One of the largest rules of the road, no matter your vehicle, is to mind your blind spots. No one wants to be merged on top of, or to be side swiped because they (or someone else) wasn’t paying attention. For this reason, it’s important to understand your blind spots, to check them religiously, and to do what you can to avoid a crash. So, we’re here to give you a little blind spot guide to minding them, understanding them, and avoiding accidents…
Guide to Blind Spots: Minding them, and Avoiding Accident
What Are They?
Blind spots are spaces surrounding a vehicle in which the driver can no longer see other objects in that space. They create a “hiding place” where cars and other objects go out of view from the driver’s perspective. This is what makes checking those spaces so important. Before driving in a vehicle for the first time, or even the fiftieth, take a moment and remind yourself of where those spots are, and how you need to go about peeking at them before a drive. In short, while you may look in your mirrors and not see anything there, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t a few vehicles lurking.
Where Are They?
When you are checking your blind spot(s), it’s important to know where they’re located. Ultimately, it varies just a bit for every person and vehicle. For most vehicles, these spots will be on the sides and rear of the car. In most cases, the right of the vehicle always has the biggest blind spot because it’s opposite of the side the driver sits on. In addition, it’s important to know that bigger vehicles have larger blind spots. So, if you drive a large truck or SUV, you will have large blind spots to the sides and rear of your vehicle.
How to Check for Them
There are several important steps to checking blind spots. First of all, you want to adjust your mirrors to the right position. While no angle will completely remove blind spots, they can limit them. In addition, for drivers with larger vehicles, you may want to add mirror additions to your truck or SUV. Mirror additions or extensions can help the driver get a better view of these spots around the vehicle.
Second, it’s important that you don’t rely on your mirrors when checking blind spots. While mirrors can assist you, that can’t do all the work for you. Instead, you’ll want to rely on your eyes when checking blind spots. That means before you merge or change lanes, you’ll want to glance over your shoulder. By doing this, you can now spot objects or other vehicles in those blinded areas.
Lastly, the process for checking those spots does not just apply to your own. You want to be aware of driving in another driver’s blinded areas. When you do this, you put yourself at greater risk of that car moving into your lane and causing a crash.