The Importance of Defensive Driving–Tips to Avoid Los Angeles Car Accidents

Los Angeles is known for its heavy traffic. With so many cars on the road, accidents are bound to happen. It is important to make sure that you do your part as a driver to help avoid accidents–you can do this by driving defensively.

What is Defensive Driving?

Simply put, defensive driving means personally using safe driving techniques to help avoid causing car accidents that can harm others. It can be easy to look around at other drivers and criticize their driving, but it is better to think about what you can do to drive safely. Defensive driving includes driving skills that go even beyond regular traffic laws.

A few defensive driving techniques include:

Avoid distracted driving–It can be tempting to try and do other things while you are driving, such as eating, putting on make-up, or looking at your phone. However it is crucial to keep your eyes on the road. By staying focused on simply driving you can be better at driving defensively
NO texting and driving--Texting while driving is an absolute no. To be a defensive driver, leave messages unread and do not respond until you get to your destination.
Follow at a safe distance–When driving, maintain 3-4 seconds worth of space between your car and the car in front of you. Doing so gives you time to react and brake if the car in front of you suddenly stops.
Keep the speed limit–not only is this the law and will help you avoid a ticket, but it is also a good defensive driving technique.
Know how to react in an emergency--many drivers don’t know how to respond if something does happen, such as an obstruction or animal in the road. Remember to stay calm, keep a hold of the steering wheel, don’t swerve.
Check your blind spots and signal properly–If you do plan to change lanes, use caution. Check your blind spots and use your signal to warn other drivers. Be aware that some drivers won’t use their signal before changing lanes, so stay alert.

Using these defensive driving techniques can certainly help you avoid a Los Angeles car accident. Still, you cannot always control the actions of other drivers, so it is possible that you can still be involved and injured in a car accident.

If you are injured in a car accident due to the fault of another driver, it is important to contact a skilled Los Angeles car accident injury attorney as soon as possible. When another person causes your injuries, you deserve compensation for your injuries. A skilled personal injury attorney can help you get that compensation by helping you bring a personal injury claim against the party responsible.

At Walch Law we have years of experience handling car accident injury cases in Los Angeles and the surrounding counties. We offer a FREE case consultation–we can go over the details of your case and answer your questions about a personal injury claim. Contact us today at 866-465-8792.