Summertime Safety Tips, Part 14: Say Goodbye to Summer!

It’s Labor Day weekend — the unofficial end to summer and the last entry of our Summertime Safety Tips blog series. And as we do every holiday weekend, we want to make sure you stay safe if you’re hitting the roadways to visit friends and family. Especially this weekend with the effects of Hurricane Hermine being felt along the Jersey coastline.

Driving in bad weather is never easy and can lead to nasty accidents. According to the Federal Highway Administration, weather events can serious impact roads, causing travel delays, lane obstructions, visibility issues, and an increase in accident risks. Approximately 22 percent of vehicle crashes each year, at least 1,259,000, are weather-related. In fact on average, nearly 6,000 people are killed and more than 445,000 people are injured in weather-related auto accidents each year. And the number one weather event that causes the accidents is rain.

So if you’re heading out this Labor Day weekend and it starts to rain or get windy, keep these safety tips in mind:

• Avoid using cruise control on your car. Although it saves you on gas and keeps you at a steady speed, it increases your chance of losing control of your car in wet weather. You may need to reduce the car’s speed to prevent loss of traction, which can’t be done on cruise control. So turn it off.
• Keep alert and your eyes on the road. You never know what’s going to happen in this kind of weather.
• Remember to slow down and leave room between vehicles. By reducing your car’s speed, you also reduce the chance of hydroplaning. And by leaving room between you and the car in front of you gives you ample time to step on the brakes in case the driver ahead of you runs into trouble.
• If your car begins to skid, don’t panic. Instead, continue to look and steer in the direction you want the car to go. And don’t slam on the brakes.
• If’ you’re feeling sleepy, pull over and rest for a bit. Remember, the drowsier you are, the more likely your reaction time will be off.
• And of course, don’t drink and drive.

Thanks for following along with our blog series! If you get into an accident this Labor Day weekend, remember to contact the Law Offices of Anthony Carbone for a free consultation.

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