Getting into an accident can be frustrating. From calling the police, contacting your insurance, and reporting your accident to the DMV, there are many things you have to do in the minutes, days, and weeks after an accident that can be stressful.
That’s not all. Getting into an accident can be scary too. Whether you suffered injuries or not, it can be difficult to get back behind the wheel when you’re worried about getting into an accident again.
Buying a new car can help you regain some of your confidence after getting into an accident, especially if you look for a car with these safety features.
A head-on collision can be frightening and dangerous. It can be especially frustrating if it was a collision that could have been prevented if only you were more focused on the road. That’s where forward collision warning systems come in.
If a car or an obstacle is approaching the front of your car quickly, your vehicle will sound an alarm that is impossible to ignore, encouraging a knee-jerk response to push on the brake pedal. Some systems even include pedestrian detection so you don’t have to worry about accidentally running into another person, in addition to another vehicle.
This system can give you peace of mind when you’re driving. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) data show that this kind of technology reduces rear-end accidents by over 25 percent.
An accident can occur in a fraction of a second. Unfortunately, our reaction time just can’t keep up. Whether we see the car ahead of us slam on their brakes or not, we may not be able to brake fast enough. Automatic emergency brakes can help.
Emergency braking systems automatically apply the brakes when approaching another vehicle, a barrier, or a pedestrian quickly. These systems also have the ability to apply more braking power if you aren’t pushing hard enough.
Emergency braking includes the forward brake, but systems can also include rear braking. That way you don’t accidentally run into another car or a person when you’re backing out of your space in a large parking lot.
There are many reasons why we might get distracted and drift out of our lane. Using a cell phone is an obvious one, but you may drift simply because you’re thinking about something else or you have been on the road a while and your eyes are getting strained. Lane departure warnings can help.
When enabled, this feature will alert you every time you start to veer out of your lane. That way, you don’t accidentally run into another driver.
This technology can be helpful no matter where you drive, but it is especially helpful on the interstate and the highway, as high-speed collisions are especially dangerous.
Once you use a rearview backup camera, you’ll wonder how you ever got along without one! This is perhaps the most effective and popular safety feature because it enables you to see out of the back of your car as if you were staring straight out the back window, all without craning your neck.
Most rearview cameras also include alarms. If someone walks or drives by, the system will sound an alarm and in some cases blink and indicator light on the screen to alert you to the fact that the camera has detected an obstacle.
Interested in buying a car without a backup camera, or looking to make your existing car safer? Backup cameras can easily be installed in existing cars.
Those pesky blind spots on your car can cause a lot of trouble. Vehicles can literally disappear, so when you think it’s safe to merge into another lane, it actually isn’t.
There are a lot of ways car manufacturers are trying to reduce or eliminate blind spots. Some are high-tech, and some are low-tech. If you’re shopping for a car, look for:
Cruise control can make driving on the interstate and highway a lot easier, but that doesn’t mean it is safer. Traditional cruise control sets your car at a certain speed and holds it there, regardless of what the traffic is doing around you. If you aren’t paying attention, you could find yourself in an accident.
Autonomous cruise control is different. You set a speed, just like you would with traditional cruise control, but it can adjust your vehicle’s speed for you. If a car in front of you is going slower than you are, it will automatically slow down. If you merge into the other lane away from traffic, it will automatically resume your previous speed. Not only can it prevent accidents, it prevents you from having to disengage and reengage your cruise control all the time.
LED headlights are detested by some because they are so bright. They can make other drivers in other cars uncomfortable, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Bright and annoying LED lights can’t be ignored!
LED headlights have other benefits too. Because they are so bright, they can illuminate more of the road, enabling you to see better on dark country streets. They also last longer than traditional halogen bulbs. Chances are, you’ll never have to replace your headlights as long as you own your car.
If you’re feeling nervous to get back behind the wheel after an accident, maybe you should get behind a different wheel! When shopping for a new car, find one with one or more of these safety features and you’ll enjoy greater peace of mind the next time you hit the road.
