. Letting fear limit your life is not the way to go. If you're really scared, get therapy. I am... yes, I am getting therapy to help with the fear when I drive.
posted by IndigoRain at 1:18 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

delmoi: "What? That's insane. Of course reducing the amount of driving done would reduce the chances of having an accident. Accident rates are always given in accidents per mile driven, and reducing the mileage per time would reduce the probability of an accident in that amount of time."

I should have previewed.

Probability doesn't help you when you're the one in the accident. Maybe a person who commutes 100 miles a day is at a higher risk of an accident than one who goes only 10 miles. But my accident was less than a quarter mile from my friend's home, and furthermore "they" do say that most accidents happen close to home.

Besides, that's why student drivers spend time on the roads... to practice. Practice may not ever make perfect, since we all make mistakes as drivers, but it can make you better at judging situations. Who would you rather be next to on the road when it's snowing unexpectedly - a first-time snow driver, or someone with experience controlling their car in the snow?

In any event, avoiding driving is only going to compound the problem with increasing fear, as I said in my previous post.
posted by IndigoRain at 1:25 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

I disagree delmoi. Not driving = not practicing driving. I would think that a person who only drives on rare occasions would likely be thinking more about the mechanics of what they're doing and less about what's going on around them, at least, that's how I was when I was learning to drive.

Avoiding driving is certain to reduce the likelihood of having a car accident when the poster isn't actually in a car, but it is not a good technique for becoming a safer driver.

The big thing I would suggest is one you're already doing. Get enough sleep. The second is to give yourself extra time to get places, so if you miss an exit or turn down the wrong street, you know that you don't have to panic. You've got plenty of time.
posted by paperzach at 1:30 AM on September 14, 2009

Get more practice driving, when it's light, the weather's fine and you're on good form. Get someone more observant than you to sit next to you, and discuss with them the things that happen. Concentrate on anticipating problems WAY in advance: if you know two miles earlier that you will need to change lanes, you can take your time finding the safest spot to do it and being sure you're aware of what's around you.

When you're a passenger with someone with more driving experience, ask them to narrate the things they are thinking about while driving. What's that guy doing in that side road there, is he about to pull out? Has he seen me? What about this person just getting into their car up there? This person ahead is tailgating badly, let's give him a really wide berth and get ahead of him. There are some traffic lights up there, let's check who's right behind us and make sure we're at a speed where we can stop safely. And so on.

As you get more practice thinking like this, it will start to sink in and you'll naturally be more aware of the things around you.
posted by emilyw at 1:52 AM on September 14, 2009

For me the biggest single thing that impacts the quality of my driving is distractions within the car. People (especially me) are really not that good at multi-tasking, despite what we tell ourselves. I've noticed that the few times I've made bad judgements while driving have been when I'm in a conversation with someone else in the car. So I'd suggest that if you're driving with someone else, make sure you're both quiet most of the time.

Another lesson I learned from my driving instructor, Zen Ken, was to avoid driving side-by-side with any other cars when there are multiple lanes. His theory is that keeping distance between you and other cars is just as important at the sides as it is in front and behind. And he was right. Last year someone swerved out of their lane into mine while we were both doing at least 80mph; if I hadn't positioned myself so that I had somewhere to go on the other side I don't like to think what might have happened.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 2:20 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

Signal turns and lane changes well before the maneuver to alert anyone on the road or off. Every time, no excuses. Having started switching lanes, do it purposefully. On highways, make sure no one is trying to do the same thing from two lanes over.

Leave enough space between you and the car in front so you won't smash into it if it brakes hard. In addition to braking distance, keep in mind how far your car will travel in the several hundred milliseconds it will take you to react.

On a similar note, if a car is tailgating you on the highway, you'll be the one smashed into if you have to brake hard from a high speed. My strategy is to ease off the gas for a bit to maintain a safer time-separation, then speed away when you've freed up space ahead. Repeat as necessary. Usually they get it and back off or give up and pass you.

When coming up on a highway interchange, pre-emptively move away from the lane cars will be entering.

Keep your windows clean and consider using Rain-X or the like to prevent fogging. Especially relevant when driving at night and in the rain.

