Category Archives: Safety

There is increasing evidence that sitting is not great for your health. Long periods behind the driver’s wheel can result in back pain. Getting in a car shouldn’t damage your health, and we’re not talking about avoiding accidents either. You’ll want to avoid damage to your body, which can play havoc with every aspect of your life. Ask any serious chronic back pain sufferer.

What can you do to ensure that you’re sitting comfortably, and you’re not suffering from those telling little back twinges behind the wheel, that could add up to some serious pain?

At some point in your life you might need a tow. Whether that’s because of a breakdown now, or your electrical car runs out of juice in the future, there’s no better way to get a downed vehicle off the road. Especially if you don’t have breakdown cover.

And there are times when your safety might be compromised, if you leave a broken down car on the road. You could need a quick tow to a safe place. Other times you may still need to be towed by the breakdown company. How do you get towed safely?

Driving drunk is a big no-no. Many people won’t drive when ill. But you may be shocked to find out that driving when you’re tired can be almost as dangerous.

With one in six crashes now being linked to driver fatigue, this is too significant a problem not to notice. As police can’t check for tiredness with a simple breath test – as with alcohol – it’s up to us all to ensure that we don’t get behind the wheel when we should be hitting the hay.

Skids are more likely to occur when there is a loss of friction and therefore traction on the roads. Snow, ice and water can cause a lack of proper grip on the tarmac causing your car to slip and slide.

Throw understeer, oversteer, acceleration and braking into the mix and you could have difficulty controlling your vehicle. When this happens it’s vital you remain calm. Even if you can’t avoid an accident, you can reduce the danger to yourself and others – by taking remedial action.

How can you avoid getting into a skid – and more importantly, what can you do if you should find yourself in one of the two different types of skid, oversteer or understeer?

Yes, there is the Highway Code. There’s also a set of penalties and fines that keep you on the straight and narrow when behind the wheel. But what about that unspoken code of road behaviour that’s simply not on? You know, the kind of rules that are simply about being a decent human being. For instance, no one with a shred of moral dignity would dream about diving into a car parking spot whilst someone else is backing into it. Would they?

Everyone had to learn at some point. Learning to drive is considered a major life achievement for young people and it’s never too late to get behind the wheel. Of course, once the lessons have finished and you’ve passed the test, it’s a whole different world. You can no longer rely on the sagely wisdom of your instructor, and you’re out there on your own.

What are the mistakes that can plague new drivers and more importantly, what’s our best advice for avoiding them?

Being in a car can often give you the illusion of protection and invulnerability. You’re so separated from the outside world you can forget the more pertinent realities of the situation. Many people even drive their cars with warning lights lit up on the dash, or other dangerous symptoms. However, whether you know it’s coming or it arrives like a bolt from the blue, the last thing you want to deal with is a car breakdown.

You’ve been out and met some friends. The subject of when to use fog lights has come into the conversation, and no one seems to have the answer. What do you do next? That’s right. You turned to good old Google and found this article.

We’re keen to clear up this age old argument once and for all. Many drivers do actually use their fog lights at the incorrect time, and maybe you or your friends could be one of them. Let’s settle this matter once and for all.

So far this year we have told you how to replace your headlight bulbs to make sure you have full brightness on the road. Now it’s time for us to look at how to make sure you’re safe when behind the wheel and the sun has gone off on its merry way.

There may be less traffic about at night but unfortunately this darkened time is when most of the accidents happen. This is because of reduced visibility and increased difficulty in judging speed and distance when the light is poor.