Top tips for road safety

Millions of drivers in the UK take to the roads every day and, while many of us complete our journeys successfully, unfortunately some are involved in accidents. On average, there are over 750 car crashes that result in injury every day on British roads.

There is some seasonal effect on the car accident rate, with boiling hot August days and freezing November nights causing particular problems for motorists. Read more about safe summer driving or Read more about safe winter driving.

Many motorists have to make a claim on their car insurance policy following an accident, which often makes it impossible for them to get a cheap motor insurance quote for several years. This extra car insurance cost plus having to pay out on an excess means that causing a car crash usually costs drivers dearly.

Although cars are getting safer and you are now less likely than ever to suffer serious injury in a motoring accident, the chance of injury is impossible to avoid and serves as a warning to the drivers on our roads.

Despite the effects of increased motor insurance quotes and possible injury, many drivers have not curbed their dangerous driving habits and put themselves at a high risk of being involved in a collision.

duck2water Car Insurance Services has come up with some road safety tips that don't take much to practise but could prevent injury or an expensive motor insurance claim.

Don't use your mobile phone whilst driving
The law was changed in 2003 to make driving while talking on a hand-held mobile phone an offence. Updates to this law have seen penalties become harsher and from 2007, drivers caught committing this offence can be given three penalty points and a £60 fine - not good news if you are looking for a cheap motor insurance quote.

Even motorists who are using hands-free kits will not escape prosecution if it can be proven that they were not in proper control of the vehicle.

The reason why it was made illegal to drive while talking on a hand-held mobile phone is that it is impossible to keep both hands on the wheel whilst doing so. However, it is also very distracting and someone talking on the phone - hand-held or hands-free - will produce similar reaction times to a drink driver.

Talking on a mobile phone while driving significantly increases your chance of an accident so, if only for the sake of your cheap motor insurance rates, it is best to switch your phone off whilst behind the wheel. If you do crash while you are using a mobile phone, you could be looking at a charge of careless or dangerous driving.

Don't drink drive
Drink driving is a serious problem in the UK and is considered to be responsible for about 10 road fatalities each week on our roads. Not only are drink drivers more likely to have a serious accident but they are also more likely to crash.

Even small amounts of alcohol are enough to affect your ability to drive. Your reaction times will slow and you will become more likely to engage in risky driving behaviour, such as speeding and overtaking in unsafe places. This combination drastically increases your chance of causing an accident and having to claim on your motor insurance policy.

There are a huge range of factors that determine the extent to which you are affected by alcohol, including gender, age, metabolism, how much you have eaten recently and how used to drinking alcohol you are. It is a very complex calculation that means it is impossible to say you are definitely safe to drive after having a pint or two.

Drivers who are caught drink driving by the police face a minimum disqualification period of one year, as well as a fine of up to £5,000 and possible jail time. A second conviction for drink driving within 10 years will see these limits rise and a minimum of three years' disqualification.

Cut your speed
Although speed is estimated to be directly responsible for only around 5% of UK car accidents, it combines with poor weather conditions, fatigue, drink driving, distraction and many other factors to cause many more crashes.

The most famous TV campaign stated "Kill your speed. Not a child." This targeted drivers who believed they are just "flaunting" the law by driving at 35 or 40 rather than 30, as the limit demands.

However, despite numerous campaigns and statistics which show that the chances of a pedestrian dying double when hit by a car at 35mph compared to 30mph, many drivers continue to speed.

The degree of injury is not the only thing that a reduction in speed can affect. A car travelling at 30mph is much more likely to avoid a collision altogether than one travelling at 40mph because the driver has extra time to react. Travelling at slower speeds is positive news for your motor insurance quotes since a conviction for speeding or driving too fast for the conditions can see penalty points added to your licence.

Take a break every two hours
Many motorists drive long distances every day, the majority of whom travel in order to attend meetings and carry out other aspects of their job. While most of these drivers are under pressure to reach their destination on time, this should not be used as an excuse for driving whilst dangerously fatigued.

Falling asleep at the wheel is believed to be a major factor in more than 10% of road accidents. This figure rises to 20% for motorways and dual carriageways as the monotony of a straight road does little to engage the driver's brain and can cause a tired driver to drift off to sleep.

A less extreme version of being fully asleep at the wheel yet one that is just as dangerous is that of a "micro-sleep". It can last just a couple of seconds but that is more than enough time for a serious accident to occur. Even drivers who are simply fatigued will exhibit much slower reaction times and find it harder to concentrate on the changing road around them.
If you want to keep your motor insurance quotes cheap and your car (and you) in one piece, it is recommended that you stop every two hours when driving.

Keep your distance
Each year, many people sacrifice their cheap motor insurance quote by travelling too close to the car in front.
Shunts are the most common type of car accidents on our roads and they are generally caused by people who are tailgating - whether consciously or not.

In good weather conditions, drivers are advised to follow the two-second rule; that is, be travelling at least two seconds behind the car in front. This can be calculated by picking an object at the side of the road, like a sign or tree, and counting the intervening seconds between the car in front passing it and you passing it.

While the two-second rule is good for fine weather, it should be extended to four seconds if it is rainy or the road surface is slippery. You should leave even more room if you feel conditions are particularly dangerous.

Saving money on your car insurance
Now you have all the best advice on how to stay safe on the roads, all you need is a fantastic motor insurance quote to go with it. This is where duck2water Car Insurance Services comes in.

As we are an online car insurance company, our customers enjoy a lot of benefits. It is really quick and easy to get an online motor insurance quote - in fact most people find it takes just a matter of seconds to fill out our straightforward quotation form.

Another benefit of being an online car insurance firm is that we get to offer our customers cheaper car insurance than much of our competition. We don't have the huge costs of a large call centre nor do we spend thousands advertising on TV or radio and we pass every penny we save onto you.

Many people who get an online motor insurance quote with duck2water find they save 25% on their previous car insurance premium.

Why not get a quote now and see if you can too?

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