When driving on two-lane roads at night with a car approaching, avert your gaze to the shoulder dividing line to avoid being temporarily blinded.

Not all vehicles are standard size. Watch for motorcycles and bicycles.
posted by parudox at 3:19 AM on September 14, 2009

You need to drive more, not less, in order to become comfortable behind the wheel. Until you are comfortable you are correct in that you need to minimize distractions. But certainly don't stop driving. As others have recommended going to a driving school for lessons may be helpful, especially if you've never had them before. And, as always, when driving there are certain things you can always do to be more safe--keep a good distance between yourself and the vehicle in front of you, no speeding (or driving too slow), and always wear your seatbelt.

Also, this statement jumped out at me: "Another issue is that before I learned to drive I never paid attention to the rules of the road, so I still haven't developed the intuition most drivers have." This intuition something people are born with or develop as passengers. This is something that you develop as you learn how to drive. I can confidently say that as someone that has only been for two to three years, that I had no such intuition when I began driving. Sure, I knew to use turning signals, to stop at stop signs, and that red means stop and green means go but other than that I had no idea how driving worked. I didn't know who went first at stop signs or what you did at the color yellow or anything else that comfortable drivers would know. Now, after driving for over a year I am certainly much much more comfortable behind the wheel, though I still ask people if I can drive with them for the practice.

Finally, something that really helped me was switching from driving an automatic to a manual. I don't know what kind of vehicle you are driving, but it seems to be that you HAVE to pay a lot more attention when driving a manual (or at least I had to, when I first learned how to drive one) otherwise, your car will stall out! If you know how to drive, and just need to develop your driving skills this might be a good thing to try out, if you are able to.
posted by lucy.jakobs at 3:31 AM on September 14, 2009

I recently read in "Traffic" by Tom Vanderbilt something to the effect that one of the leading causes of accidents is drivers distracted by looking at other accidents.
Just pay attention. Driving is a task that is best done by itself.
The main safety tactic that I use while driving is to make sure that there's adequate room around my car. I never drive right next to someone or right behind another car. I always assume that other people are completely distracted and will either stop suddenly or change lanes without looking. So, if the lane next to me is clear, that means nobody's going to merge into the side of my car without looking. If I'm not following too closely, I won't rear-end the driver in front of me. Keeping that clear space also ensure that I have room to maneuver in an emergency.
posted by Jon-o at 4:38 AM on September 14, 2009

What other things can I do to minimize my chance of getting in a car accident?

Anecdotally, around half of the accidents I hear of from my friends and family are in parking lots. In situations like that you only have to worry about low speed fender-bender type accidents, but you can still do a surprising amount of damage to a car in minor accidents. My two suggestions for that are to leave a space between you and the next car, and park head first so that you don't have to back up when you leave. You will end up missing out on better parking spaces if you do those things, but you'll be avoiding some of the more common types of accidents, such as getting clipped by a passing car when you back out of your space.
posted by burnmp3s at 5:15 AM on September 14, 2009

Driving is like juggling, in case you've ever tried that. If you focus you attention on any one ball, you'll drop the other two. Doing it well means looking through the pattern of things moving around you so that you can react as necessary; don't burden yourself with a constant internal dialogue of "okay, first I have to do X. Oh, Y is happening so I have to... oh I forget, what was I supposed to do now?"

By all means, prepare and think strategically. Keep the car and yourself in good repair. Avoid rush hour whenever possible. But the checklists should be complete before you turn the key. When you're driving, just drive.
posted by jon1270 at 5:24 AM on September 14, 2009

Even if you can't get to a racing school, defensive driving is offered almost everywhere. It's not just for people trying to get out of tickets -- it's for exactly the kind of situation you're asking about.
posted by katemonster at 5:54 AM on September 14, 2009

Based on the rating factors from insurance companies (mostly Progressive) and statistics in the newspaper, to minimize your chances of an accident:

Minimize driving, especially late at night (i.e., between midnight and 4 am) or in adverse weather conditions.
Stick to the same routes and familiar situations as much as possible.
(Obviously, if you are in a situation where you still need driving practice, those two tips may be counterproductive in certain circumstances.)
Take a defensive driving class.
Don't use a cell phone while driving.
Drive with an alert passenger who knows the rules of the road in the front seat.
Keep an adequate following distance.
posted by phoenixy at 5:57 AM on September 14, 2009

