Even the most careful driver can have a car accident due to sharing the road with drivers who may be careless or take reckless chances. Those decisions are out of your hands, and the St. Louis auto wreck attorneys at Miller & Hine see the consequences of them every day. We can’t prevent all accidents, but how can you increase your chances of surviving an accident?
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the top four ways to minimize the chances of dying in a car accident are to wear a seatbelt, follow the speed limit, avoid distractions, and never drink and drive.
How Seatbelts Save Lives
The crash force of an accident transforms a 100-pound person into a 3,000-pound force in a collision at only 30 miles per hour. Without a seatbelt, this force often causes a motorist to hit the dashboard of the car or eject through the car’s windshield, resulting in catastrophic injury.
When a motorist is properly restrained in a seatbelt, the seatbelt snaps them back against the seat cushion only microseconds after the crash. Ideally, the seatbelt works in conjunction with airbags, which form a protective cushion between the motorist and the dashboard.
Seatbelts reduce the chances of death in a car accident by about 65%. Still, NHTSA data reveals that 50% of car accident fatalities occur to unrestrained drivers and passengers.
Drive the Speed Limit
The crash force of an accident increases with every mile per hour of speed. For example, while a collision at 30 miles per hour transforms a 100-pound motorist into a 3,000-pound force, that same person is an 8,000-pound force in a collision at 80 miles per hour.
At the same time, the car’s structure collapses forcefully inward at the collision point, subjecting the motorist to multiple blunt-force traumas. Faster speed not only increases injuries, but also increases the likelihood of an accident by reducing the driver’s control over the vehicle and the tire’s grip on the roadway.
Avoid Distracted Driving
A NHTSA study warns that reading an average text message takes the driver’s eyes off the road for an average of five seconds. At 55 miles per hour, a car travels the length of a football field in five seconds—all while the driver’s eyes are not on the road.
Not only does distracted driving increase the chances of an accident, but it also exacerbates the seriousness of injuries. In a distracted driving accident, the driver may not see the collision coming and may not take evasive action or apply the brakes, increasing the force of the collision.
Know the Dangers of Impaired Driving
Drunk or impaired driving accidents continue to be a major cause of traffic accident fatalities nationwide. Not only is it crucial to call a rideshare vehicle or a friend rather than getting behind the wheel while intoxicated, but it’s also imperative to recognize the signs of an impaired driver on the road, report the driver, and put distance between your car and the drunk driver’s vehicle.
How to Increase the Chances of Surviving a Car Accident
Besides avoiding the above common causes of car accidents and increased injury severity, there are additional steps a motorist can take to reduce the chances of suffering severe injuries. These include the following:
- Reduce potential projectiles by minimizing loose objects inside the vehicle
- Steer into the direction of a skid rather than jerking the wheel in the opposite direction
- Ensure that the lap portion of a seatbelt is positioned snugly against the hips and not across the abdomen
- Keep children in size-appropriate car seats or boosters until their feet can be placed flat on the floor while sitting back against the seat cushion with a seatbelt correctly positioned
Finally, while it was once commonly believed that it was safer to not brace for a collision, more current research shows that bracing for the accident by sitting upright with feet firmly on the floor and head aligned with the spine and against the car’s headrest reduces the severity of injuries.
In addition, while bracing the arms against the steering wheel or dashboard increases the chances of wrist and arm fractures, it decreases the chances of more serious internal injuries.