Call (916) 872-9000 to speak with a licensed insurance agent.

Call (916) 872-9000 to speak with a licensed insurance agent.

4 Ways to Be a Safer Driver

Posted by Joe DeMeo, April 4, 2018

Distracted driving is one of the leading causes of car accidents, and it’s not just teenagers committing this offense! We’re all guilty of distracted driving at times, but it’s unwise to allow the behavior to continue. When you’re not one hundred percent focused on the road and other drivers around you, your chances of an accident, injury, and rising auto insurance premiums increase dramatically. So follow these five tips to reduce distractions while you drive.

Turn off your cell phone. Turn off your cell phone, or put it on airplane mode, so that you aren’t tempted to use it while driving. Some drivers even place their phones in a purse or in the backseat, out of sight and (hopefully) out of mind. Since using a cell phone while driving is illegal in many areas, this tip can at least save you money wasted on a ticket.

Limit the number of passengers, and amount of activity inside the vehicle. If you find yourself more easily distracted lately, avoid loading the car with children, inebriated relatives, or too many chatty Cathys. Even your dog can be a distraction, and riding loose in the car is not safe for Fido, anyway.

Never drive when you’re tired. Driving while drowsy actually increases your risk of an accident by about four times. It is usually safer to pull over to the side of the road, and either take a nap or call for help. Trying to get home faster only increases your odds of an accident.

Don’t try to multi-task. Yes, sitting in traffic can be boring and feel unproductive. But it really is not a good time to balance your checkbook, eat a snack, apply makeup, brush your hair, or any other activity. Food spills are actually cited as a causative factor in far more car accidents than you would think! Even if traffic is slow, you should keep your eyes and attention on the road at all times.

No matter who you are, your brain is limited in the amount of information it can process at one time. Whenever you’re engaged in a potentially life-risking activity, such as driving, you should utilize all of your mental resources to focus on the task at hand. Reducing the amount of distractions in the vehicle could save your life, or the lives of other drivers, so follow the above tips faithfully until they become regular habits.

Need more information on your insurance options?

Contact us online to learn more

Contact Us

Close Accessibility Tools
Accessibility Controls Reset
Content Adjustments
Font Size

Default

Line Height

Default

Content Scaling

Default

Highlight Titles
Highlight Links
Highlight Forms
Align Left
Align Center
Align Right
Focus Mode
Color Adjustments
Desaturate
Monochrome
Contrast

Default

Saturation

Default

Accessibility Statement

Despite our attempts to make this website accessible for everyone, there may still be some pages or sections that are not completely accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or do not have a suitable technological solution to make them accessible. Nevertheless, we are always striving to enhance our accessibility by adding, updating, improving its options and features, and incorporating new technologies.

We want to provide our users with the best experience possible, so we strive to support as many browsers and assistive technologies as possible.

If you wish to contact this website's owner, please use the contact form on the website.

Our User Interface Adjustment Options

Font adjustments - With this tool, users can modify font size, style, letter spacing, and line height for improved alignment and readability.

Color adjustments - Users can customize their color contrast profiles to light, dark, desaturated, and monochrome.

Content highlighting - Users can prioritize key elements such as links, forms, and titles.

Content focus - Users can enable focus mode to highlight the current page information based on their mouse movement.

Close