Posts Tagged ‘Raising’

Raising Safe Drivers Who Know How to Prevent Pompano Beach Car Accidents

Saturday, November 10th, 2012

Every parent wants to raise safe drivers – teens who operate a vehicle courteously and safely. To reduce the risk of your child being injured in a Pompano Beach car accident:

1) Start with smaller responsibilities. Learning traffic rules and good road habits start well before the teen years. When your child is very small, he or she will learn some road rules by learning to cross roads by themselves. Later, you can help your child by teaching them to ride a bicycle safely, avoiding Pompano Beach bicycle accidents.

2) Teach your child car safety through games. Many video games involving cars include racing and stunts, so make sure to balance that with online games that focus on traffic safety. These games are great for small children, as they can teach your child about safety rules and traffic laws.

3) Be a good role model. When you drive carefully, refuse to drive distracted, and obey the laws, your children see that driving is important. Children mirror their parents more than many parents realize, so driving courteously and safely helps set your child up for safe driving habits.

4) Get your teen into driving classes early and offer additional training. Many parents start swimming lessons early to protect their children from Pompano Beach drowning accidents and pool accidents. Driving classes can be the same way; they can teach your teen the basics of car safety so that your teen can stay safer. Providing additional driver training and defensive driver training is also importance, since most basic driver education classes only offer limited in-car lessons and do not focus extensively on defensive driving, an important skill that can help your teen prevent a Pompano Beach traffic accident.

5) Let your new teen driver drive sometimes. Driving in the car with your teen helps you notice any bad habits that your teen driver is forming and lets you get additional driver training for your teen, if needed. Driving together also helps your teen develop driving skills and confidence.

6) Set rules. Having written rules about passengers, cell phone use, and drinking and driving helps ensure that your teen knows the rules and the consequences for breaking them.

7) Keep in mind that even if your teen is not yet driving, they may be picking up habits from peers. If your teen is under the age of 16 but has older friends or siblings, he or she may be noticing different driving habits and may be at risk if peers drink and drive. From an early age, make sure that your child knows the dangers of Pompano Beach drunk driving accidents and the dangers of reckless driving. Make sure that your child knows that they can call you (and possibly other family members) for a drive with no questions asked if they are in a dangerous situation.


Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Raising Awareness About Florida Car Accident Risks

Wednesday, December 15th, 2010

Many Florida pedestrian accidents, car accidents, and truck accidents are very preventable. Many are caused by risk factors which could be avoided with a little work. Becoming aware of the risky behaviors which lead to Florida car accidents is the first step. Avoiding the risk factors – such as distracted driving, speeding, and fatigue, to name just a few – is the second important step in preventing Florida truck accidents and car accidents. Finally, you may wish to raise awareness about risk factors to convince other drivers to drive safe. Here’s how we can all spread the message:

1) Social media and the Internet. The Internet and social media sites are a great way to spread the message about the dangers of drunk driving, the importance of seat belts, and other life-affirming lessons.

2) Safety campaigns organized by law enforcement. Law enforcement agencies routinely establish safety campaigns to remind drivers about safe driving. Most agencies are happy to have volunteers who spread the message. Call your local law enforcement agency to learn about their current campaigns as well as opportunities for public involvement.

3) Public talks and discussion. When Oprah ran a show about distracted driving earlier this year, many people and media outlets suddenly began talking about the issue. While few people have that type of clout, spreading the message on a smaller scale and taking part in discussions about safe driving can save lives.

4) Petitions to legislators. Signing petitions for new laws that would make the streets safer sends an important message to legislators and in some cases changes laws for the better. In many cases, laws have been changed due to a few determined people who wanted to make the roads safer.

5) Pledges among students and drivers. Pledges are another way to make Florida roadways safer. When you take a pledge to stop distracted driving, drunk driving, and other dangerous driving habits, you make the roads a little safer by making your own driving safer.

Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog

Preventing Florida Car Accidents May Involve More Than Raising Awareness About Distracted Driving

Friday, January 18th, 2008

A new survey conducted by Leger Marketing has found that while most drivers agree that distracted driving is dangerous, about 75% of drivers polled say that they allow for such distractions while driving rather than actively striving to eliminate such distractions from the car. The survey results seem to suggest that in order to reduce Florida car accidents caused by distracted driving, it’s not enough to simply let drivers know about the dangers of distracted driving: more has to be done to compel drivers to nix distractions before they get behind the wheel.

The survey further revealed that drivers have skewed notions about which distractions are most dangerous behind the wheel. About 88% of drivers polled agreed that texting on a cellphone was dangerous, but only 19% thought that adjusting an iPod or radio while driving was a problem. Another 83% of respondents said that talking on a cellphone while driving was wrong. This is despite the fact that most experts agree that any distractions to the driver can increase the risk of an accident.

According to the survey results, many drivers continue to engage in behaviors they know are dangerous and distracting. For example, 60% of drivers admitted they adjust their car’s stereo while driving while 8% admitted to texting or emailing behind the wheel. Another 15% of drivers admitted to talking on a cell phone while driving, even though most respondents agreed that the behavior was risky.

According to Allstate, 80% of car accidents can be attributed to distracted drivers. While the survey results from the Leger Marketing study suggest that more drivers are getting the message about distracted driving, it is also clear that drivers are not getting the full message. Drivers are still confused about distracted driving caused by behaviors not linked to mobile devices. As well, even though drivers know the dangers of distracted driving, many drivers continue to engage in risky behaviors. To prevent more Florida pedestrian accidents and car accidents, increased awareness and wide-spread changes to driver behavior need to be made.

Florida Car Accident Lawyer Blog