Safety While Driving
It can be great fun for parents to drive their car with children. But, the fun also comes with a risk. They need to drive carefully for the apparent reason.
When you drive your car with your kids, you need to prevent your car from encountering any safety hazards.
It will help if you follow the following precautions to drive safely with your children:
Keep Your Car in Good Working Condition
Before you drive your car with your kids, ensure that it is in excellent working condition. It should not happen that you have to stop your car on the way to repair a tyre.
It will also help if you refer to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recommendations. For example, it recommends that you ensure that your car is up-to-date on its oil change, battery check, and tire rotation.
In addition, you should also check your car’s make and model for safety recalls and address any related issues before the trip. You can check this on the NHTSA website with the help of your vehicle identification number (VIN). You can generally find it on the lower left of your car’s windshield. Also, you can find it on your vehicle registration or car insurance cards.
Moreover, research the weather conditions for areas that you will travel to. It will help you to purchase snow chains, new tires, or a snow brush if necessary.
You should also ensure that you adhere to your car service schedule.
Be Prepared for the Bad Weather
It may so happen that you encounter bad weather during your drive. So, you need to be prepared for it. For example, an unexpected storm can occur while driving that can be stressful for your kids.
But, the challenge arises that you cannot predict the weather correctly. What you can do is, look up typical weather patterns for the area you will travel to. It can give you a rough idea of the possible weather.
In this way, you can be mentally prepared if you encounter such unforeseen weather eventualities.
The National Weather Service offers future climate predictions and weather reports from previous years for the entire country. You can refer to them before you start your journey with your kids.
Another thing to note is, avoid driving at high speed to your destination if the weather gets bad. You might tend to drive at high speeds that can cause you an accident. According to the Federal Highway Administration, 21 per cent of car accidents happen in adverse weather conditions each year.
What you can do is, stop at a parking lot and wait for the weather to return to normalcy or stay in a hotel and resume driving the next day.
Alternately, you can drive slowly because slick roads can be dangerous. The United States Department of Transportation recommends reducing your speed by one-third of the speed limit on wet roads and at least one half of the legal limit on snow-packed roads.
Take Safety Supplies with You
Take some emergency supplies with you for cases involving car malfunctions. Such things can include a portable cell phone charger, flashlight, jumper cables, tire pressure gauge, extra windshield wiper fluid, blankets, and flares.
In addition, you can carry jackets, face masks, non-perishable food, and water because you might need to stop for longer periods. Also, carry a first aid kit to use in case someone gets injured.
Sleep Well Before You Drive
Ensure that fatigue does not play a role in encountering an accident during your drive. So, get adequate sleep the night before the day you drive.
Fatigue is one of the most potential dangers of driving for long periods. Drowsiness has been the cause behind several accidents and is almost like drunk driving.
Driving after being awake for around 18 hours is like driving with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.05 per cent. And, bear in mind that a BAC of 0.08 per cent is considered intoxicated.
Therefore, sleep for seven and nine hours the night before you drive with your kids. It will help you to feel the best while driving. You can also stop during your drive if you feel tired.
Keep the Road Safety Basics in Mind
As years pass and you become more comfortable with driving, you might forget the basic safety rules. Therefore, ensure that you brush your knowledge with the essential car driving safety rules before driving with your kids.
Ensure that all passengers in your car, including your kids, buckle the seat belts before you drive. Seat belts are one of the most effective ways to reduce injuries during car accidents.
In a crash, the seat belt can keep you in the vehicle and gives the best opportunity to deal with the crash forces.
If your kids get thrown away from the car during a crash, it will be very risky. Therefore, do not forget to buckle them with seat belts.
Another risk factor is using a mobile phone while driving. You should avoid texting or browsing the internet with your mobile phone while driving.
At the same time, avoid other distracting habits, such as scanning the radio or using your car’s navigation system while driving. These activities take your attention away from the road. And, you will not be able to safely drive because you will not be able to pay full attention to the road.
Moreover, avoid eating while driving.
Follow Car Seat Safety Rules
Keeping your kids is your top priority while driving. Make sure that the car seats are safe and secure. Therefore, you need to use the right car seat for your child, corresponding to age, weight, and height.
You can take a note of the following while choosing a car seat for your kids:
- A rear-facing car seat can be an ideal seat for your kid. Usually, such seats are installed in the backseat. And, it can help you position your kid to face the rear of the car. You should use the seats until your kid reaches the maximum height or weight limit specified by the car seat manufacturer. Usually, kids are safe in the seats until they are four years old or weigh 40 pounds. However, check these details with the specific manufacturer.
- A forward-facing car seat is also suitable for the backseat. These seats position your kids to face the front of the car. You can choose such seats for kids of a minimum of five years of age. First, check the height and weight requirements specified by the manufacturer.
- A booster seat raises your kid’s height to allow seat belts to fit properly. You can use these seats if your child has outgrown the body dimensions for a forward-facing car seat but are not big enough only to use a seat belt.
Install Your Car Seat Properly
Correct installation of the car seat is essential to keep your children safe while driving. But, you should know the correct ways of seat installation. As such, go through the user’s manual before the installation.
Next, you need to check whether the seat is tight enough. And for that, hold the bottom and move the seat side to side and front to back. If the car seat moves more than an inch either way, then the installation is not correct.
Conclusion
Your kids are precious. So, you should take adequate care while driving to ensure safety. The tips outlined in this article will help you a lot.
