Although the United Kingdom has one of the lowest road traffic-related death rates in the World, minor accidents happen here quite often. Claims 24 has made a shortlist of the most common causes of road traffic accidents in the United Kingdom. Read it carefully and avoid these human mistakes to save not only yourself but others as well.
No.1. Lost Control Over Vehicle
Although we have all passed our driving tests and are confident with vehicle controls, you would be surprised at how many drivers cause accidents due to losing control of their vehicle. Even if you have had over 10 years of driving experience or feel like the second Lewis Hamilton – it can take just seconds for you to lose control over your vehicle.
There are several factors influencing your ability to control your vehicle.
- One of the most common factors is speeding (especially on unknown roads). Failing to perform certain manoeuvres at safe speeds results in many serious accidents.
- Another common reason is the failure to drive according to weather conditions. There are some basic rules such as to start slowing down earlier when it’s raining, but a lot of drivers forget to consider these when driving in bad weather. Sometimes even the sun can reflect into your eyes affecting your vision so you need to be prepared for everything.
- Finally, everyone should take care of their vehicles. It is very easy to lose control over a vehicle when the vehicle is not technically safe to drive. Most often drivers are even not aware of the problem – they just fail to regularly take their vehicle to service or fix small problems at times (which evokes bigger issues long term).
No.2. Drunk Driving
It’s Friday night and you decided to relax with friends at the local pub. The evening is going so well that you do not want to go home early so you have another beer. At the end of the evening, you think you are absolutely fine and can safely drive home on your own. Although some people get lucky and manage to make it home safely, you cannot put your and others’ safety in the hands of luck. Luck will not pay for a damaged car nor sit in jail instead of you. Many different things can happen when drunk driving such as losing concentration, speeding, falling asleep, or simply not seeing objects. And the best prevention of getting yourself involved in an accident when drunk driving is simply developing a habit of not driving if you know you will be drinking.
No.3. Reckless Driving
The main reason for such driving is being in a hurry. However, when in a hurry, drivers can do dangerous moves and forget some basic rules such as looking at mirrors, indicating when turning, or keeping a safe distance from other vehicles. Reckless driving is often aggressive driving, which is not safe for anyone who is on the road.
Using a mobile phone whilst driving can be one of the causes of reckless driving. Although not allowed, many drivers still keep using their phones which results in reduced attention on the road and sudden, unexpected moves such as sharp braking or changing lanes without indicating.
No.4. Misjudgement of Others
When driving one of the most important skills is the ability to predict others’ behavior – whether it’s another driver, motorcyclist, cyclist, or pedestrian. The sad reality is that a lot of drivers fail to judge others on the road. One of the most dangerous places is roundabouts where drivers miscommunicate or just start taking action without looking properly. The same is with junctions and places where visibility is limited.
Keeping the recommended distance between vehicles is always a good idea since it gives you more time to observe what is happening around you and make the right decision.
No.5. Failure to look properly
Failure to look properly is the most common reason for accidents in the UK and it causes about one-third of all accidents. There are many reasons why this happens.
One of the reasons is the driver’s emotional and physical state. In the morning, people, especially those who have not slept well, feel sleepy and tired. Therefore it is not a surprise that they forget to look around or simply do not look properly. During the daytime, everyone is in a rush. Drivers can be emotional which reduces focus on the road and the rules. After work, the majority of us are tired and just look forward to getting home – looking properly might not seem the most important thing in our minds.
Another reason is weather and road conditions. It might be heavy rain, sun, snow, or darkness that does not allow you to see everything.
Claims 24 hope that you will be careful whilst on the road and take care of yourself and others. However, if you have been injured in a road traffic accident, we will do our best to help you. Contact us today and one of our friendly advisers will talk to you about all the available options after a road traffic accident.