My favourite tip for safe driving: Look both ways before you cross an intersection. Last three accidents I saw (and was not otherwise involved in) were people assuming that just because the light was green, it was safe to proceed. They were wrong.
posted by sfenders at 6:15 AM on September 14, 2009

Every once in a while, to re-boot my driving habits when I'm getting complacent, I drink too much caffeine, bug my eyes out like Jack Nicholson in the Shining, turn the heat all the way up (summer) or a/c on (winter) so I'm uncomfortable, and do my commute like that. Keep a completely paranoid mindset.

When I do that, I notice myself drinving mych better for a month or two afterwards.
posted by notsnot at 6:37 AM on September 14, 2009

The real answer is indeed to drive more, and consiously develop the right habits. If you actively do all the right steps for driving, they will quickly become ingrained and you won't even think of them.

convex mirrors- there is nothing wrong with them, I don't know why they would only be beneficial on an RV. I have them on my car, and they work fine. They have added to my safety as a driver. The way I have it set up is that the rear view mirror is for seeing who is behind me. The left and right side view mirrors are for seeing who is behind me in the lanes next to me. The convex mirrors are for the blind spots. It takes about 5 minutes to learn how to use them. In my car, it was easy (as I'm sure it is in any other car). It turns out that if I can see anything in them, then it is not safe to change lanes. As a car approaches me from the side, I can see it in the regular side view mirror, and it is nothing but a tiny spec in the convex. As it disappears from the regular mirror, it becomes visible in the convex. And as it continues forward and disappears from the convex, I can see it next to me.

Why is this safer? Because I don't have to move my head around as much. In the time it takes to check a blind spot the old fashioned way, something could happen in front of the car. By using mirrors instead of head turns, your eyes remain closer to the road ahead.

In your situation, the mistake was in not planning ahead. You should have been in the correct lane to make your turn long before you ever thought of actually making the turn. Safe driving is about reducing the amount of times you have to do more than one thing at once. You didn't plan ahead, and got stuck trying to make a lane change while also trying to find an intersection. Always have your next "move" ready to go- you know that you will have to make a turn soon, get in the right lane in plenty of time.

It helps to block out a "flight plan" for yourself ahead of time to get an idea of how to make the trip a series of discrete maneuvers. Get out a map and get an idea of what you are doing. And, plan your route so that you don't have to make difficult maneuvers- if you have to make a difficult left turn or merge, you may well save time going another way, and be safer in the process.

And the other thing is to not panic. You probably got into the situation where you got a little paniced because you were worried about missing your turn. That caused you to lose awareness of what's going on now. If you miss a turn, so what? Go around the block. You'll know exactly where to turn next time.

(Also, learn to read addresses. Know, in a general sort of way, what the number for the street you need to use should be. As addresses start approaching that number, that's when you should
posted by gjc at 7:09 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

There's a lot of good tips in here, especially the ones to do with defensive driving. The only thing I'd add is to always have an exit strategy. Know where the nearest car is in either lane beside you, in case something happens ahead. Recheck this one or more times every minute. That, and checking when the light turns green (as sfenders just said) have saved my bacon more than once.
posted by Hardcore Poser at 7:12 AM on September 14, 2009

1) If you choose to take a driving course, make sure it's from somewhere that specializes in defensive driving, not some upstairs storefront mom and pop designed for teenagers with no foresight to get their 10 hours (or whatever) out of the way as quickly as possible. I recommend Young Drivers. They'll even practice emergency maneuvers with you. I believe they also have refresher courses for people who already have licenses. Here's the "collision free" program for licensed drivers.

2) Remember that it's your job to avoid having accidents not just to avoid causing accidents. That is, just because an accident is not your fault doesn't mean you can't be the one to prevent it. There are things you can do to avoid being rear-ended while parked at a light, hit by a driver running a red light, and hit by a door opened by a park car, or side-swiped by someone changing lanes without checking their blind spots. None of those accidents would be your fault, but it's still a good idea to learn how to avoid them, so go learn how to avoid them. Mainly they amount to this: never assume other drivers are doing what they're supposed to do (e.g. don't assume you can go through an intersection safely just because the light is green. Look: Right, Left, Centre).

