Spring break season is upon us, which places many vacationers on U.S. highways for road trips to their favorite destinations. If your spring break has yet to start and you’re planning to hit the highway soon, Langdon & Emison partner David Brose offers five simple tips for safe travel.
1. Avoid Night Driving. According to David, 50 percent of fatal crashes occur at night. Darkness and fatigue play a common role in nighttime crashes.
2. Wear Your Seatbelt Properly. It can be very tempting to incorporate some slack in the belt or position the belt behind your back, especially on long road trips. However, these adjustments can render your seatbelt completely ineffective and cause severe injury in a collision.
3. Never Recline Your Seat. Most passengers do not understand the danger of reclined seats. When you recline your car seat, the seatbelt becomes useless, even if you’re wearing it. More space between the seatbelt and your body increases the risk of death or serious injury during a collision.
4. Check Your Tires. Older or aged tires are a hidden danger because they can fail even if the tread depth is proper and even if they have been used. Aged tires can look perfectly fine on the outside but fail at any time. Tires do not contain an expiration date, so have them checked before starting you trip. Have your tire pressure checked as well.
5. Avoid Distracted Driving. Nearly half a million people in the U.S. are injured or killed every year in traffic accidents attributed to texting and driving. At least 47 states and Washington, D.C. have made texting while driving illegal. Put the phone down. It can wait. Avoid other distractions that take your attention away from driving—talking on your cell phone, eating, and using a navigation system—all pose a danger to your safety.
For more information about each safety tip, check out David’s recent blog on spring break safety tips. A simple safety check can mean the difference between a spring break that is memorable or tragic. To all spring breakers, travel safe.
About David Brose
David Brose is a partner at Langdon & Emison. His practice focuses primarily on trucking accident litigation and a range of product liability litigation involving defective vehicles, airbags, tires and other types of product defects. David can be reached at 866-931-2115.
About Langdon & Emison
Langdon & Emison is recognized as one of the nation’s leading personal injury law firms, having taken on some of the world’s largest corporations on behalf of injured people and their families in courtrooms from coast to coast. Langdon & Emison represented the plaintiff in Baker vs. General Motors, a landmark lawsuit where for the first time evidence was admitted into court proving an automaker’s deliberate choice of profits over human safety. With offices in Lexington and Kansas City (Mo.), St. Louis, and Chicago, the firm has earned a national reputation as a leader in auto defect cases, trucking accidents and a full array of personal injury litigation.