The 4 Types of Driving Distractions and How to Identify Them
Posted by admin at 31 December 2017, at 23 : 26 PM
Everyone knows that driving while distracted is incredibly dangerous. It greatly increases the risk of ending up in an accident and it can cause a lot of pain and grief that nobody wants to experience. As such, it’s important to identify when you’re distracted so you can greatly reduce your chances of being in a fatal accident.
Sadly, no number of safety features in a car can replace good road awareness and clarity when driving. It’s important to understand that there are 4 main types of driving distractions that we need to look out for, and it’s much easier to avoid them when we’re conscious that they’re happening to us. So to help you out, we’ve isolated these four cases and will be explaining them in detail below so that you have a better chance of avoiding them in the future for your own safety.
Physical Distractions
If your hands are on anything but the wheel or your gear stick, then you’re going to need an auto accident lawyer sooner or later. Nobody wants to end up in an accident, but driving while under a physical distraction such as smoking, eating, texting or even patting your dog’s head in the passenger seat can greatly increase the risk of you ending up in an accident. Avoid physical distractions but keeping your hands firmly on the wheel and if you need to take your hands off to do anything but to change gears, stop the car in a safe location.
Visual Distractions
Visual distractions are probably the most common type of distraction that you’ll experience when driving. Some visual distractions are necessary such as looking at your GPS or looking at different mirrors when making a turn, but it’s important to understand that you need to be fully aware of your surroundings at every time. Switching your eyes between your rearview mirror and your navigation system should come naturally. If it doesn’t, then you may want to practice driving a little more before taking your car onto the road.
Mental Distractions
If something is on your mind or if you’re driving while sleepy, then you’re not only putting yourself at risk but also your passengers and the people around you. You could also be mentally distracted because you’re having a conversation on your phone, even if you are using a hands-free kit. In other words, anything that causes you to think about anything but the road is considered a mental distraction and could severely impact your safety on the road.
Auditory Distractions
Lastly, we have auditory distractions. These are just noises that can distract you and are often linked with mental distractions. Listening to an audiobook during the car could be causing both a mental and auditory distraction, and the loud crying of a child in the car could be distracting you from threats on the road. Loud music is also another common auditory distraction that you need to watch out for if you want to be safe on the road.