3) Do what you're supposed to be doing *always* not just when it "makes sense to do it. For example, signal all the 3 turns in a 3 point turn even if you feel dumb, signal your turns and lane changes even if it's 4am on a highway in the middle of nowhere and you have seen another car for over an hour. Check your blind spot before turning right, even if there's no way in hell there would be a bicycle or pedestrian on this road. The reason is that most of the time you drive, you're on autopilot. You want your auto-pilot to be programmed at the most cautious level. If you don't signal because there's no one around, you're basically saying "before I turn, I make a decision about signalling based on traffic and conditions." That's a bad auto-pilot program. A good auto-pilot program automatically hits the signal stick thing before you turn. You don't think about it, you just do it. You get such an auto-pilot program by *always* signalling before you turn so it would feel strange to turn the wheel without signalling. Yes, even out of your own driveway. Yes, even if you're just changing lanes for 2 seconds to pass a bike. Yes, even in the parking lot. ALWAYS.

4) I'm not sure I get this mirror advice you're getting. All three mirrors point at different spots. Once they're all pointing to different places, there's still two spots you can't see. You can't see them in your mirror, that's why they're called your blind spots. If you point your mirrors at them, you're pointing your mirros away from something else which just creates a new blindspot. If i'm wrong about this, somoene please clarify. Assuming I'm right, check your blindspot before you change lanes and before you turn, particularly before you turn right. You could kill a cyclist going straight or a pedestrian about to cross your road if you turn right without checking your blindspot. I don't know why people drop this habit. Also, don't skip the blindpost check because you "know" there's no one there because you've been watching your mirror and no one entered and there shouldn't be anywhere any new cars can come from. You don't need to know if there should be someone there, you need ot know if there is someone there. Someone could have gotten there in a way they shouldn't have (u-turn) or you could have missed something. And besides, you're programming your auto-pilot to ALWAYS check your blindspot.

5) Don't talk on the phone. Even with a headset. Don't text. Don't drink (not just don't be drunk, don't drink). Don't fiddle with the radio. Avoid driving when you're very tired. Driving is serious stuff and you need to be in top form and paying attention constantly -- yes, even stopped at a red light -- to do it.

6) Stay calm. People are jerks. Don't get angry. Don't escalate. Just let it go.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 7:16 AM on September 14, 2009

In traffic:
Space is the key. Space for other driver's to be idiots, and always assume they aren't paying attention. An element of 'driving for them' will help prevent you being in the space they will occupy when they do something dumb (what usually causes accidents).

Leave room between you and the car in front - especially if they guy behind you isn't doing the same. That way you both have room to stop if something goes wrong ahead. I always leave twice as much room as I need in front of me if someone is tailgating me, as a rule.

On this aspect, if someone is being a dick and tailgating you aggressively, just completely ignore them until your first safe opportunity to move over and let them by. Dicks will always be dicks - no need to let it stress you or take it personally. Just let the idiot be further up the road when he causes the accident he is going to have...

Be aware of what is around you. Look at every car quickly and try and guess what they are doing (about to change lanes? Did they just switch their hand position on the wheel or look in their mirror?) - once you get adept at watching others, you can easily predict when someone is oblivious to their surroundings (lane wandering, constant checking inside the car, etc) and drive around them accordingly. With practice, it also won't take much of your attention, either.

Mirrors - use them as much as possible (especially your driver's side one). I drive primarily on that one, with the other two to check where cars are. However, I only use mirrors as a means to plan the move (overtaking or otherwise). Once you have planned it, check by looking to see if the piece of road you are moving into really IS clear. Never change lanes without glancing over your shoulder. Ever. Ever, ever.

Plan ahead. Much further ahead than you think. Move to the right (US or left UK) lane when you see the FIRST sign for your exit, not when the second one has just gone past. It gives you more time to match your speed to the slower traffic and get in lane without causing anyone to have to change speed other than you (ideally at all). If you are making people brake, you aren't planning your moves properly, or they are driving badly.

Entering highways - oddly, it is better to be faster than slower onto slip road/blend roads. It is easier and better for your visibility to be as fast as or faster than the traffic you are joining with; not much, just 5 or 10 mph. That way, everything you need to avoid happens in the windscreen, not over your shoulder behind pillars and in blind spots. I'm not saying barrel onto the freeway at 90 when everything is stopped, but if you are gaining on the traffic it is easier as long as you are still planning ahead.

Your car:
Service it. Check tyre pressure far more regularly than you think you should. Once a week at a minimum, or every time you drive it if it is irregularly. There are little valve caps that can give an indication when the air has dropped below the right amount - use these and just look at all four tyres regularly. If there is an issue, don't put it off. Fix it or remedy it at the first filling station.

Get your tyres checked and rotated. Get your brakes serviced. It's much easier to avoid an accident if your car is in good order - in the industry, we call this Primary Safety - the ability of your car to avoid an accident. Secondary safety is airbags and crumple zones. If you have more primary safety, you stand less chance of needing secondary safety...
posted by Brockles at 7:28 AM on September 14, 2009

Let me reiterate situational awareness. Develop a scan pattern. The majority of the time, your eyes should be outside the car, mostly in front. Scan your mirrors regularly. Glance down at the cluster from time to time if you need to check your speed or whatever, but you shouldn't need to look for very long. Build a mental model of where traffic is around you at all times, and keep it up to date so that if you need to take evasive action to avoid someone else's stupid decision, you know where you can go. Minimize other distractions in the cabin. Yes, you may want to adjust your stereo or whatever, but try to do it rarely.

Develop a mental checklist before changing lanes. Speed? Mirrors? Side window? Signal? Execute. Then again, I aviate and my brain is wired for checklists, so your milage may vary.

I tend to do everything early, to minimize the chances of getting into trouble. e.g.: brake slowly, rather than slamming on the brakes. If you need to be in the left lane to turn left, get over a bit earlier than you think you need to, then look for the street at your leisure. Drive with the flow of traffic, so long as traffic isn't doing anything patently absurd like going 30 over in a school zone. Try to keep yourself out of the situation of trying to do 3 things at once.

And yes, get your car serviced regularly.
posted by Alterscape at 7:46 AM on September 14, 2009 [1 favorite]

Here is the number one rule: Don't let them get you.

When you hear "Oh, I don't worry about your driving, it's everyone else on the road," you're hearing someone who puts their safety in traffic in other drivers' hands. I've been riding a motorcycle for the last 6 years, and since I started I've noticed a big improvement in my driving. On a bike, it doesn't matter who is at fault when you're the one laying on the pavement. When I say "don't let them get you," it means you need to take responsibility for avoiding accidents, instead of putting some of that responsibility on other drivers. Learn to keep your safety space - in front of you and on the sides. Know where you can go to escape if needed. Don't count on other drivers to obey stoplights or other traffic control devices. Slow down a bit at intersections.
posted by azpenguin at 8:29 AM on September 14, 2009

My father always taught me to leave at least one car length between me and the guy in front of me for every ten miles an hour I'm driving. So if you're going sixty, leave about 6 lengths of your car in between you and the guy in front of you. Better safe than sorry.
posted by np312 at 9:13 AM on September 14, 2009

This program is pricey but purports to do a lot of what you want in terms of paying attention to your surroundings

Also, the car length for every ten mph rule np312 mentions has been replaced by the 3-second rule, which is easier to do. But the basic idea is correct; as has been said many times give yourself plenty of room. There is a lot of good advice in this thread.
posted by TedW at 9:25 AM on September 14, 2009

Anticipate accidents. Pay attention not only to your own behavior, but to the behavior of other drivers. If you see anyone behaving out of the ordinary (swerving, driving too fast, driving too slow, accelerating/braking erratically), then keep your distance. Avoid people who appear to be distracted (talking on a phone, busy with kids, dogs in the car, car full of teenagers laughing, putting on makeup, etc.).

For example, this morning I noticed a car driving slower than usual in the left hand lane, and it turned out to be an elderly man busily scratching his head and looking in the vanity mirror instead of paying attention to the road. That was an accident waiting to happen.

To add to the situational awareness suggestions - I often (a few times a week) do an awareness check and try to mentally recall the positions of cars around me.

Don't do this while you're in difficult driving situations, of course!

Also, keep your distance from large trucks, especially anything carrying a load like a flatbed or a dump truck. The last big accident I got into involved something flying off of a flatbed truck.

Driving less will of course reduce your statistical chances of getting in an accident within a particular time span, but will not increase your ability to AVOID accidents in your lifetime. My (middle aged) mother tries to drive as little as possible, but when I am forced to ride with her as a passenger, it is terrifying experience.
posted by kenliu at 9:28 AM on September 14, 2009

I've also read Traffic by Tom Vanderbilt and, honestly, I think it's made me a better driver because it talks about natural things humans aren't so good at that are involved in the driving process (judging speed, distance, etc.), so I'm more careful when I'm trying to to those things. The whole book is pretty darned interesting.

My basic driving philosophy is don't trust anyone else to be even semi-competent at driving. This has worked out well for me thus far.
posted by elder18 at 9:31 AM on September 14, 2009

Leave more space between you and the car ahead - more than is generally suggested. Keep space on either side of you (so if necessary you can swerve into another lane without hitting a car). Don't be afraid to slow down when conditions warrant it, even if most drivers are determined to hydroplane at the speed limit.
As well as setting you up to better avoid a potential accident, having to constantly do these things should help grow your situational awareness.
Develop habits - learn instinctively that you can't change lanes until you've checked your blindspot.

Also consider investing in a good car. Features like stability control might be the difference between a near miss and an impact, on a wet freeway. That annoying beeping when passenger is not wearing their seatbelt means you don't even need to argue with people to put their belts on - the car takes the role of bad guy. A modern car can have a lot of safety features that comparable cars even just 5-10 years older don't have.
posted by -harlequin- at 10:38 AM on September 14, 2009

"Also consider investing in a good car. Features like stability control... "

According to the IIHS one-third of fatal accidents could be prevented by the technology.
posted by -harlequin- at 10:41 AM on September 14, 2009

10 years doing 100+ miles/day in the fender bender capital of the world without an accident until a few months ago. How? Be paranoid. Everyone is out to get you, even you. I try to understand how, and why. The teens too busy texting. The pissed off livery driver. The older person with slow reflexes. The ones driving slow because their water pump failed. My emotions. All of them.

The only thing I couldn't control for happened to me a few months ago. An older gentleman with slow reflexes coming down an aisle in a parking lot didn't stop fast enough when he got to the end of the aisle. I even saw him in the corner of my eye and thought "Hey, he's not stopping!" Too late to stop myself or gun it but there was no real damage. You *will* get hit. The questions are when, how, and how bad.

* I keep buffers spaces as much as possible, having learnt the car length method np312 mentions.
* I don't go near agitated drivers. If a group is agitated I pull over and wait a minute at a rest stop. I stay away from folks with bumper stickers.
* I don't use the fast lane except when traffic is light, and even then, only for a little while. It's a death trap.
* What-if games help with situational awareness (SA). What if... that car veered left? What if... that truck ran the red? etc.
* Dump the highways. My evening commute (52 miles I think) is all on back roads. I get home feeling refreshed. Imagine that. It's faster too, though not in the mornings.
* Stop thinking of your horn and lights as safety or disciplinary devices. They are extensions of your own voice. Talk. I use the lights for "Go ahead" and "Thanks!" and the horn for "Hey you!" or "I didn't appreciate that".
* Tires - I've avoided at least two accidents with Nokian WRG2 tires. If you stop quickly you'll get whiplash without the impact of an accident. That's how quickly they stop. The company's test facility is in the Arctic circle so snow is no problem and rain hasn't dented them either.
* Do this, and do it always. You can't think of driving as something you can master and just be good at always. There will always be new elements to it. It has to be an on-going discussion in your head about what is happening, why, and if any of that is confirmation bias. I.e. I could swear more people are get off of highways from the middle lane these days (past year), cutting across the slow lane. I could also swear there's a lot more HID lamps now than there were 5 or 10 years ago. I hate the flash burn I get from them. But the odds are good I'm just noticing both more now than I used too.
posted by jwells at 10:46 AM on September 14, 2009

Go to an empty parking lot, when it's wet and when it's dry, and try slamming on the brakes (if you have ABS) or pumping them (if you don't.) Make sure you know if you have ABS or not because that totally changes how you should brake if you have to stop right freaking now.
posted by callmejay at 11:41 AM on September 14, 2009

Probability doesn't help you when you're the one in the accident. Maybe a person who commutes 100 miles a day is at a higher risk of an accident than one who goes only 10 miles. But my accident was less than a quarter mile from my friend's home, and furthermore "they" do say that most accidents happen close to home.

Well no, probability doesn’t help you after an accident, but the question was about how to reduce the likelihood of an accident, which is a question about probability. They say most accidents happen close to home because most driving is close to home.

Besides, that's why student drivers spend time on the roads... to practice.
….
I disagree delmoi. Not driving = not practicing driving.

Lets say that your driving skill 'maxes out' or at least gets to a point of diminishing returns at a certain point, say after 2,000 miles. If person A drives an average of 40 miles a day, and person B drives 10, then they both get to 2,000 eventually, and they'll both be exposed to the same level of accident danger during their learning phase.

Even if it were possible to be a perfect driver, there is still the possibility of getting into an accident caused by someone else.
posted by delmoi at 12:06 PM on September 14, 2009

the question was about how to reduce the likelihood of an accident

Not really. The question was pretty clearly more 'how to reduce the chances of me having an accident while I am driving', in which case 'don't drive' is as much a non answer as 'don't have sex' is to a question about trying to avoid pregnancy. It was not at all helpful.
posted by Brockles at 12:39 PM on September 14, 2009

First: go take a course on car control, or do a track day, or something. Learning how to drive a car separately from learning how to obey the rules of the road is a good idea, so you don't feel overwhelmed.

Second: there's little to nothing you can do to avoid some accidents, but some you can see coming and avoid, just by paying attention and giving driving your full mind. "Drive defensively" is trite but accurate. You see a car in a position to pull out in front of you? Assume they might, and act accordingly, so that you're not surprised if they do.

Third: I've been driving for 22 years, and haven't had an accident in 20 of those years, but I still occasionally make a stupid mistake that almost causes one. Don't knock yourself for it, just use it as a reminder that you should never get too casual about it.

Fourth: Leave yourself a margin of safety. See those people tailgating? Taking a turn with squealing tires? Stopping at the last minute, just before hitting the car in front of them? They're not leaving themselves a margin of safety, so if something goes wrong (and it will, sooner or later) they're causing the accident just as much as whatever goes wrong did.

Fifth: Behave predictably. Realize you're about to miss your turn? Suck it up and drive another block. Signal. Proceed at a measured pace. Drive to communicate your intentions to other people through the speed and actions of your car, not hand-waving and such.
posted by davejay at 1:19 PM on September 14, 2009

Go to an empty parking lot, when it's wet and when it's dry, and try slamming on the brakes (if you have ABS) or pumping them (if you don't.) Make sure you know if you have ABS or not because that totally changes how you should brake if you have to stop right freaking now.

It was many moons ago that I learned to drive, but even then I was taught that pumping the brake was outdated. Pumping brakes is out, threshold braking (if you don't have ABS) is in. Basically you slam the brake *almost* all the way down -- you stop just before the point where the front wheel will lock. How far is that? Well, that's why you're in a parking lot (with your defensive driving instructor who's measuring just how long it takes you to stop at different speeds so you get a feel for that too, right?) getting a feel for how far that is, so if you ever need to do it, your foot will know when to stop. If the wheels do lock, ease up a tiny bit and hold there. That's the point where you should have stopped.

If you do have ABS, then just slam on the brakes as hard as you can.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 2:16 PM on September 14, 2009

Thanks for the fantastic answers everyone! This gives me lots to work with.
posted by wireless at 1:27 AM on September 15, 